Global systematic review with meta-analysis reveals yield advantage of legume-based rotations and its drivers

• Published in: Nature communications Vol. 13; no. 1; p. 4926
• Main Authors: Zhao, Jie, Chen, Ji, Beillouin, Damien, Lambers, Hans, Yang, Yadong, Smith, Pete, Zeng, Zhaohai, Olesen, Jørgen E., Zang, Huadong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 22.08.2022; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 631/158/2456; 631/158/670; 704/158/670; Agricultural practices; Agricultural production; Agriculture; Crop diversification; Crop Production; Crop rotation; Crop yield; Cropping systems; Crops; Crops, Agricultural; Environmental impact; Fabaceae; Fertilizers; Fertilizers - analysis; Field tests; Food; Food production; Humanities and Social Sciences; Legumes; Meta-analysis; multidisciplinary; Organic farming; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Vegetables
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-32464-0

Diversified cropping systems, especially those including legumes, have been proposed to enhance food production with reduced inputs and environmental impacts. However, the impact of legume pre-crops on main crop yield and its drivers has never been systematically investigated in a global context. Here, we synthesize 11,768 yield observations from 462 field experiments comparing legume-based and non-legume cropping systems and show that legumes enhanced main crop yield by 20%. These yield advantages decline with increasing N fertilizer rates and crop diversity of the main cropping system. The yield benefits are consistent among main crops (e.g., rice, wheat, maize) and evident across pedo-climatic regions. Moreover, greater yield advantages (32% vs. 7%) are observed in low- vs. high-yielding environments, suggesting legumes increase crop production with low inputs (e.g., in Africa or organic agriculture). In conclusion, our study suggests that legume-based rotations offer a critical pathway for enhancing global crop production, especially when integrated into low-input and low-diversity agricultural systems. Crop rotations including legumes have been proposed as a strategy to enhance food production. Here, the authors conduct a global meta-analysis on legume-based crop rotations, showing that legume pre-crops increase 20% of yield in average across various crops and climatic regions.