Resource use efifciency, ecological intensiifcation and sustainability of intercropping systems

• Published in: 农业科学学报（英文版） no. 8; pp. 1542 - 1550
• Main Authors: MAO Li-li, ZHANG Li-zhen, ZHANG Si-ping, Jochem B Evers, Wopke van der Werf, WANG Jing-jing, SUN Hong-quan, SU Zhi-cheng, Huub Spiertz
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Col ege of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, P.R.China%Col ege of Agricultural Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, P.R.China%Institute of Cotton Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences/State Key Laboratory of Cotton Biology, Anyang 455004, P.R.China%Centre for Crop Systems Analysis CSA, Department of Plant Sciences, Wageningen University, Wageningen 6708 PB, The Netherlands%China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing 100038, P.R.China 2015
• Subjects: over-yielding; resource use efifciency; sustainability; farming systems; abiotic stress
• ISSN: 2095-3119; 2352-3425
• DOI: 10.1016/S2095-3119(15)61039-5

The rapidly growing demand for food, feed and fuel requires further improvements of land and water management, crop productivity and resource-use efifciencies. Combined ifeld experimentation and crop growth model ing during the past ifve decades made a great leap forward in the understanding of factors that determine actual and potential yields of monocrops. The research ifeld of production ecology developed concepts to integrate biological and biophysical processes with the aim to explore crop growth potential in contrasting environments. To understand the potential of more complex systems (multi-crop-ping and intercropping) we need an agro-ecosystem approach that integrates knowledge derived from various disciplines:agronomy, crop physiology, crop ecology, and environmental sciences (soil, water and climate). Adaptation of cropping sys-tems to climate change and a better tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses by genetic improvement and by managing diverse cropping systems in a sustainable way wil be of key importance in food security. To accelerate sustainable intensiifcation of agricultural production, it is required to develop intercropping systems that are highly productive and stable under conditions with abiotic constraints (water, nutrients and weather). Strategies to achieve sustainable intensiifcation include developing tools to evaluate crop growth potential under more extreme climatic conditions and introducing new crops and cropping systems that are more productive and robust under conditions with abiotic stress. This paper presents some examples of sustainable intensiifcation management of intercropping systems that proved to be tolerant to extreme climate conditions.