Proyecto I+D
Project TED2021-129527B-I00 CLIMCOVER
Towards sustainability of woody orchards by adoption of cover crops: carbon sequestration, greenhouse gas emissions and soil functionality and biodiversity
Of National scope. With a Public character. It has been granted under a regime of Competitive.
Modern agriculture is challenged to feed the increasing population in a sustainable way. The systems that will ensure these premises are those that combine innovative solutions, with monitoring sensors and with conservation agriculture practices that minimize the impact of production on ecosystem services. In last years, agrarian sustainable intensification has been proposed as a feasible alternative to ensure food security while contributing to climate change mitigation/adaptation and promoting ecosystem services such as soil quality and biodiversity. For all these reasons, CLIMCOVER main objective is to determine the benefits in carbon sequestration and storage, greenhouse gas emissions and soil functionality and biodiversity in woody orchards by implementation of cover crops, and the effectiveness of this system compared to current monocrop orchards, ensuring the development of sustainable intensification in different zones in Spain. To this end, will be studied at 12 fields in 6 zones of 4 regions (Andalusia, Extremadura, Murcia and Valencia) the comparison of the traditional management, with bare soil in the alleys, with sustainable management, with at least 5-years of implementation of cover crops in alleys. We will study for one crop cycle how the cover crops promote the soil functionality recovery (soil quality, primary productivity, plant health, nutrient cycling, organic matter mineralization and greenhouse gas emissions), and how this is enhanced by soil
