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Soil health is a term used to describe the general state or quality of soil, and in an agroecosystem, soil health can be defined as the ability of the soil to respond to agricultural practices in a way that sustainably supports both agricultural production and the provision of other ecosystem services. Conventional agricultural practices cause deterioration in soil quality, increasing its compaction, water erosion, and salinization and decreasing soil organic matter, nutrient content, and soil biodiversity, which negatively influences the productivity and long-term sustainability of the soil. Currently, there are many evidences throughout the world that demonstrate the capability of conservation agriculture (CA) as a sustainable system to overcome these adverse effects on soil health, to avoid soil degradation and to ensure food security. CA has multiple beneficial effects on the physical, chemical, and biological properties of soil. In addition, CA can reduce the negative impacts of conventional agricultural practices on soil health while conserving the production and provision of soil ecosystem services. Today, agricultural development is facing unprecedented challenges, and CA plays a significant role in the sustainability of intensive agriculture. This review will discuss the impact of conservation agricultural practices on soil health and their role in agricultural sustainability.

AbstractThe impact of different arable farming practices on soil erosion is only partly resolved, and the effect of conservation tillage practices in organic agriculture on sediment loss has rarely been tested in the field. This study investigated rainfall-induced interrill sediment loss in a long-term replicated arable farming system and tillage experiment (the FAST trial) with four different cropping systems: (1) organic farming with intensive tillage, (2) organic farming with reduced tillage, (3) conventional farming with intensive tillage, and (4) conventional farming with no tillage. Measurements were carried out under simulated heavy rainfall events with runoff plots in 2014 (fallow land after winter wheat) and 2017 (during maize growth). Organic farming decreased mean sediment delivery compared to conventional farming by 30% (0.54 t ha−1 h−1). This study demonstrated that reduced tillage in organic farming decreased sediment delivery (0.73 t ha−1 h−1) compared to intensively tilled organic plots (1.87 t ha−1 h−1) by 61%. Nevertheless, the combination of conventional farming and no tillage showed the lowest sediment delivery (0.24 t ha−1 h−1), whereas intensively tilled conventional plots revealed the highest delivery (3.46 t ha−1 h−1). Erosion rates were much higher in June during maize growth (2.92 t ha−1 h−1) compared to those of fallow land after winter wheat (0.23 t ha−1 h−1). Soil surface cover and soil organic matter were the best predictors for reduced sediment delivery, and living plant cover from weeds in reduced organic treatments appeared to protect soil surfaces better than plant residues in conventional, no-tillage plots. Soil erosion rates were significantly lower when soil cover was above 30%. In conclusion, this study demonstrates that both organic farming and conservation agriculture reduce soil losses and showed for the first time that reduced tillage practices are a major improvement in organic farming when it comes to soil erosion control.

Conservation agriculture, which is based on minimum tillage, permanent soil cover and crop rotations, has widely been promoted as a practice to maintain or improve soil quality and enhance crop productivity. To a large extent, the beneficial effects of conservation agriculture are expected to be provided by permanent soil cover with crop residues. Surface crop residues play an important role for crop growth through their benefits on soil-related structural components and processes in the agro-ecosystem, referred to in this study as agro-ecological functions. Through a meta-analysis of the literature, we have studied the relative effects of surface crop residue levels on the performance of a set of agro-ecological functions compared with a no-till bare soil, i.e., without surface residues. The selected agro-ecological functions were soil water evaporation control, soil water infiltration, soil water runoff control, soil loss control, soil nutrient availability, soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks and gains, weed control and soil meso- and macrofauna abundance. The potential effects of crop residue cover were quantified using boundary line models. Our main findings were (1) 8 t ha −1 of residues were needed to decrease soil water evaporation by about 30% compared to no-till bare soil. (2) To achieve the maximum effect on soil water infiltration, water runoff and soil loss control, residue amounts of at least 2 t ha −1 were required. (3) The effect of increasing the amounts of surface crop residues on soil nutrient supply (N, P and K) was relatively low; the boundary line models were not significant. (4) The average annual SOC gain increased with increasing amounts of residues, with a mean of 0.38 t C ha −1  year −1 with 4 to 5 t ha −1 of residues. (5) Weed emergence and biomass can be reduced by 50% compared to a no-till bare soil with residue amounts of 1 t ha −1 or more. (6) There was a weak response in soil meso- and macrofauna abundance to increasing amounts of surface crop residues. The maximum effect corresponded to an increase of 45% compared to a no-till bare soil and was reached from 10 t ha −1 of residues. Our findings suggest that optimal amounts of surface residues in the practice of conservation agriculture will largely depend on the type of constraints to crop production which can be addressed with mulching.

Climate change poses serious risks to Indian agriculture as half of the agricultural land of the country is rainfed. Climate change affects crop yield, soil processes, water availability, and pest dynamics. Several adaptation strategies such as heat- and water stress-tolerant crop varieties, stress-tolerant new crops, improved agronomic management practices, improved water use efficiency, conservation agriculture practices and improved pest management, improved weather forecasts, and other climate services are in place to minimize the climatic risks. The agriculture sector contributes 14% of the greenhouse gas (GHG) from the country. Mitigation of GHG emission from agriculture can be achieved by changing land-use management practices and enhancing input-use efficiency. Experiments in India showed that methane emission from lowland rice fields can be reduced by 40–50% with alternate wetting and drying (AWD), growing shorter duration varieties, and using neem-coated urea according to soil health card (SHC) and leaf color chart (LCC). Dry direct-seeding of rice, which does not require continuous soil submergence, can reduce methane emission by 70–75%. Sequestration of carbon (C) in agricultural soil can be promoted with the application of organic manure, crop residues, and balanced nutrients. India has taken several proactive steps for addressing the issues of climate change in agriculture. Recently, it has also committed for reducing GHG emission intensity by 45% by 2030 and achieving net zero emission by 2070. The paper discusses the major impacts of climate change, potential adaptation, and mitigation options and the initiatives of Govt. of India in making Indian agriculture climate-smart.

Despite an historical connection between the arts and sciences, in the past century, the two disciplines have been greatly siloed. However, there is a renewed interest in collaboration across the arts and sciences to support conservation practice by understanding and communicating complex environmental, social, and cultural challenges in novel ways. 6&6 was created as a transdisciplinary art–science initiative to promote a deeper appreciation of the Sonoran Desert. Six artists and six scientists were paired to create work that explored conservation issues in the Sonoran Desert and the Gulf of California. In-depth interviews were conducted with the artists and scientists throughout the 4-year initiative to understand the impact of 6&6 on their personal and professional behaviors and outlook. The findings from this case study reveal the role that intensive, place-based, and transdisciplinary art–science programs can play in shaping narratives to better communicate the patterns and processes of nature and human–environment interactions.

  Conservation agriculture is often assumed to reduce soil N 2 O emissions. Yet, studies analyzing the specific effect of conservation agriculture practices on N 2 O emissions give contradictory results. Herein, we synthesized a comprehensive database on the three main conservation agriculture practices (cover crops, diversified crop rotations, and no-till and/or reduced tillage (NT/RT)) to elucidate the role of conservation practices on N 2 O emissions. Further, we used a random meta-forest approach to identify the most important predictors of the effects of these practices on soil N 2 O emissions. Averaged across all comparisons, NT/RT significantly decreased soil N 2 O emissions by 11% (95% CI: –19 to –1%) compared to conventional tillage. The reductions due to NT/RT were more commonly observed in humid climates and in soils with an initial carbon content < 20 g kg –1 . The implementation of cover crops and diversified crop rotations led to variable effects on soil N 2 O emissions. Cover crops were more likely to reduce soil N 2 O emissions at neutral soil pH, and in soils with intermediate carbon (~20 g kg –1 ) and nitrogen (~3 g kg –1 ) contents. Diversified crop rotations tended to increase soil N 2 O emissions in temperate regions and neutral to alkaline soils. Our results provide a comprehensive predictive framework to understand the conditions in which the adoption of various conservation agriculture practices can contribute to climate change mitigation. Combining these results with a similar mechanistic understanding of conservation agriculture impacts on ecosystem services and crop production will pave the way for a wider adoption globally of these management practices.

This editorial reflects on the history of the conservation movement, the strong continuing influence of its colonial past, and the counter‐emergence of a more pluralistic and respectful worldview. Conservation Letters seeks to support and foster an ethical and inclusive discipline of conservation that discards elements of its colonial and racist history. This will involve broadening the disciplinary scope of “conservation” and paying greater attention to traditional ecological knowledge and nonwestern conservation approaches. We also see a particular need for theoretical advances that guide conservation practice by informing and connecting different kinds of expertise to understand social‐ecological interactions and their implications for both people and ecosystems. Conservation can and should play a vital role in securing the joint future of ecosystems and people, but it will only achieve its full potential if it retains its social license and stays relevant to emerging concerns and values.

Water scarcity is an escalating global concern that poses significant challenges to agriculture. The need to feed a growing population, coupled with changing climate patterns, demands a re-evaluation of water use efficiency in major field crops. Water efficiency in agriculture is a critical facet of sustainable water management in rural areas, where agriculture often serves as a primary economic activity. In rural regions, where water resources are often limited, efficient agricultural water management is vital to ensure food security, economic stability, and environmental sustainability. In this review, we have discussed various measures to improve water use efficiency or productivity in agricultural systems. Adopting the strategies for enhancing water productivity at plant and field level may include: rain water harvesting in rural area, soil moisture conservation practices like mulching, crop residue retention and conservation agriculture, better utilization of stored soil moisture by best crop management interventions, irrigation scheduling, integrated farming systems i.e. multiple usage of water in agriculture by combining various farm enterprises like crop production, dairy and fishery. Beside these, reviewed the water use efficiency for important field crops around the world. Review also discussed about how beneficial public policies particularly watershed management in rural area are needed to establish the right socioeconomic conditions for boosting WUE in the agriculture.

Black soil conservation has attracted increasing attention from researchers. However, few studies have addressed black soil degradation and conservation mechanisms in the black soil region of Northeast China. In this study, we investigated black soil in Bei’an City in Heilongjiang Province and conducted comparisons with soil in other locations with similar environmental conditions and agricultural production levels but different reclamation histories. We predicted and analyzed the changes in the organic matter and nitrogen contents of black soils after different numbers of years under reclamation by using a gray forecast model. In addition, we aimed to identify soil conservation practices that consider the physical, chemical, and microbial properties of soils in the black soil region of Northeast China for implementation in the long term. The results showed that human and natural factors, such as long-term unsustainable cultivation practices and soil erosion, have caused the structural degradation of black soil in Northeast China. The annual decreases in the organic matter and nitrogen contents of black soil in Bei’an City were determined as 0.17% and 0.18%, respectively, using the gray forecast model. Preliminarily explorations identified the potential mechanisms associated with the effects of soil conservation practices on the organic matter and nitrogen contents, and microbial dynamics in black soils. Finally, according to the current implementation of black soil conservation practices in the black soil region of Northeast China, the outlook for future soil conservation practices is reasonable. This study provides a theoretical reference to meet the aims of protection and utilization for black soil in Northeast China in the future.

There is a vigorous debate about the capacity of conservation biology, as a scientific discipline, to effectively contribute to actions that preserve and restore biodiversity. Various factors may be responsible for the current great divide that exists between conservation research and action. Part of the problem may be a lack of involvement by conservation scientists in actually conducting or helping implement concrete conservation actions, yet scientists' involvement can be decisive for successful implementation, as illustrated here by the rapid recovery of an endangered hoopoe population in the Swiss Alps after researchers decided to implement the corrective measures they were proposing themselves. We argue that a conceptual paradigm shift should take place in the academic conservation discipline toward more commitment on the part of researchers to turn conservation science into conservation action. Practical implementation should be regarded as an integrated part of scientific conservation activity, as it actually constitutes the ultimate assessment of the effectiveness of the recommended conservation guidelines, and should be rewarded as such.