Nitrogen yield advantage from grass–legume mixtures is robust over a wide range of legume proportions and environmental conditions

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dc.contributor.authorSuter, Matthias
dc.contributor.authorConnolly, John
dc.contributor.authorFinn, John A.
dc.contributor.authorLoges, Ralf
dc.contributor.authorKirwan, Laura
dc.contributor.authorSebastià, Ma. T.
dc.contributor.authorLüscher, Andreas
dc.date.accessioned2017-02-08T11:50:12Z
dc.date.embargoEndDate2025-01-01
dc.date.issued2015
dc.description.abstractCurrent challenges to global food security require sustainable intensification of agriculture through initiatives that include more efficient use of nitrogen (N), increased protein self-sufficiency through homegrown crops, and reduced N losses to the environment. Such challenges were addressed in a continental-scale field experiment conducted over 3 years, in which the amount of total nitrogen yield (Ntot) and the gain of N yield in mixtures as compared to grass monocultures (Ngainmix) was quantified from four-species grass–legume stands with greatly varying legume proportions. Stands consisted of monocultures and mixtures of two N2-fixing legumes and two nonfixing grasses. The amount of Ntot of mixtures was significantly greater (P ≤ 0.05) than that of grass monocultures at the majority of evaluated sites in all 3 years. Ntot and thus Ngainmix increased with increasing legume proportion up to one-third of legumes. With higher legume percentages, Ntot and Ngainmix did not continue to increase. Thus, across sites and years, mixtures with one-third proportion of legumes attained ~95% of the maximum Ntot acquired by any stand and had 57% higher Ntot than grass monocultures. Realized legume proportion in stands and the relative N gain in mixture (Ngainmix/Ntot in mixture) were most severely impaired by minimum site temperature (R = 0.70, P = 0.003 for legume proportion; R = 0.64, P = 0.010 for Ngainmix/Ntot in mixture). Nevertheless, the relative N gain in mixture was not correlated to site productivity (P = 0.500), suggesting that, within climatic restrictions, balanced grass–legume mixtures can benefit from comparable relative gains in N yield across largely differing productivity levels. We conclude that the use of grass–legume mixtures can substantially contribute to resource-efficient agricultural grassland systems over a wide range of productivity levels, implying important savings in N fertilizers and thus greenhouse gas emissions and a considerable potential for climate change mitigation.ca_ES
dc.description.sponsorshipCoordination of this project was supported by the EU Commission through COST Action 852 ‘Quality legume-based forage systems for contrasting environments’. A contribution to the research leading to these results has been conducted as part of the AnimalChange project which received funding from the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under the grant agreement no. 266018.ca_ES
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.12880
dc.identifier.idgrec023456
dc.identifier.issn1354-1013
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10459.1/59203
dc.language.isoengca_ES
dc.publisherWileyca_ES
dc.relation.isformatofReproducció del document publicat a https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.12880ca_ES
dc.relation.ispartofGlobal Change Biology, 2015, vol. 21, núm. 6, p. 2424-2438ca_ES
dc.relation.projectIDinfo:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/FP7/266018
dc.rights(c) John Wiley & Sons, 2015ca_ES
dc.rights.accessRightsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccessca_ES
dc.subjectClimate change mitigationca_ES
dc.subjectClimatic gradientca_ES
dc.subjectFood securityca_ES
dc.subjectN fertilizer replacementca_ES
dc.titleNitrogen yield advantage from grass–legume mixtures is robust over a wide range of legume proportions and environmental conditionsca_ES
dc.typearticleca_ES
dc.type.versionpublishedVersionca_ES
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