There remains considerable uncertainty surrounding the future of effective weed control in agriculture. In Conservation Agriculture (CA) systems where ploughing has been replaced with no-tillage systems, weed management without reliance on herbicides has proven to be even more challenging.Weed management in Conservation Agriculture systems reviews the range of alternative, non-chemical methods of weed control which can be implemented to improve the product...

This multi-contributor, international volume synthesizes contributions from the world's leading soil scientists and ecologists, describing cutting-edge research that provides a basis for the maintenance of soil health and sustainability. The book covers these advances from a unique perspective of examining the ecosystem services produced by soil biota across different scales - from biotic interactions at microscales to communities functioning at regional and global scales. The book leads t...

Reviews advances in cultivation practice such as seed establishment and more efficient irrigation techniques;Summarises developments in ‘climate smart’ agriculture such as conservation tillage and organic wheat cultivation;Discusses ways of supporting smallholders improve wheat cultivation in North Africa and other regions in the developing world

Sustainable agriculture is a rapidly growing field aiming at producing food and energy in a sustainable way for our children. This discipline addresses current issues such as climate change, increasing food and fuel prices, starvation, obesity, water pollution, soil erosion, fertility loss, pest control and biodiversity depletion. Novel solutions are proposed based on integrated knowledge from agronomy, soil science, molecular biology, chemistry, toxicology, ecology, economy, philosophy an...

Reviews advantages and disadvantages of different protected cultivation systems, from greenhouses and net houses to aquaponic and vertical farming systems.Detailed assessment of current research on optimising the two main variables in protected cultivation: the aerial environment and root development.Particular focus on systems control to optimise product quality and environmental impact.

Sustainable agriculture is a rapidly growing field aiming at producing food and energy in a sustainable way for humans and their children. Sustainable agriculture is a discipline that addresses current issues such as climate change, increasing food and fuel prices, poor-nation starvation, rich-nation obesity, water pollution, soil erosion, fertility loss, pest control, and biodiversity depletion. Novel, environmentally-friendly solutions are proposed based on integrated knowledge from scie...

Assesses the viability of management strategies implemented to improve soil health, e.g. intercropping and zero tillageProvides a comprehensive coverage of the dimensions of soil healthReviews the role of organic and other amendments in improving soil health

This collection features five peer-reviewed reviews on weed management in regenerative agriculture.The first chapter provides an analytical review of the adoption of Conservation Agriculture (CA) in Sub-Saharan Africa by smallholder farmers, focusing on the challenges posed by weed management. The chapter assesses chemical and non-chemical weed control methods and their benefits in CA systems.The second chapter considers the adoption of integrated weed mana...

Agriculture in the 21st century will need considerable modification to remain both productive and sustainable. Greater production is needed to meet the needs of our still-growing populations and to combat hunger and poverty. Declines in soil health and the pollution of water sources are making many of our production systems less tenable. These adverse trends are exacerbated more and more by the impacts of climate change.There are, fortunately, alternative methods available for agri...

Summarises current good agricultural practice in maize cultivation, from seed selection to nutrient management, conservation agriculture, rotations and intercropping;Reviews advances in understanding and managing diseases and pests such as viruses, nematodes and weeds;Discusses ways maize cultivation can be made more ‘climate smart’

Detailed coverage of the latest research on plant physiology, including flowering and pollination in trees, apple fruit development and ripening;Reviews current best practice in tree training, pruning and thinning operations, including the use of growth regulators and new areas such as mechanisation and automation;Discusses the range of fungal and viral diseases affecting apples

Reviews key advances and best practice in cultivation techniques across the value chain of organic farmingDiscusses ways of monitoring and improving the environmental impact of organic crop productionParticular focus on ways of supporting organic farming in the developing world