Uganda is the largest producer of organic commodities in Africa. While most of the literature associate the start of organic agriculture in Uganda with the first certified project, no accounts exist about non-certified organic agriculture before 1993. Both in Europe and in the USA, pioneers drove non-certified organic agriculture as a response to economic, ecological and social crises. Uganda suffered two decades of civil war ending in 1986 causing multiple crises. We explore how post-war conditions influenced the emergence of organic agriculture in Uganda. We conducted individual semi-structured interviews with 12 organic agriculture experts from Central and Southwestern Uganda. Interviews were held in English using interview guides informed by a transition theoretical perspective. Interviews were tape-recorded, transcribed and analyzed using deductive and inductive coding. Our analysis shows that the degraded environment, food insecurity and economic instability after the war created a sense of urgency for the rehabilitation of livelihoods. Pioneers, including civil society activists, farmers, entrepreneurs and researchers, responded by promoting low-cost, resource-conserving technologies and agronomic practices to smallholder farmers. Economic liberalization, decentralization and institutional vacuum eased pioneers’ activities, despite facing opponents from the government and research. Through experimental learning, demonstration farms and cooperation with the Catholic Church, public extension services, researchers and international development-oriented non-governmental organizations, pioneers reached out to farmers in Eastern, Central and Southwestern Uganda. As challenging as post-war crises may be, they offer opportunities for changing development trajectories. Therefore, reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts can accommodate sustainability concerns and allow the introduction of course-changing measures in any sector.

This commentary argues for strengthening the dialogue between the social and natural sciences as part of a more comprehensive sustainable approach to ecological farming practices that go beyond a focus on specific labels and certifications. It nuances the approach provided by Home et al. in their study of Swiss farms converting to organic agriculture, in emphasizing the need to deepen the study of such farming practices by including a broad vision of global value chains and a pragmatic approach to innovation and the different stakeholders involved. Ultimately, it calls for a more complex approach to eco-agriculture in its widest sense, that goes beyond dichotomies about conversion, certification and labeling. This would provide alternatives for researchers and other actors to move forward in theory and practice.

Ecologically based farming conserves and improves the soil resource and protects environmental quality by using organic or natural resources without the application of synthetic chemicals. Soil quality assessment indicates the ability of management systems to optimize soil productivity and to maintain its structural and biological integrity. Our objective was to evaluate the effect of ecologically based management on biochemical characteristics of soil [soil quality indicators (SQI)] as an assessment of soil quality. The study was conducted on an ecologically based farming enterprise established on gently sloping soils of Sharpsburg silt loam (fine montmorillonitic, mesic Typic Argiudolls) in Clay County, Missouri, which was previously under conventional corn and soybean production. The transition to organic farming began in 1995, which included a primary management strategy to restore soil organic matter consisting of the establishment of native prairie plants and the application of composted vegetative residues and litter from horse and laying hen operations. Soils were collected at 0–10cm depths from sites under organic production (orchard and vegetable), managed prairie/pasture and from adjacent unmanaged fields during 2003–2008 for soil quality assessment. Soil organic carbon (SOC) and water-stable soil aggregates were considerably increased by up to 60 and 72%, respectively, in organic production sites compared with tilled cropland by the fifth year of assessment. Organically managed systems and restored prairie sites significantly increased (P<0.05) soil enzyme activities compared with unmanaged grass and tilled cropland. For example, dehydrogenase and glucosaminidase activities increased by 60 and 73%, respectively, under organic vegetables compared with tilled cropland. Soil enzyme activities were significantly correlated with SOC content (r values up to 0.90, P<0.001). The results of the soil quality assessment suggest that ecologically based management successfully restored biological activity of silt loam soils previously under intensive conventional agriculture. The system practiced at the study sites illustrates how resources internal to the farm (i.e., composts) can be used to manage soil productivity.

Despite increasing land degradation in sub-Saharan Africa, investment in sustainable land management (SLM) remains low. Empirical evidence show that smallholder farmers tend to prioritize investing in SLM practices with short-term turnover—e.g., composting and crop residue integration—in order to improve soil fertility and yields to the neglect of practices like agroforestry whose benefits tend to materialize in a relatively longer period. While it is crucial for farmers to prioritize both short-term and long-term SLM practices for the maintenance of overall ecosystem health, the factors that shape the concurrent adoption of short-term and long-term SLM practices remain underexplored. Using data from a cross-sectional survey with smallholder farming households (n = 512) in Malawi, we employed logistic regression to examine the determinants of the concurrent adoption of short-term and long-term SLM practices. Our findings show that plot size, farmer-to-farmer knowledge sharing, presence of a chronically ill person in the household, active household labor size, wealth and women's autonomy are noteworthy determinants. A unit increase in plot size was associated with increased odds (OR = 1.41, p < 0.01) of simultaneously adopting short-term and long-term SLM practices. Similarly, a unit increase in the active labor size of the household (OR = 1.30, p < 0.001) was positively associated with the concurrent adoption of short-term and long-term SLM practices. Households with no chronically sick person were 3.2 times more likely to adopt short-term and long-term SLM practices simulataneously compared to those with chronically sick persons. Farming households that exchanged farming information (OR = 2.50, p < 0.001) with other households had significantly higher odds of adopting short-term and long-term SLM practices concurrently than those that did not share farming information. Compared to households in the poorest wealth category, those in the richer (OR = 3.14, p < 0.001) and richest (OR = 3.64, p < 0.001) wealth categories were both significantly more likely to adopt short-term and long-term SLM practices concurrently. These findings suggest that initiatives targeted at promoting the holistic adoption of SLM practices—a combination of both short-term and long-term practices—must pay attention to contextual nuances including household wealth, gender, farmer training and land access dynamics.

A primary challenge of managing vegetable production on a small land base is the maintenance and building of soil quality. Previous studies have demonstrated the benefits of cover crops for improved soil quality; however, small growers struggle to fit cover crops into rotations. Small-scale growers with limited available land are under significant pressure to maximize their saleable yield and often work to maximize output by using intensive cropping practices that may include both early and late season crops, thus limiting the typical shoulder season windows in which cover crops can be grown. In-season living mulches may be an effective strategy to provide small-scale growers the benefits of cover crops with less land commitment than cover crops used in typical rotations. However, research on living mulches is generally not suited to small-scale organic production systems due to the typical reliance on chemical herbicide to suppress mulches. An experiment was designed with the goal of evaluating living mulch systems for space-limited organic vegetable production. In a 2-year study, four living mulch crops (buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum), field pea (Pisum sativum), crimson clover (Trifolium incarnatum) and medium red clover (Trifolium pratense)) and a cultivated control with no mulch cover were planted in early spring each year. Snap beans (Phaseolus vulgaris var. Tavera), transplanted bell peppers (Capsicum annuum var. Revolution), and transplanted fall broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. Imperial) were then planted directly into living mulches. During each summer growing season, living mulches and weeds were mown between-rows and hand-weeded in-row approximately every 10–14 days as needed for management. Labor times for mowing and cultivation were found to be higher in all treatments relative to the cultivated control. An inverse relationship between living mulch biomass and weed biomass was observed, demonstrating that living mulches may contribute to weed suppression. However, lower vegetable yields were seen in the living mulch treatments, most likely due to resource competition among vegetables, living mulches and weeds. High pre-existing weed seedbank and drought conditions likely increased competition and contributed to reduced vegetable yield.

Climate variability and declining soil fertility pose a major threat to sustainable agronomic and economic growth in Zambia. The objective of this study was to assess crop yield, land and labor productivity of conservation agriculture (CA) technologies in Eastern Zambia. On-farm trials were run from 2012–2015 and farmers were replicates of a randomized complete block design. The trials compared three CA systems against a conventional practice. Yield and net return ha−1 were determined for maize and legume yield (kg ha−1) produced by ridge and furrow tillage, CA dibble stick planting, CA animal traction ripping and direct seeding. The dibble stick, ripline and direct seeding CA systems had 6–18, 12–28 and 8–9% greater maize yield relative to the conventional tillage system, respectively. Rotation of maize with cowpea and soybean significantly increased maize yields in all CA systems. Intercropping maize with cowpea increased land productivity (e.g., the land equivalent ratio for four seasons was 2.01) compared with full rotations under CA. Maize/cowpea intercropping in dibble stick CA produced the greatest net returns (US$312-767 ha−1) compared with dibble stick maize-cowpea rotation (US$204-657), dibble stick maize monoculture (US$108-584) and the conventional practice (US$64-516). The net-return for the animal traction CA systems showed that maize-soybean rotations using the ripper were more profitable than the direct seeder or conventional ridge and furrow systems. Agronomic and economic benefits of CA-based cropping systems highlight the good potential for improved food security and agricultural productivity for smallholder farmers.

How to graze livestock sustainably is an important and complex question. The debate between rotational and continuous grazing has been ongoing since the 1950s, yet evidence is perennially mixed. We used scientometrics to understand the structure of science on Holistic Management (HM), the most contentious of these adaptive practices. We used papers in Web of Science since 1980 citing the work of HM's ‘father’, Allan Savory, as a way of delineating a field that is otherwise chaotic with terminology. Results show an increasingly diverse use of Savory's work geographically and in terms of subject areas. Taking a positive position on HM seems most likely for those doing farm-scale (rather than experimental) work in dry climates. Bibliographic factions align with the various disciplines working on grazing research and also their expressed opinion on HM practices. Factions represent disciplinary strength, suggesting barriers for integrative work but also the need for the resolution of competing understandings in specific contexts with diverse participants to inform grazing decisions.

In a variety of ecosystems, interactions between soil microbiota and weedy plants can strongly affect population and community dynamics of these plants. However, weed–soil microbe interactions are not well characterized in field-crop agroecosystems. In Minnesota (USA), we repeatedly applied a fungicide (benomyl) to field plots in a corn–soybean crop rotation in each of 3 years, and sowed experimental weed communities containing host species for arbuscular-mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and non-host species. Benomyl typically suppresses formation of mycorrhizal symbiosis in AMF-host plant species, and may also affect other soil fungi. We assessed weed density and biomass production, and monitored AMF colonization rates in each of 3 years. We found that weed density, biomass, community composition and the relative performance of AMF-host and non-host weed species were all significantly responsive to fungicide applications, although for all attributes responsiveness was variable. Fungicide application increased total weed density and biomass production in nearly all cases; most effects were modest but reached a maximum of 49%. Fungicide application also increased the relative performance of non-host species in most cases, although most effects were again modest. Our findings are the first assessment of responses by field-crop weeds to direct manipulation of soil microbial communities in a field setting, and suggest that the population and community ecology of these weeds can be strongly affected by the fungal component of soil microbiota.

Organic farming in the European Union has been supported widely since 1994. Against the background of discussions concerning the design and level of organic farming support, and the relevance of organic payments for the economic success of organic farms, the question emerges as to the impact of support payments on the sustainable development of organic farming in Europe. Different databases and methodological approaches have been chosen to demonstrate the role of organic farming payments for the viability of organic farms for selected Western and Eastern European study countries. Economic analyses are based on national Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) in the Western European countries and on ‘typical farms’ in the Eastern European group. As a supplement to the modeling analyses, a detailed survey of 50 organic farms was carried out in each of the study countries. Organic farming payments were assessed to be ‘important’ or ‘very important’ to the economic situation on farms by the majority of the farmers surveyed. The outcome of the economic analyses shows that organic farming payments contribute on average 4–6% of gross output in the Western European countries and 4–19% in the Eastern European countries studied. The results put the level of specific support for organic farming into perspective, as other support payments and market returns contribute larger shares of total farm revenue in all the countries analyzed. Organic farming payments account for 10–30% of family farm income plus wages in Western European study countries and—after EU accession—up to three-quarters in some of the Eastern European countries, thus highlighting the considerable vulnerability of organic farms to changes in organic farming policy. As a general trend in both the West and the East, it can be observed that the policy dependency of farms has increased over recent years. Changes in organic area support, which are actually under discussion in some countries, must be carried out with a sense of proportion, since support payments will continue to play an important role in the profitability of organic farms. Nevertheless, in order to reduce dependency on area payments, organic farming support should follow an integrated approach, using a mix of support measures including, e.g., the improvement of processing and marketing facilities, support for farm cooperation and activities designed to enhance demand.

The Environmental Protection Agency's phase-out of the pesticide azinphos-methyl (AZM) has encouraged the transition of apple pest management toward more environmentally and socially sustainable practices. This study reports on results of a 2009 survey of conventional apple growers in Washington State. Growers were asked about their approaches and attitudes toward the AZM phase-out and barriers to the adoption of reduced-risk insecticides (AZM-alternatives) as part of their integrated pest management (IPM) programs. Chi-square and analysis of variance (ANOVA) techniques were used to examine relationships between actions and attitudes toward the phase-out and grower characteristics. Results showed that Washington apple growers have begun eliminating AZM and adopting AZM-alternatives. However, larger growers (in terms of acreage and income) and growers more familiar with Washington State University's (WSU's) educational resources were more likely to have already reduced their AZM use. These results suggest that larger farms can play an important role in increasing the sustainability of conventional agriculture, despite a common association of sustainable agriculture with small farms. Results also suggest that agricultural extension services could be well served to extend their outreach to smaller growers and others lagging in the transition to more sustainable apple pest management.

The development of organic protected cultivation taking place in densely populated areas has raised the question whether it is an environmentally friendly production system. The present study investigated energy consumption of organic pear production in two production systems, namely in traditional Chinese solar greenhouses and in the open field. In both production systems, energy output/input ratio and energy productivity were used as indicators to determine the energy efficiency; yield, cost of production, net economic return per land area unit and benefit/cost ratio were used to evaluate economic productivity. The analysis results indicated that energy input and energy output per land area unit in the solar greenhouse were higher than in the open field; whereas energy efficiency in terms of output/input ratio and energy productivity were lower in the solar greenhouse than those in the open field. However, if energy input sequestered in the protected structure was excluded in the solar greenhouse production system, energy efficiency was higher in the greenhouse system than in the open-field system. Our analysis further showed that the economic costs, the yield, cost of production, gross product value and net income per land area unit in the greenhouse were more than twice as high as those in the open field due to a higher tree density and a premium price. However, the production taking place in the open field used a great share of renewable energy and higher energy efficiency, which may comply more with the principles of organic farming than the greenhouse production system.

Nowadays, the maize weevil Sitophilus zeamais—Motsch 1855 is the most relevant pest found during storage of maize grains. Aiming at protecting the agricultural crops, high amounts of synthetic pesticides are used around the world. In this sense, this work aimed at evaluating the insecticidal and repellent effect of essential oil of Ocotea odorifera (Vellozo) Rohwer (Lauraceae) (O. odorifera (sassafras)) leaves against the maize weevil in maize grains. The essential oil's chemical composition showed that sassafras contains camphor (43%) and safrole (42%) as major compounds. Our results show that sassafras oil was insecticidal and repellent to maize weevil. About 100% mortality was achieved using a concentration of 0.32 μl cm−2, after 24 h of exposure. The LD50 value was 14.1 μl or 0.09 μl cm−2 and the study of the effect on insect mortality at the lethal doses (LD50) showed that after 72 h mortality was 100%. The values of the preference index varied from −0.39 (0.065 μl cm−2) to −0.63 (0.659 μl cm−2), demonstrating that the plant oil presents repellent activity. The repellency bioassay simulating small bins showed the repellent effect level from 0.64 (0.36 μl cm−3) to 0.94 (2.9 μl cm−3). The essential oil of sassafras presented insecticidal and repellency against maize weevil. Although from an economical point of view synthetic chemicals are still more frequently used as repellents, natural products (essential oils) have the potential to provide efficient and safer repellents for humans and the environment.

Conventional agriculture often aims to achieve high returns without allowing for sustainable natural resource management. To prevent environmental degradation, agricultural systems must be assessed and environmental standards need to be developed. This study used a multi-factor approach to assess the potential environmental impact risk of six diverse systems: five production systems and a successional system or abandoned agronomic field. Assessment factors were soil quality status, amount of pesticide and fertilizer applied and tillage intensity. The assessment identified the best management practices (BMP)–conventional tillage system as a high-risk system mostly because of extensive tillage. The certified organic system was also extensively tilled and was characterized by P build-up in the soil, but performed well based on other assessment factors. Conversely, the BMP–no tillage and the crop–animal integrated system were characterized as low risk mainly because of reduced tillage. The paper discusses assessment strengths and weaknesses, ways to improve indicators used, and the need for additional indicators. We concluded that with further development the technique will become a resourceful tool to promote agricultural sustainability and environmental stewardship and assist policy-making processes.

The plant root apparatus and the surrounding micro-environment is strongly influenced by specific abiotic and biotic conditions which occur in the plant rhizosphere system. The hypothesis of the reported research was that, in an organically managed horticultural system, the use of living mulch (LM) promotes the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) colonization among neighboring roots, because of the coexistence of different plants roots in confined soil spaces. This effect determines nutrient uptake optimization, although roots belong to different plant species. In the reported 2-yr field experiment (2012–2013), two Italian artichoke cultivars [Cynara cardunculus L. var. scolymus (L.), Jesino cv. and Mazzaferrata cv.] were intercropped with a LM mixture of plant species and compared with a no LM control. Every year, the effect of LM on artichoke root morphology and AMF colonization was evaluated by scanning electron microscopy, in order to assess abiotic and biotic rhizosphere interactions, as affected by artichoke cultivars. Also the artichoke yield, the soil available phosphorus (P) and rhizosphere P were determined. Results showed that the LM did not reduce yield of both the artichoke cultivars, when compared with the no LM ones. Furthermore, LM has: (i) induced structural changes in artichoke roots by proliferation of root hairs resulting in an increase of effective absorbing surface; (ii) promoted the rhizosphere mycorrhizal infection which improved P uptake. The modified rhizosphere interactions were found to be cultivar-dependent, being recorded only in Jesino artichoke.

A sustainable practice for weed control and crop protection is the incorporation of green manures with phytotoxic potential. It is gaining attention as a way to reduce the use of synthetic herbicides in agriculture and so pot experiments and field trials were conducted to explore the possible use of residues of Acacia species to alleviate weed emergence. We assessed, under greenhouse conditions, the herbicidal effect of phytotoxic manures from Acacia dealbata and Acacia longifolia applied to soil at different doses (1.5 and 3% w/w) on maize growth, some accompanying weeds, and the physiological profile of soil microbes. Applied at a higher dose, A. dealbata residues reduced the emergence of dicotyledons in the short-term (P < 0.05) and, after 30 days, there was a decrease in total weed emergence (P < 0.005) and a mild effect on weed composition, while total weed biomass remained unaffected. Regardless of the inclusion of Acacia residues, the physiological profile of the soil bacterial community did not show significant alterations. Additionally, we tested A. dealbata residues as a mulch or a green manure at the field scale. Although the effects of manures were site-dependent and affected monocot and dicot weeds differentially, dicots were more sensitive. The herbicide potential of acacia residues was only evident for dicots at sites with low-weed density in the seed bank. Nevertheless, due to the absence of phytotoxic effects on maize and minor modifications in the functional profile of bacterial communities, residues of acacia could be used as a complementary tool used together with other practices to reduce the reliance on synthetic herbicides in maize-based cropping systems.

Alfalfa is recommended as a rotational crop in corn production, due to its ability to contribute to soil nitrogen (N) and carbon (C) stocks through atmospheric N2 fixation and above- and belowground biomass production. However, there is little information on how alfalfa management practices affect contributions to soil and subsequent corn crop yields, and research has not been targeted to organic systems. A study was conducted to determine the effects of alfalfa stand age, cutting frequency and biomass removal on soil C and N status and corn yields at three organically managed Minnesota locations. In one experiment, five cutting treatments were applied in nine environments: two, three and four cuts with biomass removal; three cuts with biomass remaining in place; and a no-cut control. In the other experiment, corn was planted following 1-, 2-, 3- or 4-year-old alfalfa stands and a no-alfalfa control. Yield was measured in the subsequent corn crop. In the cutting experiment, the two- and three-cut treatments with biomass removal reduced soil mineral N by 12.6 and 11.5%, respectively, compared with the control. Potentially mineralizable N (PMN) was not generally affected by cutting treatments. The three-cut no-removal increased potentially mineralizable C by 17% compared with the other treatments, but lowered soil total C in two environments, suggesting a priming effect in which addition of alfalfa biomass stimulated microbial mineralization of native soil C. Although both yields and soil mineral N tended to be higher in treatments where biomass remained in place, this advantage was small and inconsistent, indicating that farmers need not forgo hay harvest to obtain the rotational benefits of an alfalfa stand. The lack of overall correlation between corn grain yields and mineral and potentially mineralizable N suggests that alfalfa N contribution was not the driver of the yield increase in the no-removal treatments. Alfalfa stand age had inconsistent effects on fall-incorporated N and soil N and C parameters. Beyond the first year, increased alfalfa stand age did not increase soil mineral N or PMN. However, corn yield increased following older stands. Yields were 29, 77 and 90% higher following first-, second- and third-year alfalfa stands than the no-alfalfa control, respectively. This indicates that alfalfa may benefit succeeding corn through mechanisms other than N contribution, potentially including P solubilization and weed suppression. These effects have been less studied than N credits, but are of high value in organic cropping systems.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the formation of hotspots of organic operations (geographically close areas that have positively correlated high numbers of organic operations), paying particular attention to the role of the organic certifying agent. We analyze the association of county-level factors related to policy, economics, demographics and organic certifiers with the probability that a county is in a hotspot or coldspot (geographically close areas that have positively correlated low numbers of organic operations) of organic operations. The results suggest that a high presence of government run organic certifying agents, as well as a high presence of private organic certifying agents who provide outreach services, are both positively associated with the probability that a county belongs to a hotspot. Other factors, such as the level of property taxes and the distance of the county from the nearest interstate, are also significantly correlated with the probability that a county is in a hotspot. Understanding factors associated with organic hotspots is important given the surge in momentum in the organic industry and the concerns that demand for organic products may be outpacing domestic supply. In particular, understanding the role that certifiers play in the formation of organic hotspots is important, as certain services provided by certifiers may be indicative of the level of communication between organic operations and their communities. The results of this paper may encourage public institutions that approve and regulate organic certifiers to provide incentives for offering outreach services, and private institutions interested in promoting organic operations to work more closely with certifying agents as a means to boost organic hotspots.

Soil testing strategies that include biologically based indicators in organic and alternative farming systems are needed in order to improve recommendations that balance production and environmental goals. In this study, soil samples were collected before and after soils were transitioned from conventional row crop production to organic management using rotations that varied in both their inputs and tillage intensity. Ley-, row crop- and vegetable-based farming systems were implemented using locally specific production practices. Subplots were imposed within each system to allow comparison of farming systems without amendment and with dairy manure- and compost-amendment. Soil analyses included standard chemical tests (0–15 cm) for available phosphorus, exchangeable potassium, calcium, magnesium, pH, total organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN). Biological assays (0–15 and 15–30 cm) included particulate organic matter-C and -N (POM-C, POM-N), soil and POM C:N ratios, fluorescein diacetate (FDA) hydrolysis, potentially mineralizable N (PMN) and hydrolysable amino-N + NH4 (IL-N). Even though cropping and tillage intensity varied among systems (ley < row crop < vegetable), organic matter and nutrient reserves were not statistically different. Nutrient concentrations tested medium to high, even without compost or manure application. Labile fractions of soil organic matter were more enriched in the deeper sampling depth; whereby, POM stocks within the 15–30 cm depth increased by 20% on average compared to roughly 6% in the surface depth. This and observed changes in other properties demonstrate the multiple benefits derived from use of winter annual or perennial crops. Results from our analyses suggested PMN and POM have particular promise as metrics of change in commercial soil testing facilities to assist recommendations for amendments to balance production and environmental goals.

Cropping systems that include forage legumes and small grains in addition to corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] can achieve similar or higher crop productivity and economic return than simpler corn–soybean rotations. We hypothesized that this rotation effect occurs regardless of the crop genotype planted and the herbicide and cultivation regime selected for weed management. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a 3-year experiment that compared three cropping systems: a conventional 2-year corn–soybean rotation, a 3-year corn–soybean–oat (Avena sativa L.)/red clover (Trifolium pretense L.) rotation, and a 4-year corn–soybean–oat/alfalfa–alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) rotation. Within each cropping system, two contrasting sets of management strategies were used: (i) genetically engineered corn with resistance to insect pests (Ostrinia nubilalis Hübner and Diabrotica spp.) plus the broadcast application of pre-emergence herbicides, followed in the rotation by a genetically engineered soybean variety with resistance to the herbicide glyphosate plus the post-emergence broadcast application of glyphosate; and (ii) non-genetically engineered corn plus the banded application of post-emergence herbicides, followed in the rotation by a non-genetically engineered soybean and banded application of several post-emergence herbicides. The two management strategies were identified as ‘GE’ and ‘non-GE.’ Corn yield was higher in the 3-year (12.51Mgha−1) and 4-year (12.79Mgha−1) rotations than in the conventional 2-year (12.16Mgha−1) rotation, and was also 2% higher with the GE strategy than with the non-GE strategy. Soybean yield was similar among rotation systems in 2008, but higher in the 3- and 4-year systems than the 2-year rotation in 2009 and 2010. Soybean yield was similar between management strategies in 2008, but higher in the GE strategy in 2009, and similar between strategies in the 3- and 4-year rotations in 2010. Increases in rotation length were accompanied by 88–91% reductions in synthetic N fertilizer application, and the use of the non-GE rather than the GE strategy was accompanied by a 93% reduction in herbicide active ingredients applied. Averaged over the period of 2008–2010, net returns to land and labor were highest for the 3-year rotation managed with either the GE ($928ha−1yr−1) or non-GE ($936ha−1yr−1) strategies, least in the 2-year rotation managed with the non-GE strategy ($738ha−1yr−1), and intermediate in the other rotation×management combinations. Our results indicate that more diverse crop rotation systems can be as profitable as conventional corn–soybean systems and can provide farmers with greater flexibility in crop management options.