Conservation agriculture plays an important role in the sustainability of production systems, notably for globally significant crops such as cotton. This study explores the integration of the no-tillage system (NTS) with integrated pest management (IPM) by incorporating cover crops. The aim is to assess the impact of these living or dead covers on the management of insect populations, the indices diversity of phytophagous insects and natural enemies, and to investigate the population fluctuation of these arthropods, considering a variety of crops in the NTS before and after cotton planting. The trial, conducted over two consecutive cropping seasons in Mato Grosso do Sul State, Brazil, employed a randomised block design with four repetitions. The treatments included cover crops with the highest potential for use in the region, such as millet (Pennisetum glaucum glaucum L.), corn (Zea mays L.), brachiaria (Urochloa ruziziensis), black velvet bean (Stizolobium aterrimum), forage sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.), and white oats (Avena sativa L.) and a mix of white oats with brachiaria. The results indicated that the black velvet bean stands out as the most effective cover crop, providing the best performance in terms of non-preference to the attack of the evaluated pest insects. Conversely, brachiaria proves to be more susceptible to infestations of Dalbulus maidis (DeLong and Wolcott) (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae), and Diabrotica speciosa (Germar, 1824) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). The study underscores the relevance of the judicious choice of cover crops in IPM and in promoting agricultural biodiversity, creating a strategic tool to enhance the sustainability and efficiency of the cotton production system in the context of the NTS.

Amaranth, with its high genetic variability, holds promise for global food security, income generation and climate resilience. Developing stable, high-yielding genotypes is essential for sustainable production. In this study, stability analysis was conducted on five Amaranth accessions over two seasons at three Malawian sites. Significant trait variations, including grain yield, plant height and leaf characteristics, underscored the dynamic nature of Amaranth cultivation. Notably, LL-BH-04 consistently exhibited superior grain yield, while others showed variable performance, highlighting the importance of stability analysis. Employing the Eberhart and Russell model, stable accessions in leaf and grain yield were identified. Additionally, AMMI (Additive Main effects and Multiplicative Interaction) biplot analysis revealed genetic diversity and stability patterns, aiding resilient cultivar selection. Consequently, LL-BH-04 and PE-UP-BH-01, identified as stable genotypes, were recommended for release, thereby enhancing agricultural sustainability and food security. These findings emphasize the need for site-specific breeding evaluations for sustainable productivity and underscore the importance of selecting stable cultivars to address agricultural challenges. LL-BH-04 and PE-LO-BH-01 were proposed for release to boost Amaranth production in Malawi, serving as the foundation for tailored breeding efforts aimed at improving productivity and resilience. This study contributes valuable insights into the stability and performance of Amaranth cultivars, offering guidance for sustainable crop production and variety development strategies.

Intensive fertilizer usage of KCl has been inculcated as a prerequisite for maximizing crop yield and quality, and relies on a soil test for exchangeable K in the plow layer to ensure that soil productivity will not be limited by nutrient depletion. The interpretive value of this soil test was rigorously evaluated by: (1) field sampling to quantify biweekly changes and seasonal trends, (2) characterizing the variability induced by air drying and the dynamic nature of soil K reserves and (3) calculating the K balance in numerous cropping experiments. These evaluations leave no alternative but to question the practical utility of soil K testing because test values cannot account for the highly dynamic interchange between exchangeable and non-exchangeable K, exhibit serious temporal instability with or without air drying and do not differentiate soil K buildup from depletion. The need for routine K fertilization should also be questioned, considering the magnitude and inorganic occurrence of profile reserves, the recycling of K in crop residues and the preferential nature of K uptake. An extensive survey of more than 2100 yield response trials confirmed that KCl fertilization is unlikely to increase crop yield. Contrary to the inculcated perception of KCl as a qualitative commodity, more than 1400 field trials predominately documented a detrimental effect of this fertilizer on the quality of major food, feed and fiber crops, with serious implications for soil productivity and human health.

Efficient nutrient use is critical to ensure economical crop production while minimizing the impact of excessive nutrient applications on the environment. Nitrogen (N) is a key component of agricultural production, both as an input to support crop production and as a waste product of livestock production. Increasing concern for future sustainability of agricultural production and preservation of the natural resource base has led to the development of nutrient budgets as indicators and policy instruments for nutrient management. Nutrient budgets for N have been developed by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) as agri-environmental indicators to compare the evolving conditions in member states, and are also used by the US Department of Agriculture Natural Resource Conservation Service (USDA-NRCS) to develop nutrient management plans. Here, we examine the crop and animal production systems, drivers impacting management choices, and the outcome of those choices to assess the utility of gross annual N balances in tracking the progress of management decisions in minimizing the environmental impact of agricultural production systems. We use as case studies two very different agronomic production systems: Mississippi, USA and Poland. State and country level data from the US Department of Agriculture and OECD databases are used to develop data for the years 1998–2008, and gross annual N balances are computed. Examination of agricultural production practices reveals that the gross annual N balance is a useful tool in identifying differences in the magnitude and trends in N within agricultural systems over large areas. Significant differences in the magnitude of the N budget were observed between the highly diversified, small-scale agriculture common to Poland, and the large-scale, intensive agriculture of Mississippi. It is noted that use of N balance indices can be problematic if the primary intent is to reveal the impact of economic drivers, such as crop prices, or management choices, such as tillage or crop rotation. Changes in cropping systems in response to commodity prices that improve N balance can be masked by detrimental growing conditions, including edaphic, biotic and weather conditions, that are outside of the producers’ control. Moreover, use of large area-scale indices such as country or state-wide balances may mask the severity of localized nutrient imbalances that result from regionalized production systems that overwhelm the nutrient balance, such as confinement livestock production. Development of a policy to address environmental impact and establish sustainable production systems must consider the year-to-year variability of drivers impacting agricultural production, and the spatial heterogeneity of nutrient imbalance.

Despite significant progress in promoting the wider use of conservation tillage systems among farmers in Ontario, recent evidence suggests that adoption levels remain low overall, and especially low in those areas where agricultural soils are predominantly clay-based. Given the prominence of cash-crop agriculture in these regions, there is continuing interest in understanding the reasons for non-adoption in these areas, and in identifying strategies that would result in greater use of conservation tillage systems. This paper reports on an empirical analysis of conservation tillage adoption among a sample of 50 farmers in Lambton County, Ontario. The purpose of the research was to document and explain variations in the use of conservation tillage, and to assess prospects for increasing the adoption of this technology. A statistical analysis revealed that personal and attitudinal factors were largely unrelated to decisions concerning the use of conservation tillage. Instead, significant factors related to the scale of the farm operation as reflected in both farm size and sales, and in the nature of the farming system itself Subsequent analysis of farmers' stated motivations and perceived barriers suggests that inertia and uncertainty act as impediments to adoption. The findings point to the need for site-specific and farm system-specific information on the performance of this technology, and to the importance of benefits that are readily observable and communicable within local farming communities.

In arid areas of western Rajasthan, major constraints responsible for low plant production include low and erratic rainfall, high evaporation, and low soil fertility, particularly with respect to organic carbon and nitrogen. These problems lead to acute shortages of grain, fodder and fuelwood. Sustainable crop and biomass production can be achieved through adoption of agroforestry, silvipastoral and agrihorticultural systems. Integrated nutrient and moisture management practices can help in controlling pathogens and in improving the soil environment for higher sustained production.

In the past several years, researchers, educators, policymakers, and activists have initiated sustainable agriculture programs and efforts the world over. This development has sometimes been accompanied by a sense that it is time to stop discussing sustainability at a conceptual level and get on with the work of making agriculture sustainable. Our perspective is that it is critical to pursue a comprehensive definition of sustainability in order to set sustainable agriculture priorities and ensure that sustainable agriculture takes a path that does not reproduce problems of conventional agriculture. In this paper we briefly review some popular definitions of sustainable agriculture and find that their focus is primarily on farm-level resource conservation and profitability as the main components of sustainability. Others have challenged this approach for either not examining the social aspects of sustainability or for containing an implicit assumption that working on the environmental, production, and microeconomic aspects of sustainability will automatically take care of its social aspects. We propose an expanded conceptualization of sustainability—one that focuses on the entire food and agriculture system at a global level and includes not only environmental soundness and economic viability, but social equity as well. In this perspective, issues such as poverty and hunger are as central to achieving agricultural sustainability as those of soil erosion and adequate farm returns.