Modification of the microclimate and water balance through the integration of trees into temperate cropping systems

Jacobs, Suzanne; Webber, Heidi; Niether, Wiebke; Grahmann, Kathrin; Lüttschwager, Dietmar; Schwartz, Carmen; Bellingrath-Kimura, Sonoko Dorothea

doi:10.1016/j.agrformet.2022.109065

Cited by 27 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 101 publications

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“…Radiation, wind speed, air temperature and vapour pressure deficit (VPD) are the factors driving crop transpiration in the soil–plant‐atmosphere continuum that are modified positively by trees. Yet, higher rainfall interception (Jackson, 2000) and transpiration rates (Zhang, Xu, et al, 2018) of trees lead to concerns regarding competition for water resources, especially during droughts (Jacobs et al, 2022). Indeed, soil moisture values in AFS have been reported by numerous authors as being lower rather than higher under trees (e.g., Cubera & Moreno, 2007; Jackson et al, 2000; Jose et al, 2004; Nasielski et al, 2015; Swieter et al, 2022).…”

Section: Agroforestry Potential To Improve Soil Propertiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For instance, trees could potentially exacerbate yield losses that are incurred by drought conditions. Moreover, the efficacy of AFS in resisting more intense drought is debatable in water‐limited regions (Jacobs et al, 2022; Zhao et al, 2022). In contrast, shade might adversely affect crop productivity during wetter and colder years (Jacobs et al, 2022), while the beneficial effect of shading in terms of reducing heat stress might become quite relevant during early heatwaves (Blanchet et al, 2021; Reyes et al, 2021; Swieter et al, 2022).…”

Section: Response Of Agroforestry To Climate Changementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Moreover, the efficacy of AFS in resisting more intense drought is debatable in water‐limited regions (Jacobs et al, 2022; Zhao et al, 2022). In contrast, shade might adversely affect crop productivity during wetter and colder years (Jacobs et al, 2022), while the beneficial effect of shading in terms of reducing heat stress might become quite relevant during early heatwaves (Blanchet et al, 2021; Reyes et al, 2021; Swieter et al, 2022). The following section presents farmers' perceptions of AFS for adaptation to climate change, then summarizes the results of the few observational and experimental studies, which tested the effects of heat waves and droughts on crop productivity and various soil characteristics in AFS compared with monoculture.…”

Section: Response Of Agroforestry To Climate Changementioning

confidence: 99%

“…As commented above, farmers perceive that trees can enhance the resilience of cropping systems in AFS, given that trees positively modify the microclimate, soil properties and water balance of croplands and pastures (Gnonlonfoun et al, 2019; Jacobs et al, 2022; Kumar et al, 2020; Saqib et al, 2019; Sauer et al, 2021). Yet, experimental evidence of increased resilience remains sparse.…”

Section: Response Of Agroforestry To Climate Changementioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, context‐specific studies remain scarce. Understanding how (large‐scale) adoption of agroforestry affects groundwater recharge and enhanced rainfall is essential for evaluating whether agroforestry could really enhance the drought resilience of agriculture (Ellison et al, 2017; Jacobs et al, 2022). Although this could be difficult to demonstrate experimentally, a better integration of biosphere‐atmosphere interactions in available agroforestry models could aid in visualizing these blurred potential benefits of agroforestry (Kraft et al, 2021).…”

Section: Concluding Remarks and Future Directionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Agroforestry potential for adaptation to climate change: A soil‐based perspective

Rolo

Rivest

Maillard

et al. 2023

Soil Use and Management

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Agricultural systems face several challenges that threaten their capacity to feed the world while maintaining a healthy and functional environment. Climate change, together with soil degradation, biodiversity loss, resource scarcity and invasive species, is a major threat to agricultural systems worldwide. In this context, new practices have been proposed to circumvent or minimize these threats. Yet, these mostly focus on the farm or plant level (e.g., breeding for stress‐tolerant species), while frequently overlooking belowground components (e.g., soil organic carbon accrual). By interlinking above‐ and below‐ground components, the likelihood of limiting the negative effects of current threats to agricultural systems can be maximized. This review explores current knowledge regarding agroforestry and its effects on belowground components as a key property in the reducing effects of climate change. We first review tree effects on key soil properties of agricultural systems. We synthesize evidence regarding agroforestry systems response to current environmental threats that are related to climate change. We continue by discussing how soil processes play a fundamental role in the capacity of agroforestry systems to cope with climate change. We conclude by proposing options on how resilience of agroforestry systems could be further enhanced.

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