Nitrogen balance in agroecosystems provides a quantitative framework of N inputs and outputs and retention in the soil that examines the sustainability of agricultural productivity and soil and environmental quality. Nitrogen inputs include N additions from manures and fertilizers, atmospheric depositions including wet and dry depositions, irrigation water, and biological N fixation. Nitrogen o...

In the Great Plains of North America potential evaporation exceeds precipitation during most months of the year. About 75% of the annual precipitation is received from April through September, and is accompanied by high temperatures and low relative humidity. Dryland agriculture in the Great Plains has depended on wheat production in a wheat-fallow agroecosystem (one crop year followed by a fal...

The limitation of damage caused by pests (plant pathogens, weeds, and animal pests) in any agricultural crop requires integrated management strategies. Although significant efforts have been made to i) develop, and to a lesser extent ii) combine genetic, biological, cultural, physical and chemical control methods in Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies (vertical integration), there is a ...

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi [AMF] are soil fungi which form a mutualistic symbiosis with the roots of plants. A variety of benefits to the host have been ascribed to mycorrhizae, most often enhanced uptake of immobile nutrients from the soil, notably P. An understanding of the impacts of agronomic practices upon communities of these fungi would help to ensure an opportunity for the utilization...

Agroecosystems have gained a dominant positionon worldwide land-usage, and therefore preserving their biodiversity is crucial for environmental sustainability. Ants are one of the most widespread groups terrestrial arthropods, and,thanks to significant diversification,they considered as good proxy group bio-diversity monitoring, also in agroecosystems. Vineyards economically valuable cultures w...