Carbon Budget of an Agroforestry System after Being Converted from a Poplar Short Rotation Coppice
Poplar (<i>Populus</i> L. spp.) Short Rotation Coppice systems (SRCs) for bioenergy production are being converted back to arable land. Transitioning to Alley Cropping Systems (ACSs) could be a suitable strategy for integrating former tree rows and arable crops. A field trial (Pisa, Cent...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-08-01
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| Series: | Agronomy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/10/9/1251 |
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| author | Giovanni Pecchioni Simona Bosco Iride Volpi Alberto Mantino Federico Dragoni Vittoria Giannini Cristiano Tozzini Marcello Mele Giorgio Ragaglini |
| author_facet | Giovanni Pecchioni Simona Bosco Iride Volpi Alberto Mantino Federico Dragoni Vittoria Giannini Cristiano Tozzini Marcello Mele Giorgio Ragaglini |
| author_sort | Giovanni Pecchioni |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Poplar (<i>Populus</i> L. spp.) Short Rotation Coppice systems (SRCs) for bioenergy production are being converted back to arable land. Transitioning to Alley Cropping Systems (ACSs) could be a suitable strategy for integrating former tree rows and arable crops. A field trial (Pisa, Central Italy) was set up with the aim of assessing the C storage of an ACS system based on hybrid poplar and sorghum (<i>Sorghum bicolor</i> L. Moench) and comparing it with that of an SRC cultivation system. The carbon budget at the agroecosystem scale was assessed in the first year of the transition using the net biome production (NBP) approach with a simplified method. The overall NBP for the SRC was positive (96 ± 40 g C m<sup>−2</sup> year<sup>−1</sup>), highlighting that the system was a net carbon sink (i.e., NBP > 0). However, the ACS registered a net C loss (i.e., NBP < 0), since the NBP was −93 ± 56 g C m<sup>−2</sup> year<sup>−1</sup>. In the first year of the transition, converting the SRC into an ACS counteracted the potential beneficial effect of C storage in tree belowground biomass due to the high heterotrophic respiration rate recorded in the ACS, which was fostered by the incorporation of residues and tillage disturbance in the alley. Additional years of heterotrophic respiration measurements could allow for an estimate of the speed and extent of C losses. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T16:51:53Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7dee024150804485ac004efc1aa8a6c3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4395 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T16:51:53Z |
| publishDate | 2020-08-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Agronomy |
| spelling | doaj.art-7dee024150804485ac004efc1aa8a6c32023-11-20T11:16:42ZengMDPI AGAgronomy2073-43952020-08-01109125110.3390/agronomy10091251Carbon Budget of an Agroforestry System after Being Converted from a Poplar Short Rotation CoppiceGiovanni Pecchioni0Simona Bosco1Iride Volpi2Alberto Mantino3Federico Dragoni4Vittoria Giannini5Cristiano Tozzini6Marcello Mele7Giorgio Ragaglini8Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Institute of Life Sciences, 56127 Pisa, ItalySant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Institute of Life Sciences, 56127 Pisa, ItalySant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Institute of Life Sciences, 56127 Pisa, ItalySant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Institute of Life Sciences, 56127 Pisa, ItalySant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Institute of Life Sciences, 56127 Pisa, ItalySant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Institute of Life Sciences, 56127 Pisa, ItalySant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Institute of Life Sciences, 56127 Pisa, ItalyDepartment of Agriculture, Food and Environment (DAFE), University of Pisa, 56127 Pisa, ItalySant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Institute of Life Sciences, 56127 Pisa, ItalyPoplar (<i>Populus</i> L. spp.) Short Rotation Coppice systems (SRCs) for bioenergy production are being converted back to arable land. Transitioning to Alley Cropping Systems (ACSs) could be a suitable strategy for integrating former tree rows and arable crops. A field trial (Pisa, Central Italy) was set up with the aim of assessing the C storage of an ACS system based on hybrid poplar and sorghum (<i>Sorghum bicolor</i> L. Moench) and comparing it with that of an SRC cultivation system. The carbon budget at the agroecosystem scale was assessed in the first year of the transition using the net biome production (NBP) approach with a simplified method. The overall NBP for the SRC was positive (96 ± 40 g C m<sup>−2</sup> year<sup>−1</sup>), highlighting that the system was a net carbon sink (i.e., NBP > 0). However, the ACS registered a net C loss (i.e., NBP < 0), since the NBP was −93 ± 56 g C m<sup>−2</sup> year<sup>−1</sup>. In the first year of the transition, converting the SRC into an ACS counteracted the potential beneficial effect of C storage in tree belowground biomass due to the high heterotrophic respiration rate recorded in the ACS, which was fostered by the incorporation of residues and tillage disturbance in the alley. Additional years of heterotrophic respiration measurements could allow for an estimate of the speed and extent of C losses.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/10/9/1251alley croppingcarbon sequestrationclimate change mitigationnet biome productionsilvoarable systemsoil CO<sub>2</sub> flux |
| spellingShingle | Giovanni Pecchioni Simona Bosco Iride Volpi Alberto Mantino Federico Dragoni Vittoria Giannini Cristiano Tozzini Marcello Mele Giorgio Ragaglini Carbon Budget of an Agroforestry System after Being Converted from a Poplar Short Rotation Coppice Agronomy alley cropping carbon sequestration climate change mitigation net biome production silvoarable system soil CO<sub>2</sub> flux |
| title | Carbon Budget of an Agroforestry System after Being Converted from a Poplar Short Rotation Coppice |
| title_full | Carbon Budget of an Agroforestry System after Being Converted from a Poplar Short Rotation Coppice |
| title_fullStr | Carbon Budget of an Agroforestry System after Being Converted from a Poplar Short Rotation Coppice |
| title_full_unstemmed | Carbon Budget of an Agroforestry System after Being Converted from a Poplar Short Rotation Coppice |
| title_short | Carbon Budget of an Agroforestry System after Being Converted from a Poplar Short Rotation Coppice |
| title_sort | carbon budget of an agroforestry system after being converted from a poplar short rotation coppice |
| topic | alley cropping carbon sequestration climate change mitigation net biome production silvoarable system soil CO<sub>2</sub> flux |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/10/9/1251 |
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