Sustainable Agriculture SystemsSustainable agriculture embodies many concepts in its attempt to integrate all the aspects of farming systems into a holistic system. This book explores the processes that occur within the components of a sustainable system and shows where we can build upon our existing knowledge to develop the concepts of sustainable agriculture into the new conventional agriculture. Well-known researchers examine a variety of aspects, including production goals, environmental considerations, and economics, to build a knowledge base that allows readers to see where changes in agriculture must be made and how challenges can be met. They compare existing systems against definitions of sustainability and pinpoint those areas where improvements can be made in current systems to further the concepts of sustainability. |
Contents
John Pesek | 4 |
Influence of Policy on Agriculture | 11 |
Conclusions | 17 |
Water Relationships in a Sustainable Agriculture System | 21 |
Management Strategies for Sustainable Soil Fertility | 47 |
Minimizing Nutrient Losses | 73 |
Strategies for Improved Management | 82 |
The Research Challenges of Sustainable Soil Fertility | 91 |
Crop Management | 135 |
Pest Management Weeds | 157 |
Chapter 7 | 199 |
Economics of Sustainable Agriculture | 229 |
16 | 236 |
| 259 | |
Steve Padgitt and Peggy Petrzelka | 262 |
Sustainable Agriculture as Individual Producer Change | 272 |
Common terms and phrases
Agric agricultural systems agroecosystem Agron alfalfa alternative application arthropod arthropod pests changes chemical conservation tillage corn cover crops crop management crop production crop residue crop rotations crop yields cropping systems cultivars cultivation cultural cycling decreased denitrification density dryland ecological economic effects efficiency Entomol environment environmental erosion evaluate factors fallow farmers farming herbicides impact increased influence injury inputs Iowa IPM programs irrigation J. R. Williams Karlen leaching legumes levels losses maize management practices management strategies manure nitrate nitrogen no-till nutrient pest management pesticides phosphorus potential problems Proc production systems rainfall rates reduced resistance result row spacing runoff Sharpley simulation smother crops soil organic matter Soil Sci soil structure soil surface soil test sorghum soybean studies sustainable agriculture sustainable soil fertility tactics tillage practices tillage systems tion Unger uptake water quality weed control weed management Weed Sci weed seeds weed species