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Vineyards in Europe has been fundamental for food, drink and cosmetic production, and job creation; however, in recent decades due to increased cultivation intensity, numerous negative consequences, including erosion, have been observed. Erodibility or susceptibility to erosion is a little-studied parameter in vineyards but is crucial for analyzing the vulnerability of this crop. Therefore, in this research, a small portable rainfall simulator was used as a useful tool for assessing erodibility, combined with other methods such as soil analyses or infiltration measurements in a semi-arid vineyard located in the Granada province (Spain) considering 20 different hotspots at diverse hillslope positions along the inter-rows and close to the traffic roads. The experiments were conducted in spring 2022 under dry soil conditions. Our results display susceptibility to erosion, particularly on steeper parts such as the shoulder and backslopes. In these areas, runoff gained momentum, carrying a significant sediment load, diminishing the effectiveness of stone cover, and occasionally leading to its removal, especially near the roads. Nevertheless, it is observed that increased roughness plays a mitigating role by slowing down runoff. Using linear correlation analysis and Spearman rank coefficient, we observed this effect is linked to factors such as stoniness, vegetation, and moderate tillage. Conversely, in the flatter zones, primarily in lower areas, reduced runoff and delayed onset are primarily influenced by factors such as roughness, type of cover, material composition, and organic matter content. We concluded that this study case can demonstrate that erodibility in vineyards can shed light as an extra parameter to inform farmers, rural inhabitants, and policymakers about the extreme problem of the vulnerable soils of vineyards.

AbstractWater is the most limiting factor for irrigated agriculture in many areas of South Europe. Within the strategies to maintain agriculture as a sustainable activity, the selection of crop varieties with a high adaptation capacity to water stress situations is crucial. Leaf temperature is a feasible indicator of the crop-water status, being the thermography a non-destructive tool to quantify plant physiological status. The aim of this study was to define the robustness of thermal imaging as a tool for selecting maize (Zea maysL.) varieties for drought tolerance. The trial was conducted using young plants of five commercial varieties, which were subjected to two different watering situations (well watered and water stressed). Every 48–72 h, thermal images were taken in four plants per irrigation treatment and variety. With the same periodicity and number of plants, stomatal conductance, leaf-water potential and chlorophyll fluorescence measurements were done to assess the impact of water stress in terms of crop physiological status. Our results allowed conclude that infrared thermography could be a useful method for screening procedure in selecting maize varieties for drought adaptation.

Data on the aboveground and root-biomass carbon (C) were recorded for different land-use types on hillslopes within Mediterranean agroforestry watershed. Eight land-use types were selected: farmland with olive, almond, and cereals; forest with Pinus halepensisand Pinus sylvestrisstands; shrubland; grassland; and abandoned farmland. Shrubland and forest exhibited the highest C stocks in biomass in relation to the land-use types investigated. Our results showed that abandoned farmland had significantly lower C stocks than did farmland, grassland, or shrubland, although with progressive plant recolonization that offered greater potential capacity for C sequestering. The average C stocks in biomass for P. halepensis, P. sylvestris, shrubland, olive, almond, grassland, cereals, and abandoned farmland was 87.5, 29.7, 13.7, 7.1, 7.9, 5.4, 3.7, and 1.6 Mg ha−1, respectively. In general terms of land use, the biomass C stock showed the following descending order: forest > farmland > shrubland > grassland > abandoned land. Consequently, our approach enables a comparison of C-stock patterns related to the land-use types in the experimental area.

Introduction. Mango (Mangifera indicaL.) production is rising in various subtropical zones throughout the world. The main polyembryonic rootstocks used by growers in South-East Spain are Gomera 1 and Gomera 3 (from the Canary Islands) and the most commonly used cultivars are Osteen and Keitt (from Florida, US). In this marginal environment for mango growing, it is important to determine the different rootstock qualities in order to optimise fruit production. The objective of our study was to evaluate the performance of mango cv. Osteen and Keitt on the two aforementioned rootstocks, as measured by fruit yield, scion growth and mineral nutrition. Materials and methods. A 3-year study was conducted in a mature mango orchard (14 years old) of a total of 24 trees, where eight were grafted onto cv. Osteen, another eight onto Keitt (four trees with each of the G1-Ost, G3-Ost, G1-Kt and G3-Kt combinations) and eight were ungrafted rootstocks. Fruit yield and pomological characteristics were evaluated by measuring fruit length, width and weight. Height and canopy diameter, as well as the trunk circumference of the tree, were recorded. Throughout the study period, chemical foliar measurements were taken from all trees. Results. Fruit yield in G1-Ost and G3-Kt trees proved significantly higher than that in the others. The fruit weight and length with the G3-Kt combination were greater than those with G1-Kt. Both cultivars grafted on Gomera 3 rootstock had the highest height and canopy volume. The tree-size data confirmed the vigorous feature of the Gomera 3. The N and P foliar concentration was significantly higher for Gomera 3 than for Gomera 1 in both cultivars. The K concentration was higher in G3-Kt leaves than in G1-Kt ones, but higher in G1-Ost than in G3-Ost. The leaf Mn and Cu concentrations with G3-Kt significantly exceeded those of G1-Kt. Conclusion. The height, trunk cross-sectional area, and canopy volume and diameter proved to be the greatest with Gomera 3, reflecting the vigour of this rootstock. The combinations G1-Ost and G3-Kt registered the highest fruit yield, offering promising possibilities for boosting subtropical productivity in mango.