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Viticulture involves high pesticide use. While methods to reduce this use have been proposed by researchers, they have not yet been widely implemented by winegrowers. Involving winegrowers in the participatory design of new management strategies could encourage the adoption of these methods to reduce pesticide use. In this study, we designed and tested a participatory approach to reducing pesticide use that would be acceptable to winegrowers from a South-Western cooperative (i.e., not 'pioneering' winegrowers). The approach was composed of three main steps: A) co-design of the management strategies, B) implementation of the management strategies, and C) co-evaluation of the performances of the implemented management strategies. Winegrowers, researchers, advisors and engineers were involved in the study. The application of this participatory approach enabled the co-design and testing of two management strategies: IPM for Integrated Pest Management [50% reduction of pesticide treatment frequency index (TFI) as compared to the French High Environmental Value reference (HEV)], and ORG2kgCo for organic farming system with a maximum of 2 kg of copper/ha/year. These two management strategies were implemented by 11 winegrowers in three vineyards in South-Western France. In both management strategies, two main technical levers were selected to reduce pesticide use: a Decision Support System to optimise the use and substitution of pesticides by biocontrol products. The implementation of the IPM management strategy resulted in a significant reduction of TFI (from -14% to -57%, with an average of -25%, for all pesticides combined) compared to HEV, and the winegrowers who tested ORG2kgCo managed to not exceed the limit of 2 kg of copper per year. This original participatory approach, combining co-design workshops, on-farm experimentation and co-evaluation workshops, highlighted the benefits of involving winegrowers in the reduction of pesticide use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The agriculture, forestry and other land use sector are responsible for 24% (10–12 Pg CO 2 e per year) of anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions worldwide, with concomitant opportunities for mitigation. A scientific panel used deliberative methods to identify ten technical measures comprising 26 sub-measures to reduce GHG emissions from agriculture in France. Their abatement potential and cost are compared. The proposed measures concern nitrogen (N) management, management practices that increase carbon stocks in soils and biomass, livestock diets, and energy production and consumption on farms. Results show that the total abatement potential can be divided into three parts. One third of the cumulated abatement potential corresponds to sub-measures that can be implemented at a negative technical cost. These sub-measures focus on increased efficiency in input use including N fertilisers, animal feed and energy. The second third are sub-measures with moderate cost (<€25 per metric Mg of avoided CO 2 e). These sub-measures require specific investments or changes to cropping systems, but additional costs or lower incomes are partially compensated for by a reduction in other costs or by the production of other marketable products. The remaining third are high-cost sub-measures (>€25 per metric Mg of avoided CO 2 e). These require investment with no direct financial return, the purchase of particular inputs, dedicated labour time or involve production losses. Assuming additivity, the cumulated abatement is 32.3 Tg CO 2 e per year in 2030, but only 10 Tg (i.e. 10% of current agricultural emissions) when calculated under current inventory rules. This study confirms that a significant abatement potential exists in the agricultural sector, with two thirds of this potential at low or even negative cost. This is likely to be an underestimated as it is based on a status quo of the current agricultural system. Results also emphasise the need to upgrade inventory rules so that efforts to reduce emissions can be accounted for. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Spontaneous service plants strategies present a high spatial and temporal diversity. • Strategies can be measured by calculating the Coverage Index (CI) for each vineyard. • Higher CI was linked to quality labels, organic crop protection and low target yields. • No link was found between CI and water and soil resources in vineyards. • Target services by winegrowers are consistent with the CI and period coverage. 'Service plants' include spontaneous vegetation or sown species of cover crops associated with perennial crops in the rows or inter-rows with a high potential to provide ecosystem functions and services. In vineyards, service plants target specific services depending on the management strategy implemented by the winegrower, including the plant species, the surface covered, the plant growth control and destruction date. Understanding the management strategies linked to their associated target services at the regional scale is necessary to better help winegrowers, advisers and policy makers regarding an adapted use of service plants. To do this, we conducted a survey in 2016 among 334 winegrowers in Languedoc-Roussillon region in France, enquiring about their service plant management practices during the season 2014–2015. Given the diversity of the strategies of service plant management, we proposed a typology analyzing their spatial and temporal dimensions. Further, we present a Coverage Index (CI), which combines both temporal and spatial dimensions of the service plant management strategies. We conducted a multiple components analysis and clustering to create a vineyard typology and applied linear models to find correlations between the CI and specific vineyard characteristics. Three quarters of interviewed winegrowers sowed or maintained service plants in their vineyards; 41 % used a winter service plant strategy; 8.4 % a semi-permanent and 27.3 % a permanent service plant strategy. The preferred surface coverage strategy was full surface during grapevine dormancy and its reduction to half of the inter-rows after grapevine budburst. However, the diversity of surface coverage strategies during the grapevine vegetative period was remarkable. Lower water resources and specific soil characteristics were not linked to the service plant management strategies. Higher CI was associated with vineyards presenting quality labels (PDO and Organic), independent winemaking and lower target yields, showing that the added value of producing high quality wine plays an important role when implementing service plants in vineyards. Overall, our study showed: i) the popularity of spontaneous service plant strategies; ii) the spatial and temporal diversity of service plant management strategies and iii) the utility of the CI to study the implementation of service plants and to understand the motivations and constraints of their use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]