This page has only limited features, please log in for full access.

Unclaimed
Mariangela Diacono
Council for Agricultural Research and Economics-Agriculture and Environment Research, Center (CREA-AA), 70125 Bari, Italy

Honors and Awards

The user has no records in this section


Career Timeline

The user has no records in this section.


Short Biography

The user biography is not available.
Following
Followers
Co Authors
The list of users this user is following is empty.
Following: 0 users

Feed

Journal article
Published: 31 May 2021 in Applied Sciences
Reads 0
Downloads 0

Assessment of soil quality under different management practices is crucial for sustainable agricultural production and natural resource use. In this study, different statistical methods (principal component analysis, PCA; stepwise discriminant analysis, SDA; partial least squares regression with VIP statistics, PLSR) were applied to identify the variables that most discriminated soil status under minimum tillage and no-tillage. Data collected in 2015 from a long-term field experiment on durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) were used and twenty soil indicators (chemical, physical and biological) were quantified for the upper soil layer (0–0.20 m). The long-term iteration of different management strategies affected soil quality, showing greater bulk density, relative field capacity (RFC), organic and extractable carbon contents (TOC and TEC) and exchangeable potassium under no-tillage. PCA and SDA confirmed these results and underlined also the role of available phosphorous and organic carbon fractions as variables that most discriminated the treatments investigated. PLSR, including information on plant response (grain yield and protein content), selected, as the most important variables, plant nutrients, soil physical quality indicators, pH and exchangeable cations. The research showed the effectiveness of combining variable selection methods to summarize information deriving from multivariate datasets and improving the understanding of the system investigated. The statistical approaches compared provided different results in terms of variables selected and the ranking of the selected variables. The combined use of the three methods allowed the selection of a smaller number of variables (TOC, TEC, Olsen P, water extractable nitrogen, RFC, macroporosity, air capacity), which were able to provide a clear discrimination between the treatments compared, as shown by the PCA carried out on the reduced dataset. The presence of a response variable in PLSR considerably drove the feature selection process.

ACS Style

Anna Stellacci; Mirko Castellini; Mariangela Diacono; Roberta Rossi; Concetta Gattullo. Assessment of Soil Quality under Different Soil Management Strategies: Combined Use of Statistical Approaches to Select the Most Informative Soil Physico-Chemical Indicators. Applied Sciences 2021, 11, 5099 .

AMA Style

Anna Stellacci, Mirko Castellini, Mariangela Diacono, Roberta Rossi, Concetta Gattullo. Assessment of Soil Quality under Different Soil Management Strategies: Combined Use of Statistical Approaches to Select the Most Informative Soil Physico-Chemical Indicators. Applied Sciences. 2021; 11 (11):5099.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Anna Stellacci; Mirko Castellini; Mariangela Diacono; Roberta Rossi; Concetta Gattullo. 2021. "Assessment of Soil Quality under Different Soil Management Strategies: Combined Use of Statistical Approaches to Select the Most Informative Soil Physico-Chemical Indicators." Applied Sciences 11, no. 11: 5099.

Journal article
Published: 15 May 2021 in Sustainability
Reads 0
Downloads 0

The implementation of agroecology principles within organic farming research is a crux to redesign sustainable agri-food systems. To govern this transition, the local research demand should be addressed by direct engagement of all stakeholders in the research process. The first step is the involvement of farmers and technicians, with the aim of restoring their decision-making role, switching governance to local scale. The co-design/co-management of Long-Term Experiments (LTEs) can be crucial to govern the above-described transition through networking and participatory activities. In this study, we report the experience of co-designing a new LTE in Southern Italy by local actors and scientists. Through a participatory action research methodology, an LTE was considered as a biophysical component of an agroecological living lab, a public–private environment aimed to design a local food system. The setup of parallel field trials in satellite farms stands for the other biophysical component, whereas the stakeholder platform represents the social one. Through definition of common objectives, a step-by-step process is presented, which highlights the interest of local organic actors to share ideas and perspectives for the territory, pointing out the inclusion of end-users (the consumers) in the process to complete the transition to sustainable food systems.

ACS Style

Corrado Ciaccia; Elena Testani; Angelo Fiore; Ileana Iocola; Marta Di Pierro; Giuseppe Mele; Filippo Ferlito; Marcello Cutuli; Francesco Montemurro; Roberta Farina; Danilo Ceccarelli; Alessandro Persiani; Stefano Canali; Mariangela Diacono. Organic Agroforestry Long-Term Field Experiment Designing Trough Actors’ Knowledge towards Food System Sustainability. Sustainability 2021, 13, 5532 .

AMA Style

Corrado Ciaccia, Elena Testani, Angelo Fiore, Ileana Iocola, Marta Di Pierro, Giuseppe Mele, Filippo Ferlito, Marcello Cutuli, Francesco Montemurro, Roberta Farina, Danilo Ceccarelli, Alessandro Persiani, Stefano Canali, Mariangela Diacono. Organic Agroforestry Long-Term Field Experiment Designing Trough Actors’ Knowledge towards Food System Sustainability. Sustainability. 2021; 13 (10):5532.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Corrado Ciaccia; Elena Testani; Angelo Fiore; Ileana Iocola; Marta Di Pierro; Giuseppe Mele; Filippo Ferlito; Marcello Cutuli; Francesco Montemurro; Roberta Farina; Danilo Ceccarelli; Alessandro Persiani; Stefano Canali; Mariangela Diacono. 2021. "Organic Agroforestry Long-Term Field Experiment Designing Trough Actors’ Knowledge towards Food System Sustainability." Sustainability 13, no. 10: 5532.

Editorial
Published: 01 May 2021 in Applied Sciences
Reads 0
Downloads 0

Soil degradation is one of the most topical environmental threats. A number of processes causing soil degradation, specifically erosion, compaction, salinization, pollution, and loss of both organic matter and soil biodiversity, are also strictly connected to agricultural activity and its intensification. The development and adoption of sustainable agronomic practices able to preserve and enhance the physical, chemical, and biological properties of soils and improve agroecosystem functions is a challenge for both scientists and farmers. This Special Issue collects 12 original contributions addressing the state of the art of sustainable agriculture and soil conservation. The papers cover a wide range of topics, including organic agriculture, soil amendment and soil organic carbon (SOC) management, the impact of SOC on soil water repellency, the effects of soil tillage on the quantity of SOC associated with several fractions of soil particles and depth, and SOC prediction, using visible and near-infrared spectra and multivariate modeling. Moreover, the effects of some soil contaminants (e.g., crude oil, tungsten, copper, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) are discussed or reviewed in light of the recent literature. The collection of the manuscripts presented in this Special Issue provides a relevant knowledge contribution for improving our understanding on sustainable agriculture and soil conservation, thus stimulating new views on this main topic.

ACS Style

Mirko Castellini; Mariangela Diacono; Concetta Gattullo; Anna Stellacci. Sustainable Agriculture and Soil Conservation. Applied Sciences 2021, 11, 4146 .

AMA Style

Mirko Castellini, Mariangela Diacono, Concetta Gattullo, Anna Stellacci. Sustainable Agriculture and Soil Conservation. Applied Sciences. 2021; 11 (9):4146.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mirko Castellini; Mariangela Diacono; Concetta Gattullo; Anna Stellacci. 2021. "Sustainable Agriculture and Soil Conservation." Applied Sciences 11, no. 9: 4146.

Journal article
Published: 08 March 2021 in Biological Agriculture & Horticulture
Reads 0
Downloads 0

This research was carried out in an organic crop sequence of cauliflowers (Brassica oleracea L.) and tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum L.) intercropped with different cover crop species (burr medic (Medicago polymorpha L) and crimson clover (Trifolium incarnatum L.)) grown as living mulches and cultivated on a ridge system on a site characterised by extreme weather events (floods) in the Mediterranean environment. The objectives of the research were to: (i) investigate the impact of the combination of agro-ecological techniques (cover crops and organic fertilisation) on cash crops yield, biomass production and selected physical properties of the soil; (ii) evaluate the sustainability of the systems by using both energy inputs/outputs analysis and assessment of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). Six treatment combinations were compared: intercropping with burr medic throughout the crop rotation, with and without organic fertilisers; growing crimson clover as a living mulch in the winter crop within the crop rotation, with and without organic fertilisers; cropping system without cover crops, with and without organic fertilisers. The findings highlighted that the introduction of cover crops in the rotation should be recommended since it resulted in higher crop production levels without negative impacts on soil physical properties, as well as in the best energy use efficiency and carbon efficiency in the system. The results of the soil physical quality assessment indicated that the agro-ecological practices had no significant effects on the soil properties. Therefore, in the Mediterranean conditions, the proposed agro-ecological approaches can be crucial to achieving sustainable organic agro-ecosystems.

ACS Style

Mariangela Diacono; Alessandro Persiani; Mirko Castellini; Luisa Giglio; Francesco Montemurro. Intercropping and rotation with leguminous plants in organic vegetables: crop performance, soil properties and sustainability assessment. Biological Agriculture & Horticulture 2021, 1 -27.

AMA Style

Mariangela Diacono, Alessandro Persiani, Mirko Castellini, Luisa Giglio, Francesco Montemurro. Intercropping and rotation with leguminous plants in organic vegetables: crop performance, soil properties and sustainability assessment. Biological Agriculture & Horticulture. 2021; ():1-27.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mariangela Diacono; Alessandro Persiani; Mirko Castellini; Luisa Giglio; Francesco Montemurro. 2021. "Intercropping and rotation with leguminous plants in organic vegetables: crop performance, soil properties and sustainability assessment." Biological Agriculture & Horticulture , no. : 1-27.

Editorial
Published: 25 January 2021 in Agronomy
Reads 0
Downloads 0

Within the new “European Green Deal”, the European Commission defined crucial challenges for the agriculture of future decades, such as making food production more sustainable by considering the local pedo-climatic and socio-economic specificities

ACS Style

Mariangela Diacono; Francesco Montemurro; Alessandra Trinchera. An Overview on Agroecology and Organic Agriculture Strategies for Sustainable Crop Production. Agronomy 2021, 11, 223 .

AMA Style

Mariangela Diacono, Francesco Montemurro, Alessandra Trinchera. An Overview on Agroecology and Organic Agriculture Strategies for Sustainable Crop Production. Agronomy. 2021; 11 (2):223.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mariangela Diacono; Francesco Montemurro; Alessandra Trinchera. 2021. "An Overview on Agroecology and Organic Agriculture Strategies for Sustainable Crop Production." Agronomy 11, no. 2: 223.

Research article
Published: 30 September 2020 in Archives of Agronomy and Soil Science
Reads 0
Downloads 0

Anaerobic digestate (AD), a sub-product of cattle manure treatment to produce biogas, could be used for agricultural purposes after co-composting. The aim of this research was to evaluate in organic horticulture the co-composted AD, obtained using two different aerobic stabilization processes (not aerated and aerated composting), by assessing: i) the energy requirements and the GHG emissions of on-farm co-composting; ii) the agronomic performance of the co-composted AD, compared to a commercial organic (CF) fertilizer, on fennel, tomato and zucchini crops; iii) the environmental sustainability of the different analyzed systems, through the energy and the carbon footprint analyses. The AD co-composting was a feasible way to valorize organic wastes by producing organic fertilizers. These fertilizers could substitute the CF, leading to similar production capacity, energetic and carbon efficiencies. In particular, despite the greater carbon stocks generated by CF, the carbon efficiency was higher in co-composted AD than CF for both fennel and tomato cultivation systems. The GHG emission analysis for the agricultural operations indicated that CF treatment determined the highest CO2 emissions. Therefore, an appropriate management of the fertilization strategies could allow reducing the GHG emissions.

ACS Style

Alessandro Persiani; Francesco Montemurro; Angelo Fiore; Rosalba Scazzarriello; Mariangela Diacono. On-farm fertilizing materials in organic horticulture: agronomic performance, energy use and GHG emission evaluation. Archives of Agronomy and Soil Science 2020, 1 -17.

AMA Style

Alessandro Persiani, Francesco Montemurro, Angelo Fiore, Rosalba Scazzarriello, Mariangela Diacono. On-farm fertilizing materials in organic horticulture: agronomic performance, energy use and GHG emission evaluation. Archives of Agronomy and Soil Science. 2020; ():1-17.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Alessandro Persiani; Francesco Montemurro; Angelo Fiore; Rosalba Scazzarriello; Mariangela Diacono. 2020. "On-farm fertilizing materials in organic horticulture: agronomic performance, energy use and GHG emission evaluation." Archives of Agronomy and Soil Science , no. : 1-17.

Journal article
Published: 12 August 2020 in Agronomy
Reads 0
Downloads 0

The objectives of this paper are to present the dynamic of organic food and farming (OFF) research and innovation, to outline challenges in deploying programs and accessing funding, and to define key actions to foster the development of tailored quality research on organic farming in Italy. The baseline starts from the main outcomes that emerged during the World Café held in the frame of the Salone Internazionale del biologico e del naturale (SANA Expo) in 2018, where the Italian OFF research community met to build a convergence on scope and modus operandi in the research endeavor. These outcomes were examined in the light of the key features of the research and innovation projects funded in Italy in the last 10 years, respectively by the Italian Ministry of Agriculture and the regional administrations through the innovation support instruments in the Rural Development Plan programming periods. In the period 2009–2018, 70 research projects for a total funding of 21.081 million € (<0.1% of the value of the sector) were launched, addressing nine different topic areas. Over a similar period (2007–2019), 53 regional innovation projects addressing organic farming were activated for a total budget of 14.299 million € (<10% of the entire available funding). The implementation of interventions in the research and the innovation areas were often scattered in terms of the topics, disciplines, and types of supply chain/network addressed. The relatively high share of multi/interdisciplinary research and innovation projects as well as the acknowledgement of the multi-actor approach as a fundamental step toward co-research and co-innovation were upshots that emerged from our analysis. The outcomes of this study can be used by competent national and the regional authorities to design their future research and innovation policies and interventions.

ACS Style

Stefano Canali; Daniele Antichi; Simona Cristiano; Mariangela Diacono; Valentina Ferrante; Paola Migliorini; Francesco Riva; Alessandra Trinchera; Raffaele Zanoli; Luca Colombo. Levers and Obstacles of Effective Research and Innovation for Organic Food and Farming in Italy. Agronomy 2020, 10, 1181 .

AMA Style

Stefano Canali, Daniele Antichi, Simona Cristiano, Mariangela Diacono, Valentina Ferrante, Paola Migliorini, Francesco Riva, Alessandra Trinchera, Raffaele Zanoli, Luca Colombo. Levers and Obstacles of Effective Research and Innovation for Organic Food and Farming in Italy. Agronomy. 2020; 10 (8):1181.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Stefano Canali; Daniele Antichi; Simona Cristiano; Mariangela Diacono; Valentina Ferrante; Paola Migliorini; Francesco Riva; Alessandra Trinchera; Raffaele Zanoli; Luca Colombo. 2020. "Levers and Obstacles of Effective Research and Innovation for Organic Food and Farming in Italy." Agronomy 10, no. 8: 1181.

Journal article
Published: 09 May 2020 in Agronomy
Reads 0
Downloads 0

Sustainability of agricultural practices is one of the most important issues in organic agriculture and its assessment is crucial. To this aim, evaluating the balance between the energy inputs and outputs in crop rotations could be a valuable tool. Therefore, we compared different management strategies in a four-year organic cropping system, by estimating the energy balance of crop production. Two different living mulches with no-till (B1) and green manure (B2) were compared with a cropping system without cover crop (B3), performing both energy analysis and energy balance. Energy parameters were also evaluated. The energy input of fertilizers and water was more than 55% of the total energy required by the cropping systems, suggesting that these agronomic practices should be tailored by farmers to decrease total energy inputs. The potential energy output was significantly higher in the B1 than the B2 and B3 cropping systems (20% and 54%, respectively). Results indicated that B1 and B2 could enhance the energy outputs without negatively affecting the energy consumption, since these cropping systems also showed higher energy efficiency. The introduction of the cover crop as living mulch combined with no-till could be a powerful tool to enhance systems sustainability, without compromising the crop yields.

ACS Style

Francesco Montemurro; Alessandro Persiani; Mariangela Diacono. Cover Crop as Living Mulch: Effects on Energy Flows in Mediterranean Organic Cropping Systems. Agronomy 2020, 10, 667 .

AMA Style

Francesco Montemurro, Alessandro Persiani, Mariangela Diacono. Cover Crop as Living Mulch: Effects on Energy Flows in Mediterranean Organic Cropping Systems. Agronomy. 2020; 10 (5):667.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Francesco Montemurro; Alessandro Persiani; Mariangela Diacono. 2020. "Cover Crop as Living Mulch: Effects on Energy Flows in Mediterranean Organic Cropping Systems." Agronomy 10, no. 5: 667.

Journal article
Published: 01 January 2020 in Scientia Agricola
Reads 0
Downloads 0

There is an increasing interest in the application of geophysical surveys to assess the soil water content (SWC) variation in both spatial and temporal scales. In this work, a geophysical survey was carried out at an experimental farm in dry and wet conditions. We determined the SWC data measured with the gravimetric method, apparent electrical conductivity by electromagnetic induction (EMI) and amplitude of Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) data at different frequencies. Geophysical sensors are an efficient tool for soil mapping at high resolution; however; there is a need to improve the knowledge on their capabilities and limitations under field conditions, especially for GPR. The geophysical survey provides an example of the application of these techniques to evaluate the spatial variability of SWC in two different water conditions. The contribution of geophysical data in understanding the spatial variability of SWC was investigated applying both the traditional analysis and spatial techniques. The results indicated that the geophysical data captured the spatial variation of SWC in non-invasively way especially in dry condition. However, they also showed the complex interplay between factors controlling SWC and geophysical responses and the drawbacks of geophysical sensors under inhomogeneous water conditions. Our findings also highlighted that EMI survey provides the potential to map the SWC variability within a relatively short time. The results obtained in this research are important from the agronomical viewpoint, since they allow increasing efficiency of irrigation practices, which is important in times characterized by climate change.

ACS Style

Daniela De Benedetto; Francesco Montemurro; Mariangela Diacono. Repeated geophysical measurements in dry and wet soil conditions to describe soil water content variability. Scientia Agricola 2020, 77, 1 .

AMA Style

Daniela De Benedetto, Francesco Montemurro, Mariangela Diacono. Repeated geophysical measurements in dry and wet soil conditions to describe soil water content variability. Scientia Agricola. 2020; 77 (5):1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Daniela De Benedetto; Francesco Montemurro; Mariangela Diacono. 2020. "Repeated geophysical measurements in dry and wet soil conditions to describe soil water content variability." Scientia Agricola 77, no. 5: 1.

Articles
Published: 18 December 2019 in Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems
Reads 0
Downloads 0

In a two-year experiment, agroecological service crops (ASCs) introduction before organic zucchini and lettuce vs no-ASCs (CT), and two ASCs termination strategies (green manure, GM vs roller crimper, NT) were compared. The objective was to assess the environmental sustainability in a Mediterranean environment. Agronomic performance, energy analysis and carbon footprint were assessed. Although lower zucchini and lettuce yields than GM, the NT strategy was more sustainable than GM and CT, showing energy efficiencyof 0.64, 0.31 and 0.13%, respectively, and showing the highest carbon stored in the soil. NT can reach a good compromise between crop production and impact of agricultural activities.

ACS Style

Mariangela Diacono; Alessandro Persiani; Elena Testani; Francesco Montemurro. Sustainability of agro-ecological practices in organic horticulture: yield, energy-use and carbon footprint. Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems 2019, 44, 726 -746.

AMA Style

Mariangela Diacono, Alessandro Persiani, Elena Testani, Francesco Montemurro. Sustainability of agro-ecological practices in organic horticulture: yield, energy-use and carbon footprint. Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems. 2019; 44 (6):726-746.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mariangela Diacono; Alessandro Persiani; Elena Testani; Francesco Montemurro. 2019. "Sustainability of agro-ecological practices in organic horticulture: yield, energy-use and carbon footprint." Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems 44, no. 6: 726-746.

Articles
Published: 19 November 2019 in Biological Agriculture & Horticulture
Reads 0
Downloads 0
ACS Style

Elena Testani; Francesco Montemurro; Corrado Ciaccia; Mariangela Diacono. Agroecological practices for organic lettuce: effects on yield, nitrogen status and nitrogen utilisation efficiency. Biological Agriculture & Horticulture 2019, 36, 84 -95.

AMA Style

Elena Testani, Francesco Montemurro, Corrado Ciaccia, Mariangela Diacono. Agroecological practices for organic lettuce: effects on yield, nitrogen status and nitrogen utilisation efficiency. Biological Agriculture & Horticulture. 2019; 36 (2):84-95.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Elena Testani; Francesco Montemurro; Corrado Ciaccia; Mariangela Diacono. 2019. "Agroecological practices for organic lettuce: effects on yield, nitrogen status and nitrogen utilisation efficiency." Biological Agriculture & Horticulture 36, no. 2: 84-95.

Journal article
Published: 15 October 2019 in Agronomy
Reads 0
Downloads 0

A growing interest in proximal sensing technologies for estimating soil water content (SWC) will be highlighted. On this matter the objectives of this study were: (1) to use both the combined electromagnetic induction (EMI) sensor and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) to characterize an innovative field experiment located in southern Italy, in which different agricultural practices are tested, including a soil hydraulic arrangement; (2) to implement a geostatistical approach in order to merge different geophysical sensor data as auxiliary variables for SWC estimation. The multi-sensor recorded data were: (1) SWC data measured by gravimetric method; (2) Differential Global Positioning System height; (3) apparent electrical conductivity measured by an EMI sensor; (4) depths of soil discontinuities individuated by GPR radargrams interpretation; and (5) amplitude of GPR signal data at two different frequencies. Geostatistical techniques were used both to map all variables and improve the SWC estimation. The findings of this research indicate that: (1) the GPR radargrams identified four reflection events as a consequence of interfaces; (2) the EMI and GPR mapping provided identification of areas with high potential for water stagnation; and (3) the outputs of geophysical sensors can be effectively used as auxiliary tools to supplement the sampling of the target variable and to improve water content estimation.

ACS Style

Daniela De Benedetto; Francesco Montemurro; Mariangela Diacono. Mapping an Agricultural Field Experiment by Electromagnetic Induction and Ground Penetrating Radar to Improve Soil Water Content Estimation. Agronomy 2019, 9, 638 .

AMA Style

Daniela De Benedetto, Francesco Montemurro, Mariangela Diacono. Mapping an Agricultural Field Experiment by Electromagnetic Induction and Ground Penetrating Radar to Improve Soil Water Content Estimation. Agronomy. 2019; 9 (10):638.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Daniela De Benedetto; Francesco Montemurro; Mariangela Diacono. 2019. "Mapping an Agricultural Field Experiment by Electromagnetic Induction and Ground Penetrating Radar to Improve Soil Water Content Estimation." Agronomy 9, no. 10: 638.

Journal article
Published: 03 October 2019 in Applied Sciences
Reads 0
Downloads 0

In the last decade, there has been an increasing interest in sustainable agricultural techniques and the environmental evaluation of the effects of agricultural practices. In the present study, we evaluated both the production capacity of organic horticultural systems, and the ex-post sustainability through a new multi-attribute decision model named “DEXi-met”. This qualitative model is able to estimate the environmental sustainability of cropping systems managed with different agro-ecological approaches. In particular, we compared the following three horticultural systems: (i) ECO, an organic system with full implementation of agro-ecological strategies (agro-ecological services crops (ASC), strip cultivation, and organic amendment); (ii) GM, an organic system with the introduction of the ASC; (iii) NO ASC, an organic system without ASC. The treatments with ASC presence (ECO and GM) showed similar total energy outputs (substantially higher than the NO ASC), indicating the positive effect of this agro-ecological practice. The findings pointed out that the ECO system, which followed the principles of natural ecosystems, can contribute to building up more complex agro-ecosystems, increasing both resilience and biodiversity. This management strategy reached a good compromise between the production of vegetable cropping systems and environmental sustainability achievement. Then, it is possible to optimize the use of natural resources, support climate adaptation, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

ACS Style

Francesco Montemurro; Alessandro Persiani; Mariangela Diacono. Organic Vegetable Crops Managed with Agro-Ecological Practices: Environmental Sustainability Assessment by DEXi-met Decision Support System. Applied Sciences 2019, 9, 4148 .

AMA Style

Francesco Montemurro, Alessandro Persiani, Mariangela Diacono. Organic Vegetable Crops Managed with Agro-Ecological Practices: Environmental Sustainability Assessment by DEXi-met Decision Support System. Applied Sciences. 2019; 9 (19):4148.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Francesco Montemurro; Alessandro Persiani; Mariangela Diacono. 2019. "Organic Vegetable Crops Managed with Agro-Ecological Practices: Environmental Sustainability Assessment by DEXi-met Decision Support System." Applied Sciences 9, no. 19: 4148.

Journal article
Published: 12 July 2019 in Sustainability
Reads 0
Downloads 0

The Circular Economy concept implies the re-design of existing production systems in agriculture, by promoting agricultural waste recycling. In an organic zucchini—lettuce rotation, two different agroecological tools were considered: biofertilizer and presence or absence of green manure (GM+ and GM−). In particular, we compared: (i) anaerobic digestate from cattle manure, co-composted with vegetable wastes, with the presence of GM (AD GM+); (ii) olive pomace compost, re-composted, with the presence of GM (OWC GM+); (iii) municipal waste compost with GM (MWC GM+); (iv) municipal waste compost without GM (MWC GM−). These materials were tested with a commercial organic fertilizer without GM (COF GM−) as a positive control. The objectives were: (i) assessing the environmental sustainability of biofertilizers through carbon footprint analysis by greenhouse gas—GHG—emissions; (ii) evaluating the agronomic performance on the vegetable rotation, by energy output assessment. The total carbon emissions of biofertilizers production was 63.9 and 67.0 kg of CO2 eq Mg−1 for AD and OWC, respectively. The co-composting and re-composting processes emitted 31.4 and 8.4 kg CO2 per Mg of compost, respectively. In AD the ventilation phase of composting accounted for 37.2% of total emissions. The total CO2 emission values for the two-crop cycles were the highest in COF GM− and the lowest in OWC GM+, due to different fertilizer sources. On the average of the treatments, the input that induced the highest CO2 emission was irrigation (37.9%). The energy output assessment for zucchini and lettuce highlighted similar performance for all the treatments. Our findings demonstrated the validity of the tested processes to recycle agro-industrial wastes, and the potential of agroecological practices (GM) to mitigate GHG emissions.

ACS Style

Mariangela Diacono; Alessandro Persiani; Elena Testani; Francesco Montemurro; Corrado Ciaccia. Recycling Agricultural Wastes and By-products in Organic Farming: Biofertilizer Production, Yield Performance and Carbon Footprint Analysis. Sustainability 2019, 11, 3824 .

AMA Style

Mariangela Diacono, Alessandro Persiani, Elena Testani, Francesco Montemurro, Corrado Ciaccia. Recycling Agricultural Wastes and By-products in Organic Farming: Biofertilizer Production, Yield Performance and Carbon Footprint Analysis. Sustainability. 2019; 11 (14):3824.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mariangela Diacono; Alessandro Persiani; Elena Testani; Francesco Montemurro; Corrado Ciaccia. 2019. "Recycling Agricultural Wastes and By-products in Organic Farming: Biofertilizer Production, Yield Performance and Carbon Footprint Analysis." Sustainability 11, no. 14: 3824.

Research article
Published: 08 May 2019 in Environmental Science and Pollution Research
Reads 0
Downloads 0

Production capacity evaluation and environmental sustainability assessment allow defining both the most appropriate fertilization strategies and the agricultural systems management. The aims of this study were to investigate the following, in a cauliflower-lettuce rotation: (i) agricultural system agronomic performance, (ii) fertilization treatments environmental sustainability through the energy inputs/outputs analysis, and (iii) carbon footprint through the GHG emissions and carbon sequestration analyses. Three fertilization strategies were compared: (i) CM, compost from municipal solid waste; ii) MIN, mineral fertilizers; iii) MIX, the CM compost plus a mineral fertilizer. Cauliflower and lettuce responses to fertilization were influenced by climatic conditions from year to year, and among the fertilizer treatments, the CM demonstrated a better resilience to the extreme weather events. It also showed the highest renewable energy (44.3%), suggesting that the substitution of mineral fertilizers with organic ones may help to reduce the non-renewable energy depletion, thus promoting the sustainability in horticultural systems. The CM was the most efficient treatment, since the energy stocked as C in the soil (145,889 MJ ha−1) and the net energy and the energy efficiency for cauliflower and lettuce (113,106 MJ ha−1 and 3.1, respectively) were the highest. Our results suggest that the application of the tested sustainable practices makes the farm a “sink” for the atmospheric CO2.

ACS Style

Alessandro Persiani; Mariangela Diacono; Antonio Monteforte; Francesco Montemurro. Agronomic performance, energy analysis, and carbon balance comparing different fertilization strategies in horticulture under Mediterranean conditions. Environmental Science and Pollution Research 2019, 26, 19250 -19260.

AMA Style

Alessandro Persiani, Mariangela Diacono, Antonio Monteforte, Francesco Montemurro. Agronomic performance, energy analysis, and carbon balance comparing different fertilization strategies in horticulture under Mediterranean conditions. Environmental Science and Pollution Research. 2019; 26 (19):19250-19260.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Alessandro Persiani; Mariangela Diacono; Antonio Monteforte; Francesco Montemurro. 2019. "Agronomic performance, energy analysis, and carbon balance comparing different fertilization strategies in horticulture under Mediterranean conditions." Environmental Science and Pollution Research 26, no. 19: 19250-19260.

Journal article
Published: 26 February 2019 in Agronomy
Reads 0
Downloads 0

Optimization of the nitrogen (N) inputs and minimization of nutrient losses strongly affect yields in crop rotations. The aim of this research was to evaluate the effect of agricultural practices on yield and N use in a 4-year cereal-legume rotation in organic farming and to identify the best combination of these practices. The following treatments were compared: conventional plough (P) vs. reduced chisel (RC) tillage; composted farmyard manure (F) vs. unfertilized control (NF); and green manure (GM) vs. no green manure (NoM). No significant differences were found for N use efficiency between P and RC in each crop. The results suggested that legumes in the tested rotation do not need supplemental N fertilization, particularly if combining GM and F. The use of composted farmyard manure should be considered in a long-term fertilization plan for cereals, to allow a higher efficiency in N use. The residual effect of fertilization over time, along with the site-specific pedo-climatic conditions, should also be considered. In both tested tillage approaches, soil N surplus was the highest in plots combining GM and F (i.e., more than 680 kg N ha−1 in combination with RC vs. about 140 kg N ha−1 for RC without fertilization), with a risk of N losses by leaching. The N deficit in NoM–NF both combined with P and RC would indicate that these treatment combinations are not sustainable for the utilized crops in the field experiment. Therefore, the combination of the tested practices should be carefully assessed to sustain soil fertility and crop production.

ACS Style

Mariangela Diacono; Paola Baldivieso-Freitas; Francisco Xavier Sans Serra. Nitrogen Utilization in a Cereal-Legume Rotation Managed with Sustainable Agricultural Practices. Agronomy 2019, 9, 113 .

AMA Style

Mariangela Diacono, Paola Baldivieso-Freitas, Francisco Xavier Sans Serra. Nitrogen Utilization in a Cereal-Legume Rotation Managed with Sustainable Agricultural Practices. Agronomy. 2019; 9 (3):113.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mariangela Diacono; Paola Baldivieso-Freitas; Francisco Xavier Sans Serra. 2019. "Nitrogen Utilization in a Cereal-Legume Rotation Managed with Sustainable Agricultural Practices." Agronomy 9, no. 3: 113.

Research article
Published: 05 February 2019 in Journal of Soil Science and Plant Nutrition
Reads 0
Downloads 0

The effects of olive pomace (OP) compost application on yield and quality of organic emmer, on soil characteristics, and on heavy metals accumulation in plant and soil have been evaluated. The research was carried out in Mediterranean environment for four consecutive years comparing the application of OP compost in two doses and with the addition of a bio-activator. These fertilizing treatments were compared to a commercial organic amendment and an unfertilized control. The application of OP compost ensured both a comparable level of yield than the commercial fertilizer and a high content of protein in the grain, suggesting that it could be an interesting strategy of fertilization for organic emmer. No remarkable heavy metals’ accumulation was found in the plant and soil. Low transfer coefficients and soil accumulation were recorded at the end of experiment, indicating that OP compost could be used as suitable soil amendment, ensuring at the same time an eco-friendly recycling of waste materials. It can optimize organic emmer yield production, sustain soil fertility, and reduce pollution risks linked to the landfill disposal. These results are interesting to develop nitrogen fertilizer strategies for emmer crop, which is an underutilized ancient cereal that well fits for organic production.

ACS Style

Mariangela Diacono; Francesco Montemurro. Olive Pomace Compost in Organic Emmer Crop: Yield, Soil Properties, and Heavy Metals’ Fate in Plant and Soil. Journal of Soil Science and Plant Nutrition 2019, 19, 63 -70.

AMA Style

Mariangela Diacono, Francesco Montemurro. Olive Pomace Compost in Organic Emmer Crop: Yield, Soil Properties, and Heavy Metals’ Fate in Plant and Soil. Journal of Soil Science and Plant Nutrition. 2019; 19 (1):63-70.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mariangela Diacono; Francesco Montemurro. 2019. "Olive Pomace Compost in Organic Emmer Crop: Yield, Soil Properties, and Heavy Metals’ Fate in Plant and Soil." Journal of Soil Science and Plant Nutrition 19, no. 1: 63-70.

Journal article
Published: 22 October 2018 in Sustainability
Reads 0
Downloads 0

Organic agriculture is perceived as environmentally sustainable, but, under its umbrella, different production systems exist ranging from simplified organic productions to well diversified systems with a full implementation of agro-ecological approaches. Among several developed tools for agriculture sustainability assessment, multi-criteria models are increasingly gaining importance. In this study, we evaluated the use of the multi-criteria DEXi-BIOrt tool, coupled with data from long-term experiments, for the sustainability assessment of different organic vegetable production scenarios. These scenarios were applied in two Italian areas: the Adriatic coast of Marche Region and the Metaponto plan of Basilicata Region. Despite the presence of some critical issues, DEXI-BIOrt proved to be a valid tool for the sustainability evaluation of organic vegetable productions. In both areas, the most sustainable scenarios resulted the well diversified organic systems characterized by proper rotations, inclusion of agro-ecological service crops, cultivation of local and different cultivars, and presence of short supply chain mechanisms. Conversely, the implementation of the simplified organic substitution scenarios does not guarantee a suitable level of sustainability. The findings of this study could support decision makers in the implementation of appropriate measures for enhancing organic production sustainability in the framework of post-2020 Common Agricultural Policy.

ACS Style

Ileana Iocola; Gabriele Campanelli; Mariangela Diacono; Fabrizio Leteo; Francesco Montemurro; Alessandro Persiani; Stefano Canali. Sustainability Assessment of Organic Vegetable Production Using a Qualitative Multi-Attribute Model. Sustainability 2018, 10, 3820 .

AMA Style

Ileana Iocola, Gabriele Campanelli, Mariangela Diacono, Fabrizio Leteo, Francesco Montemurro, Alessandro Persiani, Stefano Canali. Sustainability Assessment of Organic Vegetable Production Using a Qualitative Multi-Attribute Model. Sustainability. 2018; 10 (10):3820.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Ileana Iocola; Gabriele Campanelli; Mariangela Diacono; Fabrizio Leteo; Francesco Montemurro; Alessandro Persiani; Stefano Canali. 2018. "Sustainability Assessment of Organic Vegetable Production Using a Qualitative Multi-Attribute Model." Sustainability 10, no. 10: 3820.

Original article
Published: 07 July 2018 in Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems
Reads 0
Downloads 0

A 2-year field trial was carried out in a climate change context on organic tomato crop. The objectives were: (1) to study the best synergistic combination of a set of agro-ecological techniques, as potential adaptation strategies in Mediterranean environment [i.e.: soil surface shaping; crop rotations; cover crops introduction (barley, vetch and their mixture); cover crop termination techniques (roller crimper—RC vs green manure—GM) and organic fertilization]; (2) to evaluate the sustainability of these techniques by assessing energetic performance. In both years, the barley-RC and mixture-RC combinations reduced weeds fresh and dry weights. In 2014, the combination of commercial organic fertilizer and vetch gave both the highest tomato marketable and total yields (26.88 and 31.97 t ha−1, respectively). In 2015, these production parameters decreased by 30.7 and 35.4%, respectively compared to 2014, and GM-cover crop produced on average more than twice as much as RC-cover crop. The cover crop termination by RC reduced soil mineral N peak than GM treatment, at full flowering in particular in plots after vetch and in the mixture plots in 2014 and 2015 respectively, thus reducing the potential environmental impact by nitrate leaching. The highest energy consuming input was fertilizers (by 57%). The highest energy efficiency and net energy were found in the vetch-GM combination (with low fertilizer input). The research points out that agronomic practices must be fine-tuned to the specific pedoclimatic condition for an efficient use of energy. Moreover, agronomic input reduction is not only feasible, but also creates environmental benefits.

ACS Style

Mariangela Diacono; Alessandro Persiani; Stefano Canali; Francesco Montemurro. Agronomic performance and sustainability indicators in organic tomato combining different agro-ecological practices. Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems 2018, 112, 101 -117.

AMA Style

Mariangela Diacono, Alessandro Persiani, Stefano Canali, Francesco Montemurro. Agronomic performance and sustainability indicators in organic tomato combining different agro-ecological practices. Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems. 2018; 112 (1):101-117.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mariangela Diacono; Alessandro Persiani; Stefano Canali; Francesco Montemurro. 2018. "Agronomic performance and sustainability indicators in organic tomato combining different agro-ecological practices." Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems 112, no. 1: 101-117.

Journal article
Published: 22 June 2018 in Agronomy
Reads 0
Downloads 0

An increasing interest and sensitivity of consumers and public opinion toward high-quality food products obtained with environmentally-friendly production methods has recently been detected. To this end, one of the key roles could be played by an environmental evaluation of the crop production. This research was performed to test a new multi-attribute decision model (DEXi-met) that is able to estimate the environmental sustainability of different agronomic practices in horticultural rotations. The model was used at the cropping system level on the basis of data from a long-term experiment in organic horticulture. It was tested on different cropping managements under climate change conditions. The DEXi-met mixed model (qualitative and qualitative basic attributes) generated four aggregated attributes to assess sustainability indicators (production capacity, soil, water and resources preservation, and biodiversity conservation) and the overall environmental sustainability. The model validation indicated that the introduction of agro-ecological services crops can increase the environmental sustainability of an organic cropping systems by promoting the whole soil–plant system equilibrium. The application of this tool could help maximize the efficient use of agronomical practices and quantify their environmental sustainability. DEXi-met could help agricultural advisors and policymakers schedule their decisions to find the right compromise between crop yield increase and the impact of agricultural activities.

ACS Style

Francesco Montemurro; Alessandro Persiani; Mariangela Diacono. Environmental Sustainability Assessment of Horticultural Systems: A Multi-Criteria Evaluation Approach Applied in a Case Study in Mediterranean Conditions. Agronomy 2018, 8, 98 .

AMA Style

Francesco Montemurro, Alessandro Persiani, Mariangela Diacono. Environmental Sustainability Assessment of Horticultural Systems: A Multi-Criteria Evaluation Approach Applied in a Case Study in Mediterranean Conditions. Agronomy. 2018; 8 (7):98.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Francesco Montemurro; Alessandro Persiani; Mariangela Diacono. 2018. "Environmental Sustainability Assessment of Horticultural Systems: A Multi-Criteria Evaluation Approach Applied in a Case Study in Mediterranean Conditions." Agronomy 8, no. 7: 98.