封面图片
2022年, 第9卷 第2期
The cover picture exhibits a vision of future sustainable crop and pasture systems in North China Plain in early May. Winter wheat is under grain filling stage, spring maize at the elongation stage and spring soybean at the branching stage are grown as intercrops. At a distance, oilseed rape is at the end of flowering stage, and pasture is just after spring cut by grass harvester. Such cropping systems are charaterized by two key features: (1) crop diversification with intercropping and crop rotation at the field scale, and hedges and flower strips at the landscape scale, and (2) sustainable agricultural management with crop-tailored mechanization such as precise seed sowing, drone spraying of green pesticide and fertilizer, and mimimum tillage. Such nature-based solutions are based upon the deeper understanding of above- and belowground interactions in species-diverse systems. For example, plant diversity can release a wide range of belowground inputs (e.g., root exudates), fueling diverse soil biota and promoting associated soil ecosystm functions. This can further tighten the internal nutrient cycle, reduce pest and disease, and enhance ecosystem resilience to extreme weather events. Overall, such cropping systems can produce sufficient high-quality food with less agrochemical inputs and thus lower environmental impacts.[展开] ...