Evaluating crop-livestock-based farming systems: A village level study in the dry zone rainfed district of Sri Lanka

In Sri Lanka cropping enterprises interact with livestock production on peasant farms. This analysis of the crop-livestock farming system aims at understanding the existing constraints and interactions between crops and livestock in these farms. The main objective of the study is to describe the crop-livestock integrated farming systems in three rainfed villages in the Moneragala district of Sri Lanka, and to evaluate these systems in terms of maximizing farm incomes from the different crop and livestock components of the systems. A field survey was conducted to collect data from 153 farming families for the Maha season of 1982/83. A linear programming model was formulated to test the hypothesis.The results show that in general the activities for lowland rice, highland rice, sugar cane, labour, farm cash cost, and MVP (compost) are higher in the optimal farm plan than in the actual farm situation. The livestock in the optimal plan is mainly confined to milch cattle. However, with the present high level of manutrition among rural livestock industry emphasis should be placed on the expansion of the rural livestock industry in the study villages. The optimal plan also suggests the use of crop residues as a substitute for compost for farm crops. Hence, in the context of escalating prices of chemical fertilizers, research is required to find the suitability of crop residues and household residues as substitutes for compost. Increases in supplementary irrigation may result in the expansion of the farm area and hence the farm income. Other methods of increasing farm income include: replacing hired labour with non-utilized family labour, increased agricultural research, and extension activity regarding the use of modern inputs by farmers on crops.     

Crop yields under the traditional cropping patterns in a middle-belt savanna agro-ecological zone of Nigeria

A farming systems study was carried out from 1983 through 1985 among the rural farmers of the Middle-Belt agro-ecological zone of Benue State in Nigeria. The study aimed at providing the baseline data needed for evaluating the traditional cropping patterns and for assessing the magnitude of their effects on yields and returns from farms. Crop yields were found to be affected by several components of traditional cropping systems: fallow length, crop combinations in inter-cropping patterns, crop sequences and dates of planting. Variation of crop performance is such that the development in the area of well articulated farming systems research through ‘on the farm’ experimentation will provide a framework for improving the farmers' yields through modifications to the farming system.     

The origin and hazard of inputs to crop protection in organic farming systems: are they sustainable?

Sustainability is defined as the ability of a system to ‘continue’. In view of this definition, several aspects of the crop protection activity in organic farming are reviewed according to their ability to ‘continue’. As no absolute measure of sustainability is available, this analysis takes the form of a comparison between organic and conventional crop protection methods. Two elements of crop protection are considered: one being the source of the inputs to crop protection and the other being the environmental hazard of the chemicals used in crop protection. In addition, the sustainability of some of the wider issues related to crop protection methods in organic farming are discussed. It is concluded that organic farming systems are not sustainable in the strictest sense. Considerable amounts of energy are input to organic farming systems, the majority of the compounds utilised in crop protection are derived from non-renewable sources and incur processing and transport costs prior to application. Further, these compounds are not without toxicological hazards to ecology or humans. Despite these problems, it is concluded that organic farming is probably more sustainable than conventional farming in a bio-physical sense. However, an assessment of the overall sustainability of farming systems may depend upon the valuation given by society to their inputs and outputs, and in this sense it is extremely difficult to assess which farming system is most sustainable.     

A mathematical programming model of a crop-livestock farm system

A whole-farm mathematical programming model has been built for dryland crop-livestock farms in Western Australia. The multidisciplinary approach used for model building is presented and the resulting model structure is described. It is a mixed integer programming model which represents, in some detail, the biological, technological and financial relationships of the farming system and stresses the interdependencies of enterprises. The model is used to investigate the extent to which positive interactions between different enterprises influence the optimal farm plan. The management issue considered is the division of land between crop and pasture production. It is concluded that, for the farming system considered, interactions do have an influence on profit and the optimal farm plan.     

Application of a simulation model for assessing integration of smallholder shifting cultivation and sheep production in Yucatán, Mexico

Simulation models are effective tools to examine interactions between livestock, cropping systems, households, and natural resources. Our study objective was to use an integrated livestock and crop model to assess the outcomes from selected suites of management decisions observed in smallholder sheep-cropping systems of Yucatán, Mexico. The scenarios contrasted specialized systems versus mixed farming, and evaluated the outcomes of increased crop-livestock integration. Mixed enterprise scenarios involving sheep provided more income than specialized enterprises, and capitalized on a lower price of on-farm maize grain, efficient utilization of surplus labor, and availability of common land. Labor and management income was greatest for the unintegrated and partially integrated crop and livestock scenarios. It was more profitable for producers to sell excess grain and maize stover, and use common land to feed the livestock, suggesting that increased integration does not always result in improved outcomes. The results are consistent with a system not yet pushed to the point where integration is inevitable. For all sets of scenarios, the model structure was able to accommodate subtle management differences to produce appropriate biophysical, labor, and economic outcomes. We conclude there is potential to use similar model development methods to describe other crop-livestock systems, thus providing tools for learning, scenario analysis, and impact assessment.     

Evaluation of the water use efficiency of alternative farm practices at a range of spatial and temporal scales: A conceptual framework and a modelling approach

Water is the principal limiting resource in Australian broadacre farming, and the efficiency with which farmers use water to produce various products is a major determinant both of farm profit and of a range of natural resource management (NRM) outcomes. We propose a conceptual framework based on multiple water use efficiencies (WUEs) that can be used to gain insight into high-level comparisons of the productivity and sustainability of alternative farming practices across temporal and spatial scales. The framework is intended as a data aggregation and presentation device. It treats flows of water, biomass and money in a mixed farming system; economic inefficiencies in these flows are tracked as they are associated with a range of NRM indicators.We illustrate the use of the framework, and its place in a larger research programme, by employing it to synthesise the results from a set of modelling analyses of the effect of land use choices on long-term productivity and a range of NRM indicators (frequency of low ground cover, deep drainage, N leaching rates and rate of change in surface soil organic carbon). The analyses span scales from single paddocks and years to whole farms and have been carried out with the APSIM and GRAZPLAN biophysical simulation models and the MIDAS whole-farm economic model.In single wheat crops in one study, different land uses in preceding years affect grain yield primarily by affecting the harvest index. When the scale changes to cropping rotations, the critical factor affecting overall water use efficiency is found to be the proportion of stored soil water that is transpired by crops. When ordinated in terms of their water use efficiencies, a set of 45 modelled rotation sequences at another location are differentiated mainly by the proportion of pasture in the rotation; when rotations are ordinated using key NRM indicators, the proportion of lucerne pasture is the main distinguishing factor. Finally, we show that for whole crop-livestock farms at three different locations across southern Australia, the pattern of water use efficiencies in the most profitable farming systems changes in similar ways as cropping proportion is altered. At this scale, land use choices affect multiple water use efficiency indices simultaneously and commodity prices determine the balance of the resulting economic tradeoffs.Limitations to the use of the WUE framework arising from its relative simplicity are discussed, as are other areas of farming systems research and development to which it can be applied.     

作物生长模型研究现状与展望

作物生长模型由最初的作物生长发育模型发展到农业决策支持模型,在科学研究、农业管理、政策制定等方面发挥着越来越重要的作用。本文首先回顾了作物生长模型的发展过程,并按照模型主要驱动因子,将作物生长模型分为土壤因子、光合作用因子和人为因子驱动3类并分别进行了归纳阐述;然后对典型的模型分别从模型模块、时空尺度、可模拟的作物类型等方面进行列表式对比;并对作物生长模型在气候变化评估、生产管理决策支持、资源管理优化等方面的应用,以及面临的极端条件、复杂农业景观和模型复杂度等挑战进行了总结,在此基础上认为遥感数据同化和孪生农场是其发展方向。     

A modelling approach for analysis of agro pastoral activity at the one-farm level

A model was developed to represent the general functioning of a low input farming system in order to dispose of a tool able to simulate the effects of changes in productive and social organisation in traditional Andean rural communities. The model analyses daily agro pastoral activities of different members of an Andean peasant family, and farm crop production, across a 1-year timeframe, according to climate and labour organisation. The modelling approach uses object-oriented language, describes the objects and their relations with a unified modelling language formalism and manages time as illustrated by a sample potato crop. To demonstrate this methodology, one-farm observed and simulated data are compared within two frameworks: the cattle-feeding system, and the labour allocation system detailed by task and by gender. Results show good reliance in the first case study and, in the second case, a satisfactory overview of the agro pastoral calendar of household member workers, regarding the priorities given by peasants according to climate, land-use constraints, social organisation and out-farm activities. Due to its modularity, the object-oriented modelling approach appears to improve understanding of the general functioning of agro pastoral households by allowing multi-purpose simulations and exploring the links between social and productive activities.     

Operational forecasting of South African sugarcane production: Part 1 – System description

Commercial sugarcane crops in South Africa are grown under a wide range of agronomic and socio-economic conditions. These factors, together with climatic variation have resulted in a 17% variation in sugarcane production and there is considerable scope to improve productivity through accurate and timeous forecasts. This paper reports on the development of an operational crop forecasting system based on a simulation model. The country’s entire area of sugar production was subdivided into homogeneous climate zones using a wide range of data and expert opinion. These zones serve as simulation units within the system and model input and area aggregation data were obtained for each climate zone. Irrigation is simulated according to typical, zone specific strategies taking into account water use restrictions. Simulations of crops growing in the current year are completed using 10 historic seasons to substitute the remainder of the season. The selection of these seasons is based on the climate outlook. Reports containing information for national, regional and site specific cane production are generated and distributed to industry stakeholders. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first national scale model-based operational yield forecasting system for sugarcane. Possible future improvements to the system may include stochastic input variables, more representative irrigation simulations, quantifying forecast uncertainty and providing suitable reference crop yield. The system is evaluated in another paper.     

DéciBlé, a software package for wheat crop management simulation

DéciBlé is a simulation tool intended to support the design and evaluation of technical management for the wheat crop. Crop management is here considered from a strategic planning point of view, as the choice of technical decision rules for the whole growing period rather than day-by-day decisions for each operation. DéciBlé simulates the consequences for technical operations and crop production of a set of decision rules over a wide range of possible contexts (regions, year-to-year weather variation, fields, etc.). It is a simulation in which two models interact: a decision and a crop model. The decision model represents the decision rules through a specific formalisation and generates the operations for each context. The crop model is a set of modules simulating plant development, crop environment and yield accumulation implied by these operations in this context through the generation of loss functions or risk estimates. The crop model consists of a set of empirical models based on agronomic diagnosis and experimental references widely used in France. A general validation of DéciBlé is carried out using observed data from a network of field trials. The wheat development stages are simulated within 4 days of the observed dates in more than 80% of the cases and the yield components and final yield with differences of less than 15% from the real values in more than 75% of the cases. We discuss (i) the causes of unsatisfactory predictions and the prospects for improving the various modules of the crop model; (ii) the use of the simulator in some decision problems; and (iii) the position of DéciBlé among the existing models for crop management decision help, emphasising the originality of the method of decision representation.     

离散元法在农业工程研究中的应用现状和展望

现代农业装备数字化设计是农业工程领域的主要研究方向之一,农业机械与各类农业物料的接触作用及其对农业机械设计工作的影响是现代农业装备数字化设计重要内容和难点。离散元法是一种基于不连续性假设的计算机数值模拟方法。研究表明,离散元法可以用于仿真分析农业散体物料与机械装备间的相互作用关系,为现代农业装备数字化设计提供了新手段,在农业工程领域具有良好的应用前景。本文对离散元法的基本概念、发展历程及常见程序软件进行了概述,归纳分析了离散元法在模拟农业土壤与农业物料接触时的模型确定及其参数标定方法,重点阐述了各作业环节典型农业机械的离散元法应用现状和发展动态。对基于离散元的数值模拟仿真及其工业化应用推广所面临的主要问题进行了分析和总结,指出通用参数标定方法缺失和模型过度简化是离散元法进一步发展的制约因素,加强接触模型和参数标定的基础研究工作,推动专业、通用的软件平台开发,提高计算机计算和存储能力及改进离散元算法结构,从而提升模型计算效率将是今后的研究方向和工作重点。     

BANAD: A farm model for ex ante assessment of agro-ecological innovations and its application to banana farms in Guadeloupe

The ex ante assessment of innovative agro-ecological innovations is a key step in the development of more sustainable crop management systems. To this end, models are useful tools because they make it possible to rapidly assess numerous innovations in different contexts. Whereas many farm optimisation models focusing on the farmer’s strategic decision to adopt new crop management systems have been published, little attention has been given to the ex ante modelling of the dynamic operational impacts of innovation adoption at the farm level. BANAD, a mechanistic model for such applications, is proposed. It allows the ex ante assessment of innovative management systems including new agro-ecological techniques, while taking into account different farming contexts and policy and market conditions. It includes three components: (i) a crop management system model, (ii) a crop model (SIMBA) and (iii) a farming system model. Our results applied to the ex ante assessment of six innovative banana management systems for three contrasted farm types in Guadeloupe showed that the impacts of agro-ecological innovations, which include rotations, improved fallow, intercropping, pest-resistant cultivar, and an integrated organic system, can vary considerably according to (i) the farm type in which the innovation is integrated, (ii) the nature of the agro-ecological innovations, and (iii) the criteria considered and the temporal horizon of the assessment. Innovative intercropping systems that were effective at the field level in terms of the yield improvement and decreased pesticide use could be problematic at the farm level because they increased the workload and decreased income. The adoption of rotations or improved fallow seemed to be relevant for smallholders but could induce a critical period of 1.5-2.5 years during which income decreased drastically. Under certain conditions of markets and subsidies, very environmentally friendly innovations that are less productive can however be economically effective.     

北京休闲农业文化的资源类型及开发

休闲农业文化是休闲农业发展的核心和灵魂,为了了解北京休闲农业文化的发展现状,加快北京休闲农业和文化产业的整合升级,在准确把握休闲农业文化内涵的基础上,将北京休闲农业文化资源分为饮食文化、乡土文化、农耕文化、作物文化、民俗文化和农事节庆文化6大类型。以此为依据,结合一些典型的案例,以休闲农业的发展模式为依据,探讨分析北京休闲农业文化的开发现状。      

Management of water consumption in agriculture A model for the economic optimisation of water use: application to a sub-humid area

This paper present a set of solutions for new irrigation transformation in a sub-humid area such as Salvatierra (Alava, Spain). The research is based on the choice of crop rotation (cultivated species and its degree of participation) being able to economically optimise the use of available water for irrigation. Hence, we will be able in helping make decisions to plan, from origin, the transformation of a dry area into an irrigated area. To do this, a model of economic use of water has been used in an area with climatic features very similar to a large part of Europe, representing an interesting scenario compared to the places where the model had not been applied. Crops taking part in this rotation to optimise use of water are mainly vegetables, with high water needs, that coexist together with crops for dryland farming even in conditions of lack of water. Crops for dryland farming allow an interesting diversification of activity as well as an average resource assignment to the farms that make possible to cultivate many farms at a time, which obviously implies socio-economic benefits for the achievements in the zone.     

一种主动选择式远程监控自动喷灌系统

针对喷灌系统中,低成本选择式远程监控的需求,基于上位机组态监控系统,采用西门子PLC Modbus通信技术,西门子TC35手机通信模块GSM网络无线通信技术,作物数据库管理以及传感器技术,等功能模块集成的方法,设计并开发了基于作物生育期多控制模式低成本主动选择式远程监控节水自动喷灌系统。经大豆喷灌试验基地试验表明,该喷灌系统能实现无距离限制远程高效实时监控,具有适应性强,成本低等优点,能满足大豆在苗期和分枝期,适宜土壤含水量为75%,开花期和鼓粒期适宜土壤含水量为90%的喷灌要求,达到了较高的标准。     

温室温度和湿度的多变量模糊控制技术

介绍了一种基于MCS－51单片处理机的模糊控制温室温度的湿度技术，设计了模糊控制系统，并阐述了模糊控制系统的原理、方法以及硬件的组成。对整个控制过程进行了仿真试验，试验结果证明采用该模糊控制技术在控制温室的湿度和湿度时，系统响应快、超调量小、动作准确，过程平稳。     

Modelling optimal crop sequences using network flows

In recent years there has been an increased focus on sustainable farming systems. This has led to an increase in the use of farm models built to assess the environmental impact from farming. In whole-farm models including crop production it is important to consider the rotation of crops, since this has a major impact on the consequences of the crop production.     

Systematic design and evaluation of crop rotations enhancing soil conservation, soil fertility and farm income: a case study for vegetable farms in South Uruguay

Rapid changes in the social and economic environment in which agriculture is developing, together with the deterioration of the natural resource base threatens sustainability of farm systems in many areas of the world. For vegetable farms in South Uruguay, survival in the long term depends upon the development of production systems able to reduce soil erosion, maintain or improve physical and biological soil fertility, and increase farmer’s income to socially acceptable levels. We propose a model-based explorative land use study to support the re-orientation of vegetable production systems in South Uruguay. In this paper we present a new method to quantitatively integrate agricultural, environmental and socio-economic aspects of agricultural land use based on explicit design objectives. We describe the method followed to design and evaluate a wide variety of land use activities for Canelón Grande (South Uruguay) and we illustrate the usefulness of this approach in an ex-ante evaluation of new farming systems using data from 25 farms in this region. Land use activities resulted from systematic combination of crops and inter-crop activities into crop rotations, different crop management techniques (i.e., mechanisation, irrigation and crop protection) and animal production. We identified and quantified all possible rotations and estimated inputs and outputs at crop rotation scale, explicitly considering interactions among crops. Relevant inputs and outputs (i.e., soil erosion, balance of soil organic matter and nutrients, environmental impact of pesticides, labour and machinery requirements, and economic performance) of each land use activity were quantified using different quantitative methods and following the target-oriented approach. By applying the methodology presented in this paper we were able to design and evaluate 336,128 land use activities suitable for the different soil types in Canelón Grande and for farms with different availability of resources, i.e., land, labour, soil quality, capital and water for irrigation. After theoretical evaluation, a large subset of these land use activities showed promise for reducing soil erosion, maintaining soil organic matter content of the soil and increasing farmer’s income, allowing improvement of current farming systems in the region and providing a widely diverse set of strategic options for farmers in the region to choose from. This method can be used as a stand-alone tool to explore options at the field and farm scale or to generate input for optimisation models to explore options at the farm or regional scale.     

Modelling the fate of water and nitrogen in the mixed vegetable farming systems of northern Tasmania, Australia

A combination of high input management systems, high annual rainfall and deep, permeable soils in northern Tasmania create conditions that are conducive to high drainage and nitrogen losses below the root zone. An understanding of the extent and mechanism of such losses will enable farm managers and their consultants to identify and implement more sustainable management practices that minimise potential adverse financial and environmental consequences. Analysing the fate of water and nutrients in farming systems is complex and influenced by a wide range of factors including management, soil characteristics, seasonal climate variability and management history of the paddock/farm in question. This paper describes a novel farm system modelling approach based on the model APSIM, for analysing the fate of nitrogen and water in mixed vegetable-based farming enterprises. The study was based on seven case farms across the Panatana catchment in northern Tasmania. Substantial simulated drainage losses (>100 mm average seasonal loss) were apparent for all crop and rotation elements across all farms in response to the surplus between crop water supply and crop water use. Crop nitrogen demand was found to be close to crop nitrogen supply for all crop and pasture rotation elements with the exception of potato, which had an average surplus nitrogen supply of 89 kg N/ha. This resulted in potato having much higher nitrate nitrogen leaching losses (32 kg N/ha) compared to other crops (<10 kg N/ha). Simulations suggest that practicable management options such as deficit-based irrigation and reduced N fertiliser rates will maintain current levels of productivity while reducing potential offsite N loss and generating significant financial savings via reduced input costs.     

基于unity3d的交互式虚拟农业仿真平台研究

传统的农作物种植试验需要反复设计和改进,且受季节、农时和天气的限制,种植周期长、成本高。基于虚拟现实技术的农作物种植虚拟仿真平台能够缩短作物品种试验周期,降低成本,是实现农业生产现代化的关键。为此,重点研究了基于三网融合技术,以三维虚拟世界为载体,以农业仿真模型为科学计算依据,以任务驱动为特色的虚拟农业仿真平台架构,并基于unity3d实现了交互式虚拟农业仿真平台。