Quality Agriculture
Quality Agriculture

Author: John Kempf

Publisher:

Published: 2020-06-10

Total Pages: 298

ISBN-13: 9781734844504

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An increasing number of farmers and scientists believe the foundational ideas of mainstream agronomy are incomplete and unsound. Conventional crop production ignores biology in favor of chemical interventions, leading farmers to buy inputs they don't need. Fertilizer recommendations keep going up, pest pressure becomes more intense, pesticide applications are needed more often, and soil health continues to degrade. However, innovative growers and researchers are beginning to think differently about production agriculture systems. They have developed practices that regenerate soil and plant health and that deliver much better results than mainstream methods. Using these principles, growers are able to decrease fertilizer applications, reduce disease and insect pressure, hold more water in the soil, improve soil health, and grow crops that are more resilient to climatic extremes, increasing farm profitability immediately. As a leading agronomist and teacher, John Kempf has implemented regenerative agricultural systems on millions of acres across many different crop types and growing regions with his team at Advancing Eco Agriculture. In Quality Agriculture, John interviews a group of growers, consultants, and scientists who describe how to think and farm differently in order to produce exceptional results in the field. Their remarkable insights will challenge you, encourage you, and inspire gratitude and joy for the rewards of working with natural systems.

Water Quality and Agriculture
Water Quality and Agriculture

Author: James Shortle

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2021-06-12

Total Pages: 410

ISBN-13: 3030470873

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Water pollution control has been a top environmental policy priority of the world’s most developed countries for decades, and the focus of significant regulation and public and private spending. Yet, significant water quality problems remain, and trends for some pollutants are in the wrong direction. This book addresses the economics of water pollution control and water pollution control policy in agriculture, with an aim towards providing students, environmental policy analysts, and other environmental professionals with economic concepts and tools essential to understanding the problem and crafting solutions that can be effective and efficient. The book will also examine existing policies and proposed reforms in the developed world. Although this book addresses and has a general applicability to major water pollutants from agriculture (e.g., pesticides, pharmaceuticals, sediments, nutrients), it will focus on the sediment and nutrient pollution problem. The economic and scientific foundations for pollution management are best developed for these pollutants, and they are currently the top priorities of policy makers. Accordingly, the authors provide both highly salient and informative cases for developing concepts and methods of general applicability, with high profile examples such as the Chesapeake Bay, Lake Erie, and the Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone in the US; the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe; and Lake Taupo in New Zealand.

Managing Soil Quality
Managing Soil Quality

Author: P. Schjønning

Publisher: CABI

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 356

ISBN-13: 9780851998503

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In-depth treatments of the soil quality concept, its history, and its applicability in research and in developed and developing societiesAll 18 chapters are written by well-established experts from Europe, North America and AustraliaSoil quality is a concept that allows soil functions to be related to specific purposes. Managing soil quality takes a management oriented approach by identifying key issues in soil quality and management options to enhance the sustainability of modern agriculture. Topics covered include major plant nutrients (N, P, K), soil acidity, soil organic matter, soil biodiversity, soil compaction, erosion, pesticides and urban waste.

Plant Factory
Plant Factory

Author: Toyoki Kozai

Publisher: Academic Press

Published: 2019-11-03

Total Pages: 518

ISBN-13: 0128166924

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Plant Factory: An Indoor Vertical Farming System for Efficient Quality Food Production, Second Edition presents a comprehensive look at the implementation of plant factory (PF) practices to yield food crops for both improved food security and environmental sustainability. Edited and authored by leading experts in PF and controlled environment agriculture (CEA), the book is divided into five sections, including an Overview and the Concept of Closed Plant Production Systems (CPPS), the Basics of Physics and Physiology – Environments and Their Effects, System Design, Construction, Cultivation and Management and Plant Factories in Operation. In addition to new coverage on the rapid advancement of LED technology and its application in indoor vertical farming, other revisions to the new edition include updated information on the status of business R&D and selected commercial PFALs (plant factory with artificial lighting). Additional updates include those focused on micro and mini-PFALs for improving the quality of life in urban areas, the physics and physiology of light, the impact of PFAL on the medicinal components of plants, and the system design, construction, cultivation and management issues related to transplant production within closed systems, photoautotrophic micro-propagation and education, training and intensive business forums on PFs. - Includes coverage of LED technology - Presents case-studies for real-world insights and application - Addresses PF from economics and planning, to operation and lifecycle assessment

Animal Agriculture
Animal Agriculture

Author: Fuller W. Bazer

Publisher: Academic Press

Published: 2019-10-25

Total Pages: 560

ISBN-13: 0128170530

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Animal Agriculture: Sustainability, Challenges and Innovations discusses the land-based production of high-quality protein by livestock and poultry and how it plays an important role in improving human nutrition, growth and health. With exponential growth of the global population and marked rises in meat consumption per capita, demands for animal-source protein are expected to increase 72% between 2013 and 2050. This raises concerns about the sustainability and environmental impacts of animal agriculture. An attractive solution to meeting increasing needs for animal products and mitigating undesirable effects of agricultural practices is to enhance the efficiency of animal growth, reproduction, and lactation. Currently, there is no resource that offers specific knowledge of both animal science and technology, including biotechnology for the sustainability of animal agriculture for the expanding global demand of food in the face of diminishing resources. This book fills that gap, giving readers all the necessary information on important issues facing modern animal agriculture, namely its sustainability, challenges and innovative solutions. - Integrates new knowledge in animal breeding, biotechnology, nutrition, reproduction and management - Addresses the urgent issue of sustainability in modern animal agriculture - Provides practical solutions on how to solve the current and future problems that face animal agriculture worldwide

Farming for Our Future
Farming for Our Future

Author: PETER H.. ROSENBERG LEHNER (NATHAN A.)

Publisher:

Published: 2021-12-07

Total Pages: 272

ISBN-13: 9781585762378

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Farming for Our Future examines the policies and legal reforms necessary to accelerate the adoption of practices that can make agriculture in the United States climate-neutral or better. These proven practices will also make our food system more resilient to the impacts of climate change. Agriculture's contribution to climate change is substantial--much more so than official figures suggest--and we will not be able to achieve our overall mitigation goals unless agricultural emissions sharply decline. Fortunately, farms and ranches can be a major part of the climate solution, while protecting biodiversity, strengthening rural communities, and improving the lives of the workers who cultivate our crops and rear our animals. The importance of agricultural climate solutions can not be underestimated; it is a critical element both in ensuring our food security and limiting climate change. This book provides essential solutions to address the greatest crises of our time.

Agroecosystem Diversity
Agroecosystem Diversity

Author: Gilles Lemaire

Publisher: Academic Press

Published: 2018-10-08

Total Pages: 484

ISBN-13: 0128110511

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Agro-Ecosystem Diversity: Impact on Food Security and Environmental Quality presents cutting-edge exploration of developing novel farming systems and introduces landscape ecology to agronomy. It encompasses the broad range of links between agricultural development and ecological impact and how to limit the potential negative results. Presented in seven sections, each focusing on a specific challenge to sustaining diversity, the book provides insights toward the argument that by re-introducing diversity, it should be possible to maintain a high level of productivity of agro-ecosystems while also maintaining and/or restoring a satisfactory level of environment quality and biodiversity. - Demonstrates that diversified agro-ecosystems can be intensified with environmental quality preserved, restored and enhanced - Includes analysis of economic constraints leading to specialization of farms and regions and the social locking forces resisting to diversification of agro-ecosystems - Presents a global vision of world agriculture and the tradeoff between a necessary increase in food production and restoring environment quality

Precision Agriculture Basics
Precision Agriculture Basics

Author: D. Kent Shannon

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2020-01-22

Total Pages: 272

ISBN-13: 0891183663

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With the growing popularity and availability of precision equipment, farmers and producers have access to more data than ever before. With proper implementation, precision agriculture management can improve profitability and sustainability of production. Precision Agriculture Basics is geared at students, crop consultants, farmers, extension workers, and practitioners that are interested in practical applications of site-specific agricultural management. Using a multidisciplinary approach, readers are taught to make data-driven on-farm decisions using the most current knowledge and tools in crop science, agricultural engineering, and geostatistics. Precision Agriculture Basics also features a stunning video glossary including interviews with agronomists on the job and in the field.