Summary
This Mediterranean field experiment evaluated the effect of replacing winter fallow with vetch or barley cover crops on greenhouse gas emissions during both the intercrop and subsequent maize cropping period, with nitrogen fertilisation applied according to integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) principles. Although cover crops increased N2O emissions during the intercrop period compared to fallow (1.6–2.6 times), the ISFM approach resulted in similar cumulative N2O emissions by the end of the maize cycle, with the legume cover crop (vetch) producing higher intercrop emissions than the non-legume (barley). The findings suggest that combining cover crops with ISFM can reduce synthetic nitrogen requirements for the cash crop without increasing long-term cumulative or yield-scaled N2O losses, offering both agronomic and environmental benefits.
UK applicability
The study was conducted in Mediterranean conditions, which differ substantially from UK temperate and oceanic climate patterns in soil temperature, moisture regimes, and rainfall distribution. However, the integrated soil fertility management approach and the cover crop species (vetch and barley) are relevant to UK arable systems, and the findings on N2O dynamics could inform UK practice, though local validation under cooler, wetter conditions would be advisable.
Key measures
Cumulative N2O emissions (kg N2O-N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹), yield-scaled N2O emissions (g N2O-N kg aboveground N uptake⁻¹), N surplus (kg N ha⁻¹), CH4 and CO2 fluxes, soil mineral N, soil temperature and moisture, dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and maize N uptake
Outcomes reported
The study measured cumulative and yield-scaled nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, along with maize nitrogen uptake, soil mineral nitrogen concentrations, and soil biogeochemical properties under different winter cover crop and fallow management regimes.
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