Summary
This global meta-analysis quantifies soil organic carbon dynamics under perennial crops by synthesising paired-comparison data across diverse crop types and geographies. Converting from annual to perennial crops increased SOC by 20% in the 0–30 cm layer over 20 years, though conversions from pasture or forest to perennial crops showed variable or negative effects on deeper soil layers. The findings support perennial crop adoption as a climate mitigation strategy, with woody crops accumulating carbon most effectively, though outcomes vary significantly by baseline land use, climate, and soil properties.
Regional applicability
The study's global scope provides a framework applicable to UK conditions, particularly for evaluating perennial crop establishment (e.g., agroforestry, perennial grasses) on arable land; however, UK-specific validation would be valuable given the study's emphasis on temperature as a key driver and the limited granularity of UK-specific plot data within the global dataset.
Key measures
Soil organic carbon stocks (Mg/ha) at 0–30 cm and 0–100 cm soil depth; temporal changes in SOC during perennial crop cycles; empirical model parameters including effects of crop age, temperature, soil bulk density, clay content, and depth
Outcomes reported
The study quantified changes in soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks when converting from annual to perennial crops, and modelled SOC dynamics as a function of time, land use type, and site characteristics using a harmonised global dataset of paired comparisons.
Topic tags
Dig deeper with Pulse AI.
Pulse AI has read the whole catalogue. Ask about this record, its theme, or how the findings apply to UK farming and policy — every answer cites the underlying studies.