Satellite Symposium 3: Pastoral Systems
Description
The amount of water available to agriculture in the Mediterranean is declining because of increasing population pressure and greater incidence of drought. Therefore, the efficiency of the use of water for agricultural production must be maximized and, in this context, perennial forage species have a number of advantages in comparison to the predominantly-used annuals. They can utilize water throughout the whole year besides being able to halt rangeland degradation, restore soil fertility and enhance forage production, thereby contributing to greater sustainability of rain-fed agricultural systems in the southern European Union and North Africa. Despite these advantages, the small size of individual national markets has so far worked against the development of a viable forage industry based on perennials. By adopting a multi-national approach and targeting the key breeding objectives of superior drought-resistance and water-use efficiency (WUE), an European Commission-funded project aims to produce commercially cultivars of a number of species of broad regional interest and adaptation.
Included in
Agricultural Science Commons, Agronomy and Crop Sciences Commons, Plant Biology Commons, Plant Pathology Commons, Soil Science Commons, Weed Science Commons
Improvement of Native Perennial Forage Plants for Sustainability of Mediterranean Farming Systems
The amount of water available to agriculture in the Mediterranean is declining because of increasing population pressure and greater incidence of drought. Therefore, the efficiency of the use of water for agricultural production must be maximized and, in this context, perennial forage species have a number of advantages in comparison to the predominantly-used annuals. They can utilize water throughout the whole year besides being able to halt rangeland degradation, restore soil fertility and enhance forage production, thereby contributing to greater sustainability of rain-fed agricultural systems in the southern European Union and North Africa. Despite these advantages, the small size of individual national markets has so far worked against the development of a viable forage industry based on perennials. By adopting a multi-national approach and targeting the key breeding objectives of superior drought-resistance and water-use efficiency (WUE), an European Commission-funded project aims to produce commercially cultivars of a number of species of broad regional interest and adaptation.
