Carbon emissions and economic assessment of farm operations under different tillage practices in organic rainfed almond orchards in semiarid Mediterranean conditions
Open accessAbstract
Sustainable land management practices, such as reduced tillage or crop diversification, are potentially efficient measures to fight against soil degradation and desertification. The decision to approve these practices must be justified by both integrated environmental and economic assessment studies. In this work, we analysed the carbon emissions associated to farm operations and economic profitability for two organic rainfed almond (Prunus dulcis Mill.) farms under semiarid conditions. In the analysis, we considered the following soil management strategies: conventional tillage (CT); reduced tillage (RT); reduced tillage plus green manure (RTG); and no tillage (NT). A cradle-to-farm gate life cycle assessment (LCA) was applied based on long-term data from two farms. The results obtained showed that the NT strategy provided, as expected, the lowest greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions but that its yield was also the lowest, which negatively affects its economic viability even with the consideration of subsidies. The RT strategy reduced GHG emissions and improved the ratio of profit/GHG emissions, whilst the RTG strategy increased GHG emissions and reduced the ratio of profit/GHG emissions as a consequence of using seeds. In conclusion, it has been demonstrated that some level of reduced tillage leads to environmental and economic benefits with respect to conventional tillage in organic rainfed almond orchards under semiarid conditions.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The implementation of no-tillage with natural understory vegetation in a Spanish almond plantation reduced yield by 63% compared to conventional tillage management.
“Another study showed that the implementation of no-tillage with natural understory vegetation in a Spanish almond plantation reduced yield by 63% compared to conventional tillage management (Martin-Gorriz et al., 2020).”
From Almond farm profitability under agroecological management in south-eastern Spain: Accounting for externalities and opportunity costs (2020) · cites this paper as Martin-Gorriz et al., 2020
Previous studies in Mediterranean European almond plantations found larger yield gaps for NT (-63% and -28%) over 10-12 years compared to our short-term study.
“previous studies in Mediterranean European almond plantations showed contrasting results to what Giller et al. (2009) suggest, as they found over a longer time scale (10-12 years) larger yield gaps for NT (-63% and -28%) compared to our short-term study”
From Almond farm profitability under agroecological management in south-eastern Spain: Accounting for externalities and opportunity costs (2020) · cites this paper as Martin-Gorriz et al., 2020
The operational costs estimated in this study are similar to those reported in other studies on Spanish almonds.
“The operational costs estimated in this study are similar to those reported in other studies on Spanish almonds”
From Almond farm profitability under agroecological management in south-eastern Spain: Accounting for externalities and opportunity costs (2020) · cites this paper as Martin-Gorriz et al., 2020
The lower yields in the GM treatment are not in line with earlier findings that reported no significant yield differences compared to CT.
“The lower yields in the GM treatment are, however, not in line with earlier findings that reported no significant yield differences compared to CT”
From Almond farm profitability under agroecological management in south-eastern Spain: Accounting for externalities and opportunity costs (2020) · cites this paper as Martin-Gorriz et al., 2020
Martin-Gorriz et al. (2020) found that almonds managed with conventional tillage in Murcia (Spain) had operational costs of €710 ha-1 y-1.
“Martin-Gorriz et al. (2020) found that almonds managed with conventional tillage in Murcia (Spain) had operational costs of €710 ha -1 y -1”
From Almond farm profitability under agroecological management in south-eastern Spain: Accounting for externalities and opportunity costs (2020) · cites this paper as Martin-Gorriz et al., 2020
Cites
Anthropogenic and Natural Radiative Forcing
Myhre, G., Shindell, D., & Pongratz, J. (2014) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9781107415324.018 · Cited by 4,634 · see citing works
West, T. O., & Marland, G. (2002) · Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment · doi:10.1016/s0167-8809(01)00233-x · Cited by 1,523 · see citing works
The environmental consequences of adopting conservation tillage in Europe: reviewing the evidence
Holland, J. M. (2004) · Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment · doi:10.1016/j.agee.2003.12.018 · Cited by 1,062 · see citing works
Systematic review of greenhouse gas emissions for different fresh food categories
Clune, S., Crossin, E., & Verghese, K. (2017) · Journal of Cleaner Production · doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.04.082 · Cited by 1,017 · see citing works
Conservation Agriculture and Soil Carbon Sequestration: Between Myth and Farmer Reality
Govaerts, B., Verhulst, N., Castellanos-Navarrete, A., Sayre, K. D., Dixon, J., & Dendooven, L. (2009) · Critical Reviews in Plant Sciences · doi:10.1080/07352680902776358 · Cited by 528 · see citing works
Aguilera, E., Lassaletta, L., Gattinger, A., & Gimeno, B. S. (2013) · Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment · doi:10.1016/j.agee.2013.02.003 · Cited by 482 · see citing works
Life Cycle Inventories of Agricultural Production Systems
Nemecek, T., & Kägi, T. (2007) · Cited by 482 · see citing works
den Putte, A. V., Govers, G., Diels, J., Gillijns, K., & Demuzere, M. (2010) · European Journal of Agronomy · doi:10.1016/j.eja.2010.05.008 · Cited by 341 · see citing works
Martínez‐Mena, M., Carrillo-López, E., Boix‐Fayos, C., Almagro, M., García-Franco, N., Díaz‐Pereira, E., Montoya, I., & de Vente, J. (2019) · CATENA · doi:10.1016/j.catena.2019.104352 · Cited by 262 · see citing works
Self-citationGómez, J. A., Guzmán, G., Cervera, J. V. G., & Fereres, E. (2009) · Soil and Tillage Research · doi:10.1016/j.still.2009.04.008 · Cited by 232 · see citing works
Aguilera, E., Guzmán, G. I., & Alonso, A. (2014) · Agronomy for Sustainable Development · doi:10.1007/s13593-014-0265-y · Cited by 199 · see citing works
Ramos, M. E., Benítez, E., García, P. A., & Robles, A. B. (2010) · Applied Soil Ecology · doi:10.1016/j.apsoil.2009.08.005 · Cited by 177 · see citing works
Martínez‐Mena, M., López, J., Almagro, M., et al. (2008) · Soil and Tillage Research · doi:10.1016/j.still.2008.01.009 · Cited by 167 · see citing works
Self-citationVenkat, K. (2012) · Journal of Sustainable Agriculture · doi:10.1080/10440046.2012.672378 · Cited by 165 · see citing works
Aulakh, M. S., Rennie, D. A., & Paul, E. A. (1984) · Journal of Environmental Quality · doi:10.2134/jeq1984.00472425001300010024x · Cited by 164 · see citing works
Nitrous oxide production and denitrification in Scottish arable soils
Arah, J. R. M., Smith, K. A., Crichton, I. J., et al. (1991) · Journal of Soil Science · doi:10.1111/j.1365-2389.1991.tb00414.x · Cited by 161 · see citing works
van Leeuwen, C. C. E., Cammeraat, E., de Vente, J., et al. (2019) · Land Use Policy · doi:10.1016/j.landusepol.2019.01.018 · Cited by 143 · see citing works
Energy analysis of tillage and herbicide inputs in alternative weed management systems
Clements, D. R., Weise, S. F., Brown, R., Stonehouse, D. P., Hume, D. J., & Swanton, C. J. (1995) · Agriculture Ecosystems & Environment · doi:10.1016/0167-8809(94)00546-q · Cited by 105 · see citing works
Álvaro‐Fuentes, J., López, M. V., Arrúe, J. L., Moret‐Fernández, D., & Paustian, K. H. (2009) · Agriculture Ecosystems & Environment · doi:10.1016/j.agee.2009.07.001 · Cited by 95 · see citing works
Hernanz, J. L., Girón, V. S., & Cerisola, C. (1995) · Soil and Tillage Research · doi:10.1016/0167-1987(95)00490-4 · Cited by 94 · see citing works
Guardia, G., del Río, Á. T., García-Marco, S., Martín‐Lammerding, D., Tenorio, J. L., Ibáñez, M. Á. T., & Vallejo, A. (2016) · Agriculture Ecosystems & Environment · doi:10.1016/j.agee.2016.01.047 · Cited by 90 · see citing works
Nemecek, T., Weiler, K., Plassmann, K., Schnetzer, J., Gaillard, G., Jefferies, D., García–Suárez, T., King, H., & Canals, L. M. I. (2012) · Journal of Cleaner Production · doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2012.03.005 · Cited by 89 · see citing works
Almagro, M., de Vente, J., Boix‐Fayos, C., García-Franco, N., de Aguilar, J. M., González, D., Solé‐Benet, A., & Martínez‐Mena, M. (2013) · Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change · doi:10.1007/s11027-013-9535-2 · Cited by 88 · see citing works
Self-citationAlmagro, M., García-Franco, N., & Martínez‐Mena, M. (2017) · Agriculture Ecosystems & Environment · doi:10.1016/j.agee.2017.05.016 · Cited by 83 · see citing works
Self-citationAlmagro, M., de Vente, J., Boix‐Fayos, C., García-Franco, N., de Aguilar, J. M., González, D., Solé‐Benet, A., & Martínez‐Mena, M. (2015) · EGUGA · Cited by 80 · see citing works
Self-citationTuomisto, H. L., Hodge, I., Riordan, P., & Macdonald, D. W. (2012) · Annals of Applied Biology · doi:10.1111/j.1744-7348.2012.00555.x · Cited by 58 · see citing works
Zaher, U. E., Stöckle, C., Painter, K., & Higgins, S. S. (2013) · Agricultural Systems · doi:10.1016/j.agsy.2013.08.004 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
Martínez-Mena, M., Garcia-Franco, N., Almagro, M., Ruiz-Navarro, A., Albaladejo, J., de Aguilar, J. M., Gonzalez, D., & Querejeta, J. I. (2013) · European Journal of Agronomy · doi:10.1016/j.eja.2013.04.006 · Cited by 47 · see citing works
Self-citationThe environmental benefits and costs of conservation tillage
Uri, N. D., Atwood, J. D., & Sanabria, J. (1998) · The Science of The Total Environment · doi:10.1016/s0048-9697(98)00134-x · Cited by 47 · see citing works
Quantification of the residual biomass obtained from pruning of trees in Mediterranean almond groves
Velázquez-Martí, B., Fernández-González, E., Cortés, I. L., et al. (2010) · Renewable Energy · doi:10.1016/j.renene.2010.08.008 · Cited by 43 · see citing works
Page, G., Kelly, T., Minor, M. A., et al. (2011) · HortScience · doi:10.21273/hortsci.46.2.324 · Cited by 36 · see citing works
Cost-benefit analysis of almond orchard under regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) in SE Spain
García, J., Romero, P., Botía, P., & García, F. (2004) · Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research · doi:10.5424/sjar/2004022-70 · Cited by 32 · see citing works
Sastre, C. M., Maletta, E., Arechavala, Y. G., Ciria, P., Santos‐Montes, A., del Val, A., Pérez, P., & Carrasco, J. E. (2013) · Applied Energy · doi:10.1016/j.apenergy.2013.08.035 · Cited by 28 · see citing works
Marvinney, E., Kendall, A. M., & Brodt, S. B. (2015) · Journal of Industrial Ecology · doi:10.1111/jiec.12333 · Cited by 28 · see citing works
Eekhout, J., & de Vente, J. (2018) · Earth Surface Processes and Landforms · doi:10.1002/esp.4563 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
De Leijster, V., Verburg, R. W., Santos, M. J., Wassen, M. J., Martínez-Mena, M., de Vente, J., & Verweij, P. A. (2020) · Agricultural Systems · doi:10.1016/j.agsy.2020.102878 · Cited by 52 · see citing works
Self-citation
- Authors
- Martin-Gorriz, B., Maestre-Valero, J. F., Almagro, M., Boix-Fayos, C., & Martínez-Mena, M.
- Affiliations
- Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena (ES)
- Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (ES)
- Venue
- Scientia Horticulturae
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2020-02
- Volume
- 261
- Pages
- 108978
- ISSN
- 0304-4238 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2989850013
- Cited by
- 46
- References
- 35
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 11 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 10 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 5
- FWCI
- 2.40
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Update notices
- erratum (2021-05-10)
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Scientia Horticulturae (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- DIGITAL.CSIC (Spanish National Research Council (CSIC)) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- Fundación Séneca
- Agencia Estatal de Investigación
- European Commission
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Environmental Chemistry › Sustainable Agricultural Systems Analysis
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Soil Science › Soil Management and Crop Yield
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Soil Science › Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics
- Keywords
- CO2 emissions, greenhouse gas emissions, reduced tillage, no-tillage, conventional tillage, green manure, organic farming, almond, economic profitability, life cycle assessment, cradle-to-farm-gate, sustainable land management
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
