TY - JOUR
T1 - Variety mixtures of winter wheat
T2 - a general status and national case study
AU - Vestergaard, Niels Frederik
AU - Jørgensen, Lise Nistrup
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024, The Author(s).
PY - 2024/8
Y1 - 2024/8
N2 - Food and feed production worldwide heavily relies on wheat (Triticum aestivum). However, current agricultural practices face numerous challenges including a shortage of land for cultivation, a desire to reduce the use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers, and the development of resistance towards employed pesticides and virulence towards host resistance in the most widely grown varieties. In this paper, we demonstrate based on the literature that cultivating wheat variety mixtures generally leads to increased yield and yield stability across years and environments, reduced severity of multiple diseases, and a decreased risk of lodging before harvest compared to the cultivation of pure stands. Moreover, mixtures may delay fungicide resistance development and increase genetic diversity, ultimately prolonging the durability of resistance genes. Furthermore, growing mixtures may lower the risk of crop failure due to more extreme weather events and lead to better utilization of water and nutrients. We discuss a Danish case study advocating the cropping of wheat varieties in mixtures as an example of how variety mixtures can be utilized in integrated pest management strategies. The study shows that if all involved stakeholder groups promote the adoption of variety mixtures, a major uptake by farmers can be reached, potentially reducing the dependency on pesticides in current cropping schemes.
AB - Food and feed production worldwide heavily relies on wheat (Triticum aestivum). However, current agricultural practices face numerous challenges including a shortage of land for cultivation, a desire to reduce the use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers, and the development of resistance towards employed pesticides and virulence towards host resistance in the most widely grown varieties. In this paper, we demonstrate based on the literature that cultivating wheat variety mixtures generally leads to increased yield and yield stability across years and environments, reduced severity of multiple diseases, and a decreased risk of lodging before harvest compared to the cultivation of pure stands. Moreover, mixtures may delay fungicide resistance development and increase genetic diversity, ultimately prolonging the durability of resistance genes. Furthermore, growing mixtures may lower the risk of crop failure due to more extreme weather events and lead to better utilization of water and nutrients. We discuss a Danish case study advocating the cropping of wheat varieties in mixtures as an example of how variety mixtures can be utilized in integrated pest management strategies. The study shows that if all involved stakeholder groups promote the adoption of variety mixtures, a major uptake by farmers can be reached, potentially reducing the dependency on pesticides in current cropping schemes.
KW - Crop diversification
KW - Disease management
KW - Integrated pest management
KW - Pesticide reduction
KW - Sustainable agriculture
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85182452528&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s41348-023-00856-z
DO - 10.1007/s41348-023-00856-z
M3 - Journal article
AN - SCOPUS:85182452528
SN - 1861-3829
VL - 131
SP - 1127
EP - 1136
JO - Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection
JF - Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection
IS - 4
ER -