Sustainable Use of Water and Nutrients in Arid and Semi-arid Regions
A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Sustainability and Applications".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2021) | Viewed by 4396
Special Issue Editors
Interests: plant nutrition; crop physiology; dry farming; carob-tree
Interests: plant nutrition; iron metabolism; fruit trees physiology; hydroponics
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
A sustainable use of water and nutrients is key to meeting agricultural production and growing food demands in a context of climate change. This is particular important in arid and semiarid regions of the world, which have been facing a fast desertification process in the last decades. With water shortage, what strategies are needed to improve nutrients use efficiency at the soil and plant level? What are the best practices to ensure a sustainable use of nutrients and water, taking into account that mineral fertilizers represent a major input to crop production? What are the effects of highly variable rainfall events during specific stages of crop development, such as canopy development, flowering, or fruit set? The morphological and physiological traits of a specific crop are genetically and environmentally modulated, but in arid and semiarid regions, water availability and water quality are of paramount importance. Moreover, there is a current increase in water demand in arid and semiarid regions, which compromises the natural low water availability. These conditions require optimized irrigation practices, as rain-fed agriculture is often uncertain in terms of yield, but also optimal and efficient nutrients application. As a consequence, in semiarid or arid regions, the selection of a given crop has to take into consideration its tolerance to water stress conditions and, in some cases, its nutritional requirements. Overall, yield in dry-land agriculture is particularly dependent on precise fertilization (nutrients, organic matter) and water management. The situtation is complex and requires multiple approaches regarding nutrients uptake, crop traits, and crop physiology under low water availability.
This Special Issue intends to gather contributions to clarify mechanisms and propose solutions to a proper and sustainable use of water and nutrients in arid and semiarid regions. Thus, research data are most welcome on the following main subjects:
- Plant nutrition under water stress conditions;
- Novel aspects of fertilization in arid and semiarid regions;
- Deficit irrigation and other water-saving practices;
- Crop physiology in the context of dry-land farming,
- Sustainable crops to cope with water scarcity and low nutritional demand.
Prof. Dr. Pedro José Correia
Prof. Dr. Maribela Pestana
Guest Editors
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Keywords
- Fertilization
- Dry-land
- Climate
- Abiotic stress
- Plant nutrition
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