Archive
498 posts
Landscape types and accessibility of near nature habitats
The aim of the interdisciplinary research project «Greifensee» was the development of agri-environmental measures for the sustainable development of the agriculture. Therefore landscape development was simulated for the year 2011 and for different scenarios.The delineation and classification of landscape types by means of geomorphologic units, soil characteristics and land use was done to characterise the…
Site-specific conditions and application of herbicides from the view of the water protection
This article investigates from the perspectives of water protection and economy whether arable cropping is adapted to site conditions in the catchment of Lake Greifensee. Field studies demonstrate that herbicide losses to surface waters can vary very strongly for different areas. Large losses can be expected from poorly drained fields with a direct hydrological connection…
Inputs from diffuse sources in the Greifensee area: phosphorus and nitrogen
The phosphorus concentration in the Greifensee continues to exceed the target value, due to excessive phosphorus inputs. No relevant water pollution by nitrogen is currently evident. Phosphorus and nitrogen inputs from diffuse sources have been estimated with the aid of the Modiffus model. High phosphorus inputs are principally due to leaching of drained arable land,…
Agriculture and the heatwave of summer 2003
During August 2003, the highest temperatures were recorded since the beginning of the measurement period in Switzerland in 1753. Together with the hot July they made up an extremely rare summer heatwave. Already in February, precipitation amounts were very low and remained low during the rest of the summer. As a result, soils were drying…
Availability of phosphorus in intensive used grassland soils
We investigated the sorption capacity and availability of phosphorus (P) in soils of the Lippenrütibach catchment (Canton Luzern, Switzerland) to assess the risk of P-losses from agricultural land in the long-term. The different available P-forms in soil were characterised using six P extraction methods. The soils in the study area revealed a high P-sorption capacity…
Reference values for life cycle assessment of farms
Reference values are required to analyse life cycle assessments of farms. For this purpose 27 model farms were defined for Swiss agriculture, each representing a group of farms, classified by the farm type according to the typology developed by Agroscope FAT Tänikon, by the production region (lowlands, hill, mountains) and by the farming system (integrated,…
Soil mineral nitrogen dynamics in plots of organically and conventionally grown potato
In the DOK long-term field experiment two organic (D: biodynamic; O: bioorganic) and two conventional (K: mineral fertilizer plus farmyard manure; M: mineral fertilizer only) farming systems have been compared. In 1999, 2001 and 2002 dynamics of mineral nitrogen (Nmin) in plots planted with potato was analysed in the 0 to 100 cm soil layer.…
Influence of ecological measures on nitrate content of groundwater
In a project of the evaluation of ecological measures in Swiss agriculture, the goal of an average reduction of nitrate content in groundwater by 5 mg NO3/l between the period of 1990 to 1992 and 2005 is examined in four regions of the canton of Berne. Up to 2001, the nitrate content of 214 water…
Low intensity meadows harbour endangered grasshoppers
Ecological compensation measures (agri-environment schemes) in agriculture aim at the protection of biodiversity in agricultural landscapes. An evaluation of the effectiveness of these measures in preserving and increasing biodiversity is therefore essential. We studied the grasshopper fauna on the most common type of ecological compensation areas in Switzerland (low intensity meadows) and compared it with…
The influence of three different farming systems on the epigeic arthropods
The fauna of beneficial epigeic arthropods (carabids, staphylinids and spiders) was compared in three different farming systems (integrated intensive, integrated extensive and biological systems) at Burgrain during 1997 to 2002. The predatory insects and spiders were captured with Barber traps. Between the tree investigated cultures – summer barley, winter wheat and maize – the number…
Environmental Monitoring of Genetically Modified Plants in Switzerland: Development of a conceptual Framework
Besides two field trials in 1991 and 1992, no deliberate releases of genetically modified plants (GMP) have yet been conducted in Switzerland. The use of GM crops in Swiss agriculture is discussed controversially and in contrast to the European Union, commercial cultivation seems unlikely in the near future. Nevertheless, cultivation can not be excluded for…
Does the ecological evidences` programme produce a better erosion control? The development of the soil erosion risk in the canton of Basel-Landschaft
The soil survey programme of the canton of Basel-Landschaft also includes the survey of the development of the soil erosion risk. Every 10 years more than 70 agricultural farms are questioned about their methods of cultivation and the risk of soil erosion is evaluated. The results of the last questioning dating from 2002 show that…
Effect of crop rotation on the structure of a clayey soil
At the Swiss Federal Research Station for Agricultural Economics and Engineering (FAT) in Tänikon (Switzerland), a field trial was started in 1973 to examine the effects of three crop rotations (G = 60 % cereals, M = 60 % silage maize, V = different crops included 40 % clover grass) and two management intensities (IS…
Future emphasis of risk assessments of transgenic crops in Switzerland
Genetic engineering and its consequences are topics that concern both politics and the public. The controversies regarding the possible effects due to the use of genetic engineering in agriculture for food and feed production are viewed differently. Thus, there is still a gap in knowledge regarding the ecological risks of genetically modified organisms. The Swiss…
Livestock density and nutrient balances in Asia
In response to the strong increase of the demand for animal protein, a rapid growth of intensive livestock production is under way in Asia. The often landless industrially organised production causes serious impacts to the environment. An international initiative prepares decision support tools and studies sustainable strategies to attack the problem. In this framework, the…
Bait test:Suitability and limits for faunistical assessments in the field
In different farming systems the activity of predatory arthropods was measured in the field with larvae of Galleria mellonella L., placed as baits on the soil. On average a slightly higher predation rate was determined in ecological systems than with more intensive cropping methods. However, the differences were small. In the trials Burgrain, Strickhof and…
Life cycle assessment of the extensive production of cereals and rape seed
The environmental impact of the extensive production of cereals and rape seed called «Extenso» was analysed by means of life cycle assessment (LCA). The extensification measure, that is the ban of fungicides, insecticides and growth regulators, resulted in a reduction of the quantity of pesticides applied by up to 50 % and a decrease of…
The earthworm populations in two soils
The relation between earthworm populations and site properties was studied in a gleyic and in a calcaric cambisol. In the wet gleyic cambisol the earthworm biomass was 54 % higher than in the drier calcaric cambisol. By increasing the aeration of the soil and a more intense mixing of organic and mineral soil constituents, earthworms…
Structure and costs of different protected areas
The Swiss National Park, Biosphere Reserve Entlebuch and Wetland Preserve Glaubenberg in the cantons Obwalden and Luzern are compared with regard to their administrative structure and their costs. It becomes clear that the National Park is administered with more staff than the other areas, as informational services are offered to a large extent. That implies…
Soil nitrogen dynamics in different maize cropping systems
For a better understanding of soil nitrogen dynamics in maize cropping systems, Nmin content of soil and soil water samples from 0 to 100 cm depth were measured periodically in a loamy Cambisol near Zurich, Switzerland, from 1998 to 2000. Maize was sown either with conventional tillage (CT), rotary band seeding (RBS), or no-tillage (NT)…
Ecological risks due to biological control of the European corn borer with Trichogramma
The exotic egg parasitoid Trichogramma brassicae, which originates from the northern part of the Black Sea area, is successfully used for biological control of the European corn borer (Ostrinia nubilalis). In a four years project, we evaluated if mass releases of the parasitic wasp may pose a risk to non-target insect populations, in particular to…
Ammonia exchange with grasslands
As it is generally known, plants can exchange ammonia (NH3) with the atmosphere. Yet, the actual NH3 exchange potential of crops, especially of grassland, has hardly been studied so far. The European project GRAMINAE focused on the influence of climate and management on NH3 exchange between grassland and the atmosphere on different sites throughout Europe.…
Nutrients and pollutants in sewage sludge from 1975 to 1999
The composition of sewage sludge is intensively monitored since 25 years in Switzerland. The nutrient contents have undergone only minor changes. Simultaneously to an increasing production of sewage sludge the nutrient loads have increased during the first 15 years and since remained stable. Except for copper, the load of most heavy metals continuously decreased after…
RISE – A tool for a holistic sustainability assessment at the farm level
Whereas the liberalisation of the world markets seems to exert today the greatest pressure on development, sustainable production is the most important leading principle. Numerous studies have been conducted to evaluate the degree of sustainability on a national and local level and broadly accepted indicators have also been recommended. However, only little information for the…
