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Plant production

Schumpp O., Berger V., Remolif E., Messerli B., Frei P., Monod M., Wolfender J.L., Gindro K.

Antifungal properties of plants exposed to UV irradiation

When exposed to stress, plants produce protective compounds. These molecules contribute to their adaptation to environmental changes and to resistance to microbial attacks. Some fungal phytopathogenic species, especially those belonging to the Fusarium group, are also able to develop diseases in humans. In order to identify new sources of antifungal molecules of pharmacologic or agronomic…
Plant production

Sanvido O., Hippe C., Bergamin L.

Evaluating occupational health risks in the approval process of plant protection products

Plant protection products (PPP) have become an important production factor in many agricultural cultivation systems without which the high quality and output of agricultural products cannot be guaranteed. On the other hand however, PPP often have dangerous properties, and can therefore only be brought into circulation in Switzerland once they have been approved by the…
Plant production

Suter D., Hirschi H., Frick R., Aebi P.

Perennial ryegrass: 62 cultivars put to the test

From 2009 through 2011, Agroscope Reckenholz-Tänikon ART and Agroscope Changins-Wädenswil ACW tested 62 cultivars of perennial ryegrass, including 45 new cultivars. Yield, vigour, juvenile development, competitive ability, persistence, winter hardiness, resistance to leaf diseases and bacterial wilt, digestible organic matter content and suitability for higher altitudes were investigated. Of the early-to-mid-early varieties, «Algira», «Arcturus» and…
Animal production

Arrigo Y., Stoll P.

Estimate of the nutritive value of maize silage

In order to check and improve the prediction of their nutritive value, 12 maize silages were studied as a supplement to the previous trials. Two varieties (Amadeo and LG32,52) were harvested at three different stages over the course of two years. The silages were studied to determine organic-matter digestibility (OMD) in the case of sheep,…
Food

Pittet G., Luginbühl W., Berger T.

Influence of the storage period between sampling and analysis on total bacterial count in milk

Every month, only one official milk-testing result is available from between 1000 and 1200 milk producers instead of the two required. Of the missing results, one part originates from milk-collection centers where milk delivery takes place every other day and sampling is performed manually, and is therefore attributable to the time delay between sampling notification…
Agricultural economics

Möhring A., Mack G., Willersinn C.

Vegetable growing – Modelling heterogeneity and intensity

The agent-based agricultural sector model, SWISSland, simulates the processes of structural change and income trends in Swiss agriculture. The objective is to provide a portrayal of the behavioural patterns of farms that is as close to reality as possible. This article describes a method of best possible deduction from cost and work requirement coefficients, which…
Plant production

Bravin E., Blunschi M., Egger S.

ArboPlus, a tool to support management skills of fruit grower

ACW developed an Excel based tool called ArboPlus to help growers to roughly evaluate their situation on orchard, farm and family level. Information has been collected within workshops and interviews with consultants for fruit production and business. At orchard level, growers can analyze their productivity and compare it with a benchmark. At farm level, they…
Plant production

Suter M., Arnold B., Küng J., Nagel R., Zollinger A., Lüscher A.

Senecio aquaticus shows rapid and high seed germination

Senecio aquaticus (marsh ragwort), poisonous to livestock, has become increasingly abundant in agricultural grassland. In this study, the germination and seed survival of S. aquaticus were investigated in a series of standardised tests with the aim to improve the species’ control in managed grassland. Germination percentages of fresh ripe seeds of S. aquaticus were on…
Agricultural economics

Huber R., Iten A., Briner S.

Further development of the direct payments system and land-use change in mountain regions

The re-allocation of head based animal to area based direct payments in the context of the next agricultural policy reform (AP 14–17) should reduce the incentive keeping high stocking densities and thus reduce emissions from agricultural production. In this contribution, we quantify the impact of this re-allocation on land-use intensities in two different mountain regions…
Agricultural economics

Buttler A., Gavazov A., Peringer A., Siehoff S., Mariotte P., Wettstein J.-B., Chételat J., Huber R., Gillet F., Spiegelberger T.

Conservation of pasture woodlands in the Jura mountains: climate change and agro-political challenges

Wooded pastures of the Jura mountains are mainly used for fodder and timber production, but they provide also other goods and services such as biodiversity, leisure areas as well as attractive landscapes. These ecosystems are sensitive to climate and land-use changes. In this paper we report on a transplantation experiment and model simulations to show…
Agricultural economics

Huber R., Bebi P., Briner S., Bugmann H., Buttler A., Grêt-Regamey A., Hirschi C., Scholz R., Zimmermann W., Rigling A.

Climate change and sustainable land-use in mountain regions

The research project MOUNTLAND addresses the impacts of climate- and land-use changes on the provision of ecosystem services in mountain regions. The project applies an integrative approach by combining field experiments, ecological modeling, land-use modeling and the analysis societal and political decision making processes. The conceptual approach taken allows for the consideration of feedback effects…
Animal production

Staerfl S., Bosshard C., Graf C., Zeitz J., Kreuzer M., Soliva C.

Effect of season and feeding on methane emission from Swiss dairy cow slurry

Due to the lack of country-specific data, the so-called IPCC default values are often taken for calculating greenhouse gas budgets. The default value to be applied for Switzerland for the ultimate methane (CH4) production capacity (B0) of slurry amounts to 240 l CH4/kg volatile solids (VS). In the present study, slurry from 64 dairy farms…
Plant production

Suter M., Stutz C.J., Gago R., Lüscher A.

Can Senecio aquaticus be controlled in agricultural grassland?

In recent years, Senecio aquaticus has become increasingly abundant in agricultural grassland of medium-to- high management intensity in Switzerland, Southern Germany and Austria, where its toxicity poses a threat to animal health. This study aimed to identify measures for controlling S. aquaticus. A detailed field experiment was set up at five sites in Switzerland to…
Plant production

Mascher F., Matasci C., Kneubuehler Y., Kellenberger S., Quijano C.D., Keller B., Sautter C., Schori A.

The resistance of transgenic wheat lines against fungal infections in field trials

The transfer of additional resistance genes by transgenesis allows to better understand their function and interactions with the other genes of the plant. This study examines the resistance of different wheat lines against powdery mildew, stripe rust and Fusarium head blight. On the one hand, the race specific resistance gene Pm3b of the wheat landrace…
Plant production

Meissle M., Romeis J., Bigler F.

Bt maize – a potential contribution to integrated production?

Bt maize represents a targeted and efficient measure for controlling certain pests. Replacing broad-spectrum insecticides with Bt maize produces environmental benefits, for example because this approach does not harm beneficial organisms. Growers can produce high-quality products with low time and resource investment. Resistance evolution and potential secondary pest outbreaks are risks for the sustainable use…
Agricultural economics

Mann S., Zimmermann A., Möhring A., Ferjani A., Mack G., Lanz S.

What impact will the rearrangement of animal-related direct payments have?

Politically there is a broad consensus that the clearer orientation of the direct payment system towards the objectives of agricultural policy is a sensible aspect of the current reform process. However, there is disagreement as to whether the formerly animal-related contributions, as proposed in the communication on the agricultural policy 2014−2017 (AP 14−17, Federal Council…

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