A growing number of organic farmers cultivate variety mixtures for their ease of use and their ability to buffer stress and environmental heterogeneity. Farmers have to choose the varieties for designing their mixtures, but few guidelines have been proposed so far. In the case of winter wheat, mixtures are usually assembled primarily based on yield. It is advised to mix varieties with complementary levels and sources of foliar disease resistances and to maintain homogeneity of maturity to ensure good quality.
Solución
To guide farmers with optimised composition mixtures, the approach is to identify assembly rules for combining mixtures components (Figure). A participatory approach, based on workshops, is particularly suitable for designing locally adapted mixtures. Gathering farmers, researchers and technical experts to exchange knowledge allows many and varied ideas to emerge on how to favour complementarities and synergies between varieties within mixtures.
Farmers’ point of view, especially in organic farming, is very important for designing assembly rules in accordance with farmers’ practices and production contexts.
Descripción
Practical recommendations: Limit disease development by keeping proportion of susceptible varieties < 30%, and by using varieties able to compensate through high tillering ability or high TKW (thousand kernel weight). Increase weed control through wheat competitive ability by (i) using varieties with early vigour or high tillering ability, (ii) diversifying varieties for earliness, height and growth habit. Face nitrogen stress by (i) tolerating an early deficit, by complementarity (ii) in time of nitrogen demand (diversified earliness), or (iii) for nitrogen use efficiency.
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