Portal de Cartagena
www.portaldecartagena.com
Broad beans, haricot beans, barley, vetch and purslane grow for the first time among mandarins on a farm in Cabezo de la Plata, in the municipality of Murcia.
These experimental plantations, which began in 2018, are carried out through the European project Diverfarming, led by the Polytechnic University of Cartagena (UPCT).
The main objective is to improve the environmental, economic and social sustainability of agricultural activity. The first results of the project, which ends in 2022, already show other advantages added to environmental sustainability.
Among them, the increase in the productivity of the farm thanks to the alternative cultivation of other plants that diversify the farmer's production.
At the same time, they translate into the sale of new products on the same land where until now only citrus fruits were planted, explains Ra l Zornoza, responsible researcher. Another advantage highlighted by the professor, from the area of ??Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry of the UPCT, is that the environmental impact is being reduced.
"We cultivate in the streets of the farm, in the spaces of land between the trees and, therefore, these plants reduce erosion and improve the fertility and porosity of the soil," he adds.
"We have diversified mandarins with annual street crops, planting broad beans, purslane, beans and forage such as barley and vetch," says the researcher.
Broad beans, purslane and haricot beans are sold for human consumption and barley and vetch are sold for animal feed. More sustainable farms In addition, “the new crops attract beneficial insects that can help reduce the incidence of pests, reducing the use of pesticides in the medium-long term,” adds Zornoza.
The economic studies carried out show that the gross margins of the exploitation increase with the diversification of crops. The economic profitability of diversification is essential for farmers to adopt these practices that reduce the use of fertilizers and regenerate soils.
For this reason, the researchers coordinated by the UPCT recommend to the European Commission that introduce into the Common Agricultural Policy incentives and aid to promote these sustainable agriculture techniques. The tests are carried out at the Finca Canteras, owned by the Ferbal agricultural company, whose headquarters are in Madrid. Diverfarming is a project funded by the Horizon 2020 Program of the European Commission, within the challenge of 'Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine, maritime and inland water research and bioeconomy' (Reference 728003 ).
Diverfarming is coordinated by the UPCT and 25 international partners participate in it, including universities, research centers, companies and agricultural associations from eight countries. This project, in turn, is part of the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) 12 (Responsible Production and Consumption), 13 (Action for climate), 15 (Life of terrestrial ecosystems) and 17 (Partnerships to achieve the objectives).
At the same time it is an example of Solutions based on Nature (NBS).
function { ;(, , {});}
Source: UPCT
Privacy policy
- Legal notice
- Cookies