Extreme Weather Adaptations- Agronomic Strategies for Resilient Crop Systems: A Review
Abstract
The rising rate and severity of extreme events such as irregular climatic patterns are a great threat to the world agricultural productivity and food security. The review examines key agronomic measures that can be used to improve the resilience of the agricultural crop systems to these problems. Such resilience is necessary to the extent that there is a stable food supply to a rising world population. This discussion summarizes the existing studies to outline successful strategies to cope with drought, floods, heatwave and cold waves. Some of the agronomic strategies that have been referred to are the adoption of water efficient irrigation methods, the choice and breeding of varieties of crops that are stress tolerant, adoption of soil health management practices, diversification of cropping systems through inter-cropping and agroforestry, adoption of precision agricultural technologies and data analytics. A combination of these strategies depending on the regional and climatic conditions is required to create sound and sustainable agricultural systems that will be able to overcome the rising challenges of extreme weather. The next round of research needs to be on how the combined effects of the extreme events are compounded and the socio-economic factors that affect the adoption of these resilience practices.