Novel Agricultural Conservation System with Sustained Yield and Decreased Water, Nutrient, Energy, and Carbon Footprints

Fresh fruits and vegetables are conventionally grown in raised bed plasticulture (RBP), a high intensity, high input, and high output production system. In 2016, the fresh market plasticulture industry covered 680,000 ha in the US, producing crops (e.g. tomato, peppers, melons, and strawberries) valued at ten billion dollars. To meet the increasing future demand for fresh fruits and vegetables and sustain the production potential of croplands, a transformation of the conventional food-water-energy nexus is essential. A novel agricultural conservation system, compact bed geometry, has been proposed to shift the paradigm in RBP, sustaining yield and decreasing inputs (e.g. water, nutrients, energy, and carbon). Compact bed geometries fit the shape of the wetting front created when water is applied through drip irrigation on the production soil, creating a taller (23-30 cm) and thinner bed (66-41 cm). Two seasons of tomato (single row) and pepper (double row) production, in the environmentally fragile watershed of the Florida Everglades, highlight the potential impact of compact bed geometry on environmental sustainability in agricultural production. No difference in plant growth or yield was detected, with a reduction of 5-50% in irrigation water, up to 20% less N application, 12% less P, 20% less K, and 5-15% less carbon dioxide emissions. The hydrologic benefits of compact bed geometry include 26% less runoff generation, decreased need for active drainage pumping, and increased residence time for irrigation water within the bed, overall decreasing instances of nutrient leaching. A water related co-benefit observed was a reduction in the occurrences of Phytophthora capsici in pepper, which has the potential to reduce yield by as much as 70%. Non-water co-benefits include up to a 250/ ha reduction in production cost, with the potential to save the industry 200 million dollars annually. This economic benefit has led to rapid industry adoption, with more than 20,000 acres already converted to compact bed geometries, up and down the east coast of the US. The adoption of compact bed geometries achieves "More Crop, per Drop" and is revolutionizing the food-water-energy nexus as it relates to fruit and vegetable production.