Respuesta de variedades de trigo (Triticum aestivum L.) y cebada (Hordeum vulgare L.) al cultivo bajo arbolado en sistemas agroforestales mediterráneos

Resumo

The effects of climate change have already reduced the production of cereals such as wheat and barley. This, together with the increasing world population, makes it necessary to design more productive and sustainable farming systems. Agroforestry systems, through the combination of trees and crops, can increase production through a more efficient use of resources. One of the most interesting agroforestry systems nowadays is the combination of hybrid walnuts for quality timber and winter cereals. However, most of the research in this system in Mediterranean areas have shown reductions in cereal production due to tree shade, partly because cereal varieties have traditionally been selected for cultivation in full sunlight. The aim of this thesis is to evaluate the interactions between walnut and wheat and barley varieties in an agroforestry system in central Spain. To address this objective, firstly, an experiment was carried out in this agroforestry system in three consecutive years, revealing that the effect of the trees on the cereal shift from negative to positive depending on the climatological conditions and cereal varieties. Secondly, an experiment was carried out under controlled conditions with artificial shade to assess the acclimation of the plant traits of different varieties of wheat and barley, choosing the most adapted ones. Finally, the previously shade-acclimated varieties were grown in an agroforestry system with walnut, revealing the plant traits affected positive and negatively and how that determined grain yield.