Tools

Peaty Soils and Greenhouse Gases

Peaty soils used for agriculture are often backfilled with mineral soil material in order to offset their characteristically strong subsistence, so that the land can continue to be farmed.  Whether or not this also helps lower the high greenhouse-gas emissions of peaty soils is not known. Since the beginning of 2018, and for the first time in Switzerland, researchers have therefore been using micrometeorological methods to measure the emissions on a backfilled site and on a reference site at a location in the Rhine valley.

• Sinks and Sources of Carbon Dioxide
• SRF17: Making agriculture climate- change-proof and reducing its contribution to climate change

 

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Sensors for Nitrogen Management

Agroscope aims to improve the nitrogen efficiency of crops and to reduce the leaching and conversion of nitrate to gaseous nitrogen oxides (denitrification). To this end, experts are using sensors to collect data on the spatial distribution of nitrogen within a field by means of multispectral drone and satellite images. Soil and groundwater samples from reference areas were used to calibrate the aerial images. The combination of these data should enable the development of practical, site-specific fertilisation methods for farmers.

• New Plant Production Technologies
• SRF11: Optimising production systems through Smart Farming

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