<mods:mods version="3.0" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3 http://www.loc.gov/standards/mods/v3/mods-3-0.xsd" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:mods="http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3"><mods:titleInfo><mods:title>Effect of annual self-reseeding legumes on subsequent crops in organic rotation programme</mods:title></mods:titleInfo><mods:name type="personal"><mods:namePart type="given">Lina</mods:namePart><mods:namePart type="family">Al-Bitar</mods:namePart><mods:role><mods:roleTerm type="text">author</mods:roleTerm></mods:role></mods:name><mods:abstract>Soil fertility management is a critical issue in organic agriculture, and nitrogen supply is the most important aspect, especially in the Mediterranean region. Biological nitrogen fixation by legumes seems to be a successful strategy in that nitrogen-fixing legumes can provide most of the nitrogen used in Mediterranean agriculture in a form not readily leached. According to Pimentel et al., 1992, in the U.S., an estimated $50 billion worth of nitrogen is provided by biological N fixation. Thus, the inputs of nitrogen into Mediterranean agricultural systems by biological fixation in nodulated legumes are fundamental to obtain sustainable and economic production.&#13;
This study aimed at evaluating the impact of annual self-reseeding legumes on subsequent crops performances in a rotation programme in organic farming.&#13;
15 cultivars of annual self-reseeding legumes belonging to the genera Trifolium, Medicago, Ornithopus and Biserrula were grown over two cropping cycles as green manures followed by lettuce and corn. &#13;
All legume treatments had significant positive effects on both subsequent crops.. In fact, marketable yield of lettuce increased an average of 55% over the control and yield of maize grain was an average of 15% over the control. Medicago sphaerocarpa cv Orion, Trifolium subterraneum cv York, T. glanduliferum cv Prima, and T. spumosum cv WCT36 gave the best results with both crops.&#13;
</mods:abstract><mods:classification authority="lcc"> Cereals, pulses and oilseeds</mods:classification><mods:originInfo><mods:dateIssued encoding="iso8061">2005</mods:dateIssued></mods:originInfo><mods:genre>Conference paper, poster, etc. </mods:genre></mods:mods>