This paper shows the results obtained in 2009 of a study carried out by the Dipartimento di Agronomia Ambientale e Territoriale (D.A.A.T.) aimed at identifying and evaluating various low input cropping systems for industrial tomato varieties, a traditional farming crop in Sicily. The tests were carried out on the Sparacia experimental farm (Cammarata AG, 37°37’N, 13°42’E). The farm is located in a sub-arid area with average rainfall levels of approx. 500 mm and average min/max temperatures of 9 and 21°C. The soils, typical of soil types in the area, are Eutric Vertisols.

Social networks play an important role in the communication of information among forest owners and how owners process that information in making land management decisions. This article examines variations in the social network characteristics of family forest owners using survey data and interviews with 42 owners in south-central Indiana. We examine how network structure and content vary by harvesting activity, information sources, ownership attributes, sociodemographic characteristics, and location.

A confluence of factors has shaped the composition and structure of vegetation on rangelands in the American West. These factors include climate, soils, topography, history of grazing and fire (both wildfire and prescribed fire) as well as legacy effects from prior land management practices. Despite the inherent differences in vegetation of rangelands resulting from these factors, sustainable management practices involving matching forage availability to forage demand have resulted in managing large acreages in a similar fashion for livestock production.

Climate models indicate that global warming will stimulate atmospheric exchange processes and increase rainfall variability, leading to longer dry periods and more intense rainfall events. Recent studies suggest that both the magnitude of the rainfall events and their frequency may be as important for temperate grassland productivity as the annual sum. However, until now interactive effects between land management practice, such as mowing frequency, and rainfall variability on productivity and forage quality have not been studied in detail.

A survey of landowners assessed the feasibility of long-term land conservation agreements for water resource protection. Such a private conservation tool is yet to be established in the UK, but innovation by an environmental charity seeks to mitigate the impacts of diffuse pollution from agriculture on water quality. Under the agreements a one-off payment would be made for agreed restrictions on use of targeted areas of farmland.

The paper gives an overview of the directions and results of research carried out in geodesy and land management at the Latvia University of Agriculture from the year 1939, when the Surveying Department (later the Department of Geodesy) was established, up to the present day. Since the beginnings of the Department, researches in geodesy have been associated with problems of precise levelling: vertical movements of the earth crust, deformation of buildings and structures, as well as accuracy evaluation of geodetic instruments.

This study mapped the production of five ecosystem services in South Africa: surface water supply, water flow regulation, soil accumulation, soil retention, and carbon storage. The relationship and spatial congruence between services were assessed. The congruence between primary production and these five services was tested to evaluate its value as a surrogate or proxy ecosystem service measure.

Minimising the spread and impact of alien plants is a crucial component of land management for biodiversity conservation. Alien plant management typically focuses on either controlling selected alien species (‘species-led’), or on minimizing invasions within selected biodiversity or cultural assets (‘asset-led’). Here, we compare and combine species- and asset-led approaches to prioritise alien plant management activities in the world’s largest Mediterranean-climate woodland, located in south-western Australia.

Protected areas are crucial for biodiversity conservation because they provide safe havens for species threatened by land-use change and resulting habitat loss. However, protected areas are only effective when they stop habitat loss within their boundaries, and are connected via corridors to other wild areas. The effectiveness of protected areas is threatened by development; however, the extent of this threat is unknown.

Two long-term (16 year) experiments on intensively managed pastures compared extensive grazing, abandonment and continued intensive grazing and were assessed for impacts on soil parameters, plant nutrient content and ecological indicator values. There was a reduction in soil carbon and nitrogen in the abandoned treatment compared to the intensively managed treatment at the wetter site. At the drier site, extensive grazing resulted in a build up of soil carbon. There was a build up of dead organic matter and a reduction in the nutritive value of the vegetation as grazing was reduced.

Remote sensing provides a broad view of landscapes and can be consistent through time, making it an important tool for monitoring and managing protected areas. An impediment to broader use of remote sensing science for monitoring has been the need for resource managers to understand the specialized capabilities of an ever-expanding array of image sources and analysis techniques. Here, we provide guidelines that will enable land managers to more effectively collaborate with remote sensing scientists to develop and apply remote sensing science to achieve monitoring objectives.