DREAM - Diversified orchards for REsilient and sustAinable Mediterranean farming systems

The current climate change (CC) scenario foresees several risks for the Mediterranean basin such as: increased frequency in extreme weather events (hail storms, late frost, drought and heat waves, pest outbreaks etc.) but also reduced biodiversity, soil quality loss and pollination deficit (IPCC, 2007). In the Mediterranean basin, fruit trees cover more than 8 million ha of agricultural land, producing around 117 M t of fruit and accounting for the 13% of the total agricultural value (FAOSTAT). Fruit provides high nutritional value to citizens thus preventing socially important diseases while orchards also contribute to Mediterranean land preservation and stewardship, as well as to CC mitigation through carbon sequestration and temperature regulation. Apple and pear are among the most widely cultivated fruit crops with a total yearly production > 18 M t (FAOSTAT). Despite differences exist in the technical management and in the varieties cultivated within this range of environments, modern orchards are in general highly intensive systems mostly relying on considerable chemical inputs and low plant diversity, resulting in reduced natural habitats, progressive loss of biodiversity, wild pollinator decline and consequent pollination deficit (Ramirez et al. 2013 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scienta.2013.08.007). These conditions make modern orchard systems much more vulnerable to CC and market fluctuations compared with annual crops, also due to their perennial behavior and long-life span (15-20 years), which expose them to higher risks. In fact, orchards require higher initial economic commitments and might be subjected to long term damages if exposed to recurrent extreme weather events as well as to biotic and abiotic stressors. In this context, small farm holdings (< 5 ha), that account for about 50% of the total EU farms (Guyomar et al., 2018-https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2018.04.012), represent the weak link in the whole fruit value-chain, due to their low investment and innovation capacity, resulting in low competition potential at market level. This scenario leads to high economic instability for all farmers, but especially for smallholders, jeopardizing the current and future sustainability of Mediterranean fruit production. Therefore, it is important to introduce new alternative approaches to improve the resilience of fruit farms to CC-related risks, while maintaining their economic, environmental and social values within the Mediterranean basin.

The strategies that will be used during the project to achieve the above-mentioned objectives are the following: 1) Co-designing in locally established living labs new agroecosystems for apple and pear fruit cultivation to cope with the main CC-related stressors and risks typical of Mediterranean fruit producing areas. The new agroecosystem will be characterized by 3 specific basic principles (cfr section 1.3a), going beyond conventional agricultural systems and will be managed under the framework of the “IPPM (Integrated Pest and Pollinator Management) paradigm”, a new approach that aims to enhance Integrated Pest Management (IPM) compatibility with crop pollination management (WP1). 2) Testing the performances of the DREAM agroecosystem on apple and pear in terms of: i) fruit physiological efficiency; ii) yield and quality of the fruit production; iii) plant health; iv) above and below-ground functional biodiversity; iv) soil quality; v) pollinator presence; vi) carbon balance (WP2). 3) Assessing the Economic, Environmental and social sustainability of the DREAM agroecosystem in terms of farm economic stability and provided ecosystem services (pollination services, pest pressure mitigation, weed suppression, soil fertility enhancement, etc.) for apple and pear production. 4) Proposing specific marketing strategies for the products derived from the DREAM agroecosystem while assessing farmers acceptance as well as consumer perception (WP4). 5) Enhancing dissemination and communication of the DREAM Agroecosystem as well as end-user training activities (with special attention to women and young people) through specific technology transfer solutions in collaboration with end-user associations from both Mediterranean shores (WP5).

The DREAM agroecosystem approach, particularly suited to small farm holdings, will enhance functional biodiversity and the beneficial synergies among the different species (i.e. trees, herbaceous crops, pollinating insects, soil microbiome). It will promote the use of a low level of inputs such as water, fertilizers and chemicals, reducing environmental pollution. Thanks to the natural resistances of the fruit genotypes and their scalar vegetative cycle, it will allow a diversified production as well as a higher resilience to extreme weather events such as frost, hailstorms and heat waves as well as to biotic stressors. The project will follow a multi-actor approach as growers, fruit cooperatives and consultants as well as consumers with special attention to women and youth will be involved in living labs to actively contribute to the design, adaptation and possible adoption of the DREAM agroecosystem in the different sites, based on their needs and experience. Studies on consumer acceptance and on alternative marketing strategies for the derived niche products will be conducted to guarantee higher revenues for the growers and an improved economic stability at farm level.