The CULTIVAR soil team was in the Idanha region on the 17th and 18th of February, where study plots were established in collaboration with Fundação Terra Agora, Azeite Egitânia, Veracruz, Sociedade Agrícola do Pescaz, Instituto Social Cristão Pina Ferraz, Duck River Agriculture and Monte Silveira Bio.
It is intended, within a time frame of one year, to evaluate and relate different components of the biodiversity of the agricultural ecosystem, namely the physical-chemical component of soils, water regulation, microbiology, soil meso and macrofauna. Olive, almond, pasture and agroforestry plantations will be evaluated, with and without irrigation and different degrees of intensification.
The information collected will make it possible to identify functional or taxonomic groups responsible for providing services to the ecosystem under study and create conditions for the transfer of this knowledge into more sustainable practices.
The results obtained will be compared over time and between plantations to identify the main populations and corresponding functions, allowing us to assess the resilience and sustainability of current agricultural systems and project the future.
The responsible team: José Paulo Sousa, Joana Costa, Luís Cunha, Ricardo Veiga Leitão and Eduardo Nascimento (Centre for Functional Ecology – Science for People & the Planet); Marie Bartz (CARE-BIO and CFE-UC), Albano Figueiredo and Adélia Nunes (CEGOT).
