AgrInnov: An innovative participative approach to implement operational indicators and a set of references for soil biological status in vineyards

Abstract

Soil, through its biological component, plays a key role in agroecosystem functioning. In a context of cropping system evolution, new tools have to be determined in order to assess the impact of these systems on soil organisms. AgrInnov is a French participative project which associates researchers and farmers. It aims at developing operational tools to characterize soil biodiversity and at building up a set of references to understand and interpret this biodiversity. The method consisted in selecting operational bio- indicators among the existing ones which could be used and validated scientifically. The chosen bio-indicators target three main groups of soil organisms: earthworms, nematodes and the microbial community. These living organisms ensure biological functions and services provided by the soil and are sensitive to some farming practices. At the same time, indicators for agronomical assessment have been implemented: soil physico-chemical properties, soil structure and organic matter decomposition. The project relies on a network of 113 vineyard plots which integrates a large diversity of pedoclimatic and practices backgrounds at the French territory scale. In 2013-2014, winegrowers themselves proceeded to soil sampling for laboratory measurement and data collection from fields, after having received a training and supplied with a handbook. Results obtained allowed to establish a range of variation for each of the bio-indicators in different pedoclimatic contexts. Two synthetic indicators were defined to show the impact of cropping systems and associated practices on biological soil quality and on biological and ecological functioning of the soil. AgrInnov allowed validating a set of references for soil biological status which could be used by winegrowers to assess the sustainability of their practices.