Understanding Options for Agricultural Production

The first premise of this book is that farmers need access to options for improving their situation. Another key ingredient of this facilitating environment is information: an understanding of which options are viable, how these operate at the farm level, and what their impact may be on the things that farmers perceive as being important. Understanding Options for Agricultural Production is a synthesis of a global multidisciplinary network of scientists from around the world. This book describes the outputs of the IBSNAT network, including topics on data standards and the minimum data set, crop simulation models of major food crops, and application programs to assess risk resulting from implementation of different management options and strategies. These outputs were integrated into a single portable and functional software product referred to as DSSAT (Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer). Complete descriptions of the CERES, CROPGRO, SUBSTOR, and CROPSIM models in DSSAT are presented for the first time by their developers. Applications of these models and DSSAT to explore options and outcomes, ranging from irrigation and fertilizer management at the plot level, to global climate change studies at the country level, are presented by users of the systems approach to agricultural production and development in both developing and more developed countries.