[Concept of system productivity and its significance in ecological reconstruction of pasture and agriculture transitional zone in China].
In recent years, the debate on the strategies of developing Loess Plateau has been ended with a consensus, i.e., instead of traditional grain production, grass/livestock industries together with some other specific industries such as fruits and forests ought to be the "polar" industries in this area. However, such a new pattern has not appeared. Enlightened by the basic principles of ecology, the intrinsic contradiction between output and maintenance/repair of agro-ecosystem, in terms of energy requirement, could not be well coordinated and resolved just by raising the primary productivity or secondary productivity, which is particularly the case for such a ecologically fragile area as Loess Plateau. In this paper, a new concept of system productivity was proposed as a possible way that could use pluses and bypass minuses in ingeniously fitting the natural conditions and fully and rationally utilizing natural resources, especially the superiorities of climate resources, and centered on the selection and utilization of plant germplasms with higher water use efficiency, better coverage effect, and maximum biomass potential for fodder, i.e., cultivating fodder/feed-oriented plants for new livestock industry, thus finding an unprecedented approach that can harmonize the ecological reconstruction and development of vital industries.
Cheng
Xu
X
College of Crops, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100094, China. chengxu@95777.com
Mao
Liuxi
L
D000383:Agriculture; D000821:Animal Feed; D000818:Animals; D018533:Biomass; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000254:growth & development*; D004463:Ecology; D017753:Ecosystem