- Docente: Stefano Benvenuti
- Credits: 7
- SSD: AGR/02
- Language: Italian
- Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures
- Campus: Bologna
- Corso: Second cycle degree programme (LM) in Planning and Management of Forest Territory, Landscape and Environment (cod. 6068)
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from Feb 19, 2025 to May 14, 2025
Learning outcomes
At the end of the course, the student acquires the basic elements for the study of agronomic and environmental analysis of the territory and agricultural ecosystems and the practical-applicative elements for the management of weed flora in silvopastoral, forestry, recreational and non-agricultural areas. In particular, the student is able to: know and apply agronomic techniques for the environmental protection of the territory; manage spontaneous flora in agricultural and non-agricultural areas; recognize the main weeds.
Course contents
Territorial agronomy: general ecological and anthropic aspects of the agroecosystem and differences with natural ecosystems. Peculiarities of territorial agronomy. Concept of sustainable productivity. Evolution of agroecosystems in space and time. Environmental criticalities of current agroecosystems.
Agricultural systems
Intensive, extensive, integrated agriculture
Organic agriculture
Biodynamic agriculture
Slash-and-burn agriculture
Hill and mountain agriculture
Agriculture with genetically modified plants
Urban agriculture
Quality brands and territorial origin of foods
Territorial agronomic peculiarities of the Italian regions
Precision agriculture: objectives and tools
Environmental impact of agriculture
pollution from pesticides, nitrates and phosphates
Pest control residues in agricultural products
Environmental risk mitigation: cover crops, buffer strips, biobeds
Classifications of wild flora: botanical, biological, ecological and agronomic characteristics
Agronomic damage of weed flora: quantitative, qualitative, agronomic.
Concepts of competition and allelopathy: Radical and aerial competition, allelopathic interactions.
Recognition of the main weeds: Taxonomic groupings at the botanical family level and recognition at the seedling and seed level.
Persistence strategies of weed flora in the agroecosystem:
Ecology of germination, dormancy and longevity of seeds
Vegetative reproduction of perennial species
Biotic dissemination mechanisms (endo-zoochory, epi-zoochory, myrmecochory, autochory), abiotic (anemochory, hydrochory, barochory) and anthropochory.
12.0 Chemical weed control: methods, distribution period, mechanisms of action, environmental criticalities. Concepts of selectivity, tolerance and resistance.
13.0 Herbicide action mechanisms: HRAC (Herbicide Resistance Action Committee) classification
14.0 Conventional and integrated weed control of the main crops and non-agricultural environments: autumn-winter cereals, corn, sugar beet, rice, rapeseed, sunflower, soybeans, alfalfa, vineyards, olive groves, other arboretums, lawns, urban ecosystem, railway lines, ditches and canals, meadows and pastures, nursery gardening.
Non-chemical management of weed flora in various anthropized ecosystems: mechanical, physical, agronomic. Notes on natural herbicides.
16.0 Soil seed bank: botanical, morphological and ecological aspects. Self-burying mechanisms. Relationships between agrotechnics and dynamics of accumulation and persistence of seeds in the soil, emergence dynamics.
17.0 “Ecosystem services” provided by floristic biodiversity: Entomogamous wildflowers, plants useful for parasitic insects, anti-erosive winter covers, etc.
18.0 Cover crops: agronomic effectiveness for the subtraction of ecological niches from weeds (botanical and agronomic aspects).
Calculation of floristic biodiversity indices of the agroecosystem: Shannon (H’), Simpson (D) and agronomic strategies to promote the dynamics of biodiversity in the agroecosystem.
Expected floristic dynamics following climate change: relationship between climate variations, extremization of events and species potentially growing or subjected to rarefaction.
Geo-agronomic evolution of spices: aromatic species and spices of the Old and New World, historical and agronomic evolution of the spice trade, new agronomic areas for the cultivation of various crops.
Spontaneous edible flora (territorial food ethnobotany).
Readings/Bibliography
Pdf of the lessons carried out;
Text Malerbologia "Catizone-Zanin" 2002; ISBN. 9788855526241,
Text Agronomia "Ceccon et al"., 2017, ISBN9788879599658
Teaching methods
Frontal lectures and laboratory and/or field exercises.
Seminars on topics related to the program, identification together with the students of "focuses" to be developed on "case studies" of particular interest for each candidate who will briefly discuss them in the final exam.
Assessment methods
Oral exam of about 30 minutes on both the topics of territorial agronomics and management of weed flora.
The candidate can start the exam with a very short Power Point presentation on a "case study", related to the program, of particular interest to him.
Teaching tools
Images of plants, seedlings and seeds
Office hours
See the website of Stefano Benvenuti