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<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>With climate change and an increasing global human population, the concept of agroforestry is gaining economic and environmental interest. The practice of growing trees and crops on the same land is mainly applied in (sub)tropical climate and rarer in temperate areas where farmers fear decreased understorey crop yields due to competition with trees. However, whether competition is stronger below- (soil moisture, nutrients) or aboveground (light) in a temperate silvoarable agroforestry system (AFS) is not clear. The effects of different treatments of light, water and nutrient availability on crop production in two temperate AFS in Central Switzerland were investigated, where summer barley (<jats:italic>Hordeum vulgare</jats:italic> L.) was grown as understorey crop under 90%, 40% and 0% shade nets, with and without irrigation and/or fertilisation in a fully factorial design. Yield was reduced by 26% under heavy shade; yield reductions under moderate shade were not significant. Fertilisation and irrigation increased crop yield by 13% and 6–9%, respectively, independent from shade. Individual seed mass was significantly increased by fertilisation from an average of 0.041 g (± 0.008 SD) in unfertilised treatments to an average of 0.048 g (± 0.010) in fertilised treatments. Fertilisation had the biggest impact on total seed number (<jats:italic>p</jats:italic> &lt; 0.001) with on average 36 (± 26) seeds per individual in unfertilised plots and 61 (± 33) in fertilised plots. This study demonstrates that moderate shade (as can be expected in modern AFS) was not a major limiting factor for barley yield in these two AFS in Switzerland, indicating that AFS with appropriate management combined with suitable selection of understorey crops are an option for agricultural production in temperate regions without significant yield losses.</jats:p>

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>Vegetated land areas play a significant role in determining the fate of carbon (C) in the global C cycle. Riparian buffer vegetation is primarily implemented for water quality purposes as they attenuate pollutants from immediately adjacent croplands before reaching freashwater systems. However, their prevailing conditions may sometimes promote the production and subsequent emissions of soil carbon dioxide (CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>). Despite this, the understanding of soil CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub> emissions from riparian buffer vegetation and a direct comparison with adjacent croplands they serve remain elusive. In order to quantify the extent of CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub> emissions in such an agro system, we measured CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub> emissions simultaneously with soil and environmental variables for six months in a replicated plot-scale facility comprising of maize cropping served by three vegetated riparian buffers, namely: (i) a novel grass riparian buffer; (ii) a willow riparian buffer, and; (iii) a woodland riparian buffer. These buffered treatments were compared with a no-buffer control. The woodland (322.9 ± 3.1 kg ha<jats:sup>− 1</jats:sup>) and grass (285 ± 2.7 kg ha<jats:sup>− 1</jats:sup>) riparian buffer treatments (not significant to each other) generated significantly (<jats:italic>p = &lt; 0.0001</jats:italic>) the largest CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub> compared to the remainder of the treatments. Our results suggest that during maize production in general, the woodland and grass riparian buffers serving a maize crop pose a CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub> threat. The results of the current study point to the need to consider the benefits for gaseous emissions of mitigation measures conventionally implemented for improving the sustainability of water resources.</jats:p>