Transcript AGROPHYSICS working on quality in agriculture

AGROPHYSICS
working on ecosystems, sustained
agriculture and changes in landscape
Institute of Agrophysics
Polish Academy of Sciences
Lublin, Poland
Dr. Andrzej Stępniewski
AGROPHYSICS
AGROPHYSICS, which is a part
of physics of environment, is
occupied in investigation of
physical and physicalchemical processes connected
with mass and energy
exchange in soil-plantatmosphere system and the
processes related to gathering,
transport and storage of
agriculture material
RESEARCH
DEPARTMENT OF HYDROTERMOPHYSICS OF SOIL ENVIRONMENT AND
AGRICULTURAL MATERIALS
PROF. RYSZARD WALCZAK
DEPARTMENT OF AERATION AND GAS EXCHANGE IN SOIL
ENVIRONMENT AND AGRICULTURAL MATERIALS
PROF. JAN GLINSKI
DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICS OF AGRICULTURAL MATERIALS
PROF. KRYSTYNA KONSTANKIEWICZ
DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY OF AGRICULTURAL
MATERIALS
PROF. ZOFIA SOKOLOWSKA
DEPARTMENT OF AGROGROPHYSICAL BASES OF SOIL
ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT
PROF. JERZY LIPIEC
DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICAL BASES OF ESTIMATION AND
IMPROVEMENT OF PLANT MATERIALS
PROF. BOGUSLAW SZOT
LABORATORY OF PHYSICS OF PLANT GRANULAR SOLIDS
PROF. BOHDAN DOBRZANSKI JR
LABORATORY OF PHYSICAL BASES OF KERNELS QUALITY
ESTIMATION
PROF. STANISLAW GRUNDAS
LABORATORY OF PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF CROP
PROF. MAREK MOLENDA
STRUCTURE
Director Prof. R. Walczak
ViceDirector Prof. J. Horabik
65 RESEARCH WORKERS
2O PHYSICISTS
1O CHEMISTS
12 Professors
1O AGRONOMISTS
12 D.Sc.
8 BIOLOGISTS
27 Ph.D.
7 MECHANICIANS (AUTHOMATICS)
14 M.Sc.
5 MECHANICIANS (AGRICULTURE)
3 GEOGRAPHERS
1 MATHEMATICIAN
1 HORTICULTURALIST
8 Technicians
15 ADMINISTRATION
Lublin – location
A unique image of the city is its academic environment. There are 5
universities and 65,000 students. Out of 6000 scientific workers 700 are
professors. Students are 16% of the town population that places Lublin
ahead of other towns in Europe. Only Cambridge city has greater ratio of
the students.
Lublin – location
A unique image of the city is its academic environment. There are 5
universities and 65,000 students. Out of 6000 scientific workers 700 are
professors. Students are 16% of the town population that places Lublin
ahead of other towns in Europe. Only Cambridge city has greater ratio of
the students.
Polesie
Lowlands stretching east by northeast of Lublin along the course of the Prypec
River and its tributaries to the Dnieper River. It is characterized by its many
marshes, lakes and forests. This is the largest such region in Europe
Polesie – character of the region
This beautiful district was populated with different people, 62% of the
population couldn't describe it's nationality nor it's parent language, basically
describing themselves as "locals". They were usually called "Poleszczukami" and
used a dialect of "prosta" straight or "chlopska" worker/peasant. They were
dialects of different origins ie: Belorussian, Polish and Russian.
Bio-environment of Polesie – actual state and
changes
Polish-Ukrainian-Belarussian Conference
Lublin-Szack-Brześć, 17-21 June 2002
Three volumes of papers covered both theoretical opinions and views and
proposals for practical solutions. They may constitute the scientific basis for the
elaboration of effective protection programmes aimed at the limitation or
inhibitation of the unfavourable ecological changes taking place in the water and
peat-bog ecosystems which are especially sensitive to brutal human
manipulation.
Bio-environment of Polesie – actual state and
changes
Polish-Ukrainian-Belarussian Conference
Lublin-Szack-Brześć, 17-21 June 2002
In the last decades of 20th century human intervention in the naturally formed
biotic and abiotic structures of peat and water ecosystems brought about
substantial changes. This leads to disturbances in the functioning and preservation
of the relative stability and biocenotic balance of these ecosystems. The result is
the impoverishment of the mosaic character of the habitat and the diversification
of plant and animal spacies as well as the degradation of the organogenic soils.
Bank of mineral soils of Poland
 3000 samples taken in the same time and according to the same
procedure all over Poland now stored at air-dry conditions
 Soil taken in natural state with natural structure of aeration pores
 Granulometric composition preserved
 Organic matter and carbonate preserved
HYDROTHERMOPHYSICS OF SOIL ENVIRONMENT
AND AGRICULTURAL MATERIALS
 Water and thermal properties of elements of the soil-plantatmosphere system and agricultural materials,
 Time and spatial variability of the physical parameters,
 Modeling water, salt and energy exchange in soil-plant atmosphere,
 Agrophysical metrology.
DATABASE AND MAPS OF
HYDROPHYSICAL
CHARACTERISTICS OF POLISH
MINERAL SOILS
- static water characteristics
-water retention curves
-dynamic water characteristics
-coefficients of water conductivity
in saturated and unsaturated
zones
-resources of water useful for
plants (exemplary map on the
right)
Human impact on transformation of small loess catchment
• 1830 - all catchment area under forest
• 1870 - northern part still under forest
 14 fields (6 farmers) - state unchanged from 1932; household buildings - 1965
To characterize the structure of soil profiles,
456 soil core samples in total were taken in
the catchment.
Experimental catchment
Soil profiles were characterized in a
grid of 10x10 m and 20x20 m with
additional point in the center
Grid density was adjusted to the
landscape position and expected
changes in soil cover
Comparison of catchment topography
Processes transforming the catchment
• water erosion
• soil translocation due to tillage
Primary relief
Contemporary relief
Soil erosion and accumulation caused flattering of primary catchment
topography, especially slope elements  4˚
Investigation on plants

Aternative palnts:
– Evening Primrose (Oenothera
biennis L.)
– Amaranth (Amaranthus
cruentus L.)
– Everlasting Pea (Lathyrus
sativus L.)
– Lentil (Lens culinaris Medik.)

Energetic plants:
– Rapeseed (Brassica napus)
– Willow (Salix viminalis)
EUROPEAN CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE
for Applied Physics in Sustainable Agriculture
DIRECTOR- RYSZARD WALCZAK,
COORDINATOR- ANDRZEJ STĘPNIEWSKI
CoE WAS CREATED IN MARCH 2003 IN THE INSTITUTE OF AGROPHYSICS
AS A RESULT OF SUCCESSFUL APPLICATION TO THE CALL FOR PROPOSALS
ANNOUNCED WITHIN 5 FRAMEWORK PROGRAMME OF EU.
RESEARCH on various aspects of sustainable development of agricultural regions
and efficient use of agro- and food products
ORGANISATION of advanced workshops, conferences, summer schools, lectures
STRENGTHEN LINKS with other centres and research institutions
EDUCATION trainings for young scientists
EXCHANGE experiences, methods and unifying nomenclature
INCREASING ACTIVE PARTICIPATION IN EUROPEAN RESEARCH AREA