Archbold Biological Station, Venus, Florida, USA.
Range Cattle Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Ona, Florida, USA.
J Environ Qual. 2024 Nov-Dec;53(6):802-813. doi: 10.1002/jeq2.20593. Epub 2024 Jun 16.
The Archbold Biological Station-University of Florida (ABS-UF) Long-term Agroecosystem Research (LTAR) site lies in the heart of south-central Florida, representing subtropical humid grazing lands in North America and globally. Beef producers in this region face challenges due to climate variability, limited nutritive value of forages, poor soils, public concerns about water quality and greenhouse gas emissions, management trade-offs, economic uncertainty, and increasing urban encroachment. The ABS-UF Common Experiment, co-designed with stakeholders, will assess innovative management systems in comparison to prevailing management systems on key indicators of sustainability. Innovative management systems being tested are alternative fire (frequency and spatial extent) and grazing practices (stocking rate and system). The common experiment framework was implemented across a management intensity gradient spanning from native rangeland to cultivated pastures, including embedded wetlands. Issues that have arisen to date include difficulties in implementing prescribed fire and reduced productivity in cultivated pastures associated with innovative management, which led to an adjustment of the experimental treatment. A stakeholder advisory council will codesign future alternative treatments and guide experimental changes in this long-term experiment. Stakeholder engagement efforts revealed research priorities centered on financial strength, carbon (C) and greenhouse gas emissions, and water quality. Stakeholders are also interested in testing emerging technology such as the utility of virtual fencing. Results from ABS-UF provide a unique perspective from subtropical humid grazing lands for continental-scale cross-site synthesis on sustainable agroecosystems across LTAR.
佛罗里达大学阿什博尔德生物站（ABS-UF）长期农业生态系统研究（LTAR）站位于美国中南部佛罗里达州的中心地带，代表了北美的亚热带湿润牧场，在全球范围内也是如此。该地区的牛肉生产者面临着诸多挑战，包括气候多变、牧草营养价值有限、土壤贫瘠、公众对水质和温室气体排放的担忧、管理权衡、经济不确定性以及城市不断扩张等。与利益相关者共同设计的 ABS-UF 通用实验将评估创新性管理系统与流行管理系统在可持续性关键指标上的对比。正在测试的创新性管理系统包括替代火（频率和空间范围）和放牧实践（放养率和系统）。通用实验框架在从原生牧场到耕作牧场（包括嵌入式湿地）的管理强度梯度上实施。迄今为止出现的问题包括实施规定火烧的困难以及与创新管理相关的耕作牧场生产力降低，这导致了实验处理的调整。一个利益相关者咨询委员会将共同设计未来的替代处理方法，并指导这个长期实验的实验变化。利益相关者参与工作揭示了研究重点集中在财务实力、碳（C）和温室气体排放以及水质上。利益相关者也对测试新兴技术（如虚拟围栏的实用性）感兴趣。ABS-UF 的研究结果从亚热带湿润牧场提供了一个独特的视角，可用于可持续农业生态系统的大陆尺度跨站点综合研究。
