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Copyright of Journal of Agricultural Science & Technology (1008-0864) is the property of Journal of Agricultural Science & Technology and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The potentially devastating impacts of climate change on crop production and food security are now widely acknowledged. An important component of efforts to mitigate these impacts is the production of new varieties of crops which will be able to thrive in more extreme and changeable environmental conditions. There is therefore an urgent need to find new sources of genetic diversity for crop improvement. Wild plant species closely related to crops (crop wild relatives) contain vital sources of such genes, yet these resources themselves are threatened by the effects of climate change, as well as by a range of other human-induced pressures and socio-economic changes. The flora of China comprises more than 20,000 native higher plant species, a proportion of which have known or potential value as gene donors for crop improvement. However, until now, the full range of these valuable crop wild relative species had not been identified. In this paper we present a methodology for creating a checklist of, and prioritizing China’s crop wild relatives, and reveal that 871 native species are related to crops that are of particularly high socio-economic importance in China—including rice, wheat, soybean, potato, sweet potato, millet and yam—crops which are also of notably high value for food and economic security in other parts of the world. Within this list we have identified species that are in particular need of conservation assessment based on their relative Red List status and potential for use in crop improvement programs. Endemic species that have particularly high economic value potential in China and that are under severe threat of genetic erosion and thus in need of urgent conservation action include wild relatives of tea ( Camellia fangchengensis S. Yun Liang et Y.C. Zhong and C. grandibracteata H.T. Chang et F.L. Yu), apple ( e.g ., Malus honanensis Rehder, M. ombrophila Hand.-Mazz. and M. toringoides (Rehder) Hughes), and pear ( Pyrus pseudopashia T.T. Yu). We provide recommendations for developing a systematic and comprehensive national CWR conservation strategy for China, highlighting the challenges and requirements of taking the strategy forward to the implementation phase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: China is one of the most important rice production countries in the world, and maintaining high rice productivity in China is very important for world food security. While previous studies showed that rice production in China has been and will be negatively impacted by global warming, the confounding effects of climatic change, variety improvement and agronomic managements have not been separately investigated. In this paper we combine an analysis of climate and rice growth data with crop modeling to investigate the impact of changes in climate, rice varieties, and agronomic management on rice productivity at four sites (Wuchang, Xinyang, Zhenjiang and Hanyuan) in China. The results showed a significant increase in minimum temperature during all rice growth stages at Wuchang and Zhenjiang, and from heading to maturity at Xinyang, but little change at Hanyuan. Global warming would have led to a reduction in the length of rice growing period and a reduction in grain yield at all study sites, if no varietal changes had occurred. However, the adoption of new rice varieties stabilized growing duration, increased harvest index and grain yield at three of the four sites. In the face of future warming, a planned breeding effort may be needed to offset the negative impact of future climate change. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Climate change-induced drought poses a serious negative impact on global crop production and food security. The Huang Huai Hai (HHH) Plain, one of the most important grain production areas in China, is heavenly stricken by drought. Motivated by formulating drought risk prevention strategies that adapt to climate change on the HHH Plain, therefore, the present study aims to quantitatively evaluate the winter wheat drought risk under multiple climate scenarios using the Environmental Policy Impact Climate (EPIC) model. Based on the well-validated EPIC model, the drought hazard intensity (dHI), physical vulnerability (pV), and drought risk (dR) of the HHH Plain from 2010 to 2099 are assessed. Temporally, the dR showed an increasing trend in the long term, the high dR areas increased by 0.63% and 1.18% under the RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios, respectively. Spatially, dR showed a pattern of high in the south and low in the north whether under RCP4.5 or RCP8.5 scenario. Comparatively, the dR was 0.211 under the RCP4.5 scenario which was slightly higher than that under the RCP8.5 scenario, i.e. 0.207. The Huanghuai Plain agricultural subregion will be a high dHI-pV-dR region. The temperature increase might be the main factor affecting the wheat drought risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Government-led land consolidation projects implementation can directly boost grain production stability, but the effects could be improved. • The impacts of land consolidation on the production of major crops vary across regions. • The grain production change in Hubei Province has followed a trajectory of "increase-decrease-increase" with fluctuations from 1991 to 2016. China has been conducting massive land consolidation (LC) projects since the late 1990s to ensure national food security which has been one of the common issues in the world. How the implementation of LC projects affects grain production stability is a question should be answered. Basing on an empirical analysis at the county level in Hubei Province, China, this paper separates the trend component and the fluctuation component from a time series of grain production over 1991-2016 using the H-P filtering method. Then we estimate the impacts of LC projects and climate change on the trend and fluctuation rate of grain production for the entire Hubei Province. Moreover, the effects on the production of different major crops for the central, eastern, southwestern, northwestern and northern areas are also examined, respectively. The results show that: (1) the production trends for five subareas and the whole area all have followed a trajectory of "increase-decrease-increase" from 1991 to 2016. The magnitude of fluctuation rate was large but became smaller in recent years. (2) The contribution of LC to the long-term trends of grain production for the entire samples in Hubei Province mainly benefits from the growth in the cultivated land area through LC; more LC investment and newly-added arable land area promote the sudden increase in grain production above the long-term trends, while the impacts of LC area are negative. (3) The impacts of LC on the major crop production vary across areas. LC exerts significant impacts on the production of major crops in the central and eastern Hubei, and this effect persists to the following year. Similarly, this influence also exists in the southwestern and northern area, while becomes insignificant in the following year. No significant effect of LC variables is found in the northwestern area. These findings may provide reference for the government to address LC inefficiency and food security problems, and an effective and innovative mechanism combining the agricultural production, land consolidation and meteorological factors needs to be established to ensure food security and long-term and stable agricultural production. In addition, the regional difference in natural conditions and LC orientations should also be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, China's central government has begun to articulate its adaptation policy and to identify measures to adapt the nation's agriculture to changing precipitation patterns, higher temperatures, and extreme events. These developments are occurring at a time when the agricultural sector is in flux: while the major grain crops-rice, wheat, and corn-are still central to food security, many smallholder farmers have shifted away from land-intensive production to growing higher-value, labour-intensive horticultural products, such as fruit and vegetables. In addition, new forms of agriculture are emerging because of out-migration and land transfers. This review introduces the adaptation policy context for agricultural adaptation in China and reviews existing research on impacts and adaptation. It then discusses how well existing research and policy actually reflect the challenges of adapting China's farms to climate change. Four issues are discussed which together suggest that current science and policy very poorly reflect challenges on the ground: the framing of agriculture as a relatively homogeneous sector; the absence of any vulnerability assessments attuned to local contexts; a bias toward large-scale engineering solutions; and insufficient consideration of local government capacity. WIREs Clim Change 2016, 7:693-706. doi: 10.1002/wcc.414 For further resources related to this article, please visit the . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]