Comparisons between diversified multicropping systems in terms of crop productivity, economic benefits and carbon footprint in the Pearl River Delta region of South China

Increasing crop output while emitting fewer greenhouse gases (GHG) from limited farmland has been a major focus of research in world agricultural production. However, information on diversified multicropping systems involving forage in winter fallow fields has rarely been reported in South China. Therefore, in this study we designed three diversified multicropping systems, including maize−rice−fallow (MRF), maize−rice/ryegrass ​× ​milk vetch mixture (1:1) (MRM1) and maize−rice/ryegrass ​× ​milk vetch mixture (1:2) (MRM2), based on a field trial in the Pearl River Delta region of South China during 2021–2023. The annual crop productivity, economic benefits and carbon footprint (CF) of the diversified multicropping system were jointly analyzed. The results showed that the crop productivity of MRM1 and MRM2 was increased by 14.97% and 14.01%, respectively, compared with MRF, and the increase in MRM1 was significant (P ​