Options to mitigate nitrate losses in drainage water in the cereal cropping systems of Central Italy

The DSSAT model simulates growth, development and yield of crops as well as changes in soil water, carbon and nitrogen of cropping systems over time. The aim of this study was to assess the nitrate losses associated to different options of soil fertility management in the context of rainfed durum wheat - maize rotation in central Italy, using DSSAT v.4.5 calibrated in a multi-year field experiment dataset. Nitrate leaching occurred mostly during the long bare soil period between wheat harvest (July) and maize seeding (April), which includes the autumn-winter months when soil water drainage is very likely to be abundant. The prescriptions set by the regional agri-environment schemes, based on N fertilizers rate reduction, contributed only partially to mitigate the nitrate leaching. On the basis of the results, we discuss the different options to mitigate nitrate losses of the rainfed cereal cropping systems in the context of the hills of central Italy