Plant Gene and Trait 2025, Vol.16, No.3, 113-122 http://genbreedpublisher.com/index.php/pgt 118 Figure 2 The conceptual trade-off of economic benefits and environmental impacts of four planting systems (Adopted from Su et al., 2023) Image caption: The position of the four planting systems on the x-axis shows the environmental sustainability (ESI), while the y-axis shows the economic benefits of each system (Adopted from Su et al., 2023) 7.2 Labor savings and mechanization economics High-density planting is also more suitable for achieving mechanized operation, which can significantly reduce labor costs and improve work efficiency (Parasuraman et al., 2024). Take cotton as an example. After adopting high-density planting, it is not only more suitable for machine harvesting, but also can complete the picking more quickly, save labor, and ultimately increase the income (Parasuraman et al., 2024). Regarding fruit trees, if automated equipment is added to high-density orchards, not only can the payback time be further shortened, but also the reliance on manual labor can be reduced and economic security can be enhanced (Ghelfi and Palmieri, 2022). Therefore, combining high-density planting with mechanization is an important way to improve agricultural efficiency and solve the problem of labor shortage. 7.3 Resource use efficiency and sustainability High-density planting can also enhance the utilization efficiency of water, light and nutrients. For example, on corn and rice, appropriately increasing the planting density and reducing the input of nitrogen fertilizer not only improves the nitrogen fertilizer utilization efficiency (NUE), but also reduces nitrogen fertilizer residues, lowers environmental pollution, and achieves a balance among yield, income and environmental protection (Han et al., 2020; Li et al., 2020; Wu et al., 2024). In arid or semi-arid regions, high-density combination with water-saving irrigation technologies also helps to “determine production based on water”, making the use of water resources more rational and promoting sustainable agricultural development (Parasuraman et al., 2024; Wu et al., 2024). However, it should also be noted that if the density is too high, it may reduce ecological diversity and increase the environmental burden. This requires the development of greener and more environmentally friendly high-density planting methods through means such as optimizing the input structure and policy guidance (Guerrero-Casado et al., 2021; Su et al., 2023). 8 Case Study: Application of High-Density Planting in a Commercial Vineyard 8.1 Vineyard location and design parameters This case occurred in the southern grassland area, where the climate and soil are both very suitable for growing grapes. The vineyard adopts two different planting densities: one is the standard density, with 2 222 plants per hectare; The other type is high density, with 4 000 plants per hectare. Generally speaking, small wine producers
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjQ4ODYzNA==