Within-field soil variability in agro-silvo-pastoral systems: a baseline for Precision Agriculture adoption

Abstract

The Montado represents a dominant agro-silvo-pastoral system across the Mediterranean basin. It integrates pastures, trees (cork oak and/or holm oak), and livestock (ruminants or swine), While Precision Agriculture is more commonly applied to purely agricultural systems, it offers significant potential to optimize Montado management, thereby increasing economic, environmental, social, and cultural sustainability. This study aims to quantify spatial soil variability within Montado plots to identify which essential nutrients for plant production exhibit the greatest distribution range. This study was conducted on two permanent applied research plots, grazed by cattle under a rotational grazing system (total area = 20 ha; location: Mitra/University of Évora, Portugal, Figure 1). Sampling’s carried out at 24 points: 12 under the tree canopy influence and 12 outside the canopy influence. The methodology’s described in Serrano et al (2023) and Horta Marques (2026). Results indicate high within-field variability (Coefficient of Variation around 40% or higher) in the levels of K2O, Mg, P2O5, Ca and all studied micronutrients except for Fe. The findings demonstrate that the observed within-field variability, alongside agronomic expertise and economic and environmental sustainability goals, justifies the implementation of Precision Agriculture in Mediterranean agro-silvo-pastoral systems.