Abstract To compare different cropping systems, it is crucial to describe explicitly the associated cropping practices. A set of 31 indicators and six composite indexes addressing farm structure, crop diversification, soil disturbance, organic matter inputs, nitrogen fertilisation, crop protection, and yield was used to describe 59 winter wheat fields belonging to conventional, no-till and organic systems, in Switzerland. The aim of this study was to investigate the complementarity and redundancy of the indicators and their potential to characterise these cropping systems. In general, weak correlations were observed between the studied indicators, showing the importance of using a set of indicators to fully characterise cropping practices. The complex indicators were often correlated with simpler ones, but it cannot be excluded that they can prove to be more useful in different contexts. Retaining a combination of simple and complex indicators to obtain a broad picture of cropping practices is thus recommended. The indicators highlighted differences but also similarities between the three systems. For example, the input of organic matter and crop rotation diversification were similar between the three systems. In contrast, total nitrogen fertilisation (lower for organic systems) and soil disturbance (lower for no-till systems) were different. A high within-system variability was observed for some indicators, suggesting that using quantitative indicators rather than simple classifications based on a general description of the systems allows a better characterisation of these systems. Overall, the use of indicators has the potential to improve our understanding of the influence of cropping practices on the soil and environment.

中文翻译：

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揭示种植系统分类隐藏面的指标的潜力：传统、免耕和有机系统之间种植实践的差异和相似之处

摘要 为了比较不同的种植系统，明确描述相关的种植实践至关重要。以农田结构、作物多样化、土壤扰动、有机质投入、施氮肥、作物保护、产量等31个指标和6个综合指标，对59个属于常规、免耕和有机系统的冬小麦田进行描述，在瑞士。本研究的目的是调查指标的互补性和冗余性及其表征这些种植系统的潜力。一般而言，在所研究的指标之间观察到弱相关性，表明使用一组指标来全面描述种植实践的重要性。复杂的指标往往与简单的指标相关，但不能排除它们可以证明在不同的上下文中更有用。因此，建议保留简单和复杂指标的组合，以获得广泛的种植实践情况。这些指标突出了三个系统之间的差异，但也突出了相似之处。例如，三个系统之间的有机质输入和作物轮作多样化相似。相比之下，总氮肥（有机系统较低）和土壤扰动（免耕系统较低）是不同的。观察到一些指标的系统内变异性很高，这表明使用定量指标而不是基于系统一般描述的简单分类可以更好地表征这些系统。全面的，