About

Axel Garcia y Garcia is an Associate Professor in the Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics at the University of Minnesota. His research focuses on sustainable cropping systems, primarily in the corn-soybean rotation, management practices of emerging crops and cover crops, water and nitrogen use and efficiencies, and environmental assessment related to climate change and climate variability within the context of sustainable intensification. The overall objective of his work is to improve Minnesota cropping systems for productivity and profitability while delivering ecosystem services. He is involved in extension education on sustainable cropping and conducts research on sustainable cropping systems, management practices of emerging crops and cover crops, nitrogen and water use in agroecosystems, and environmental assessment of crop production. His contributions include advancing knowledge on nitrogen use in double cropping soybean, tillage and cover crop mixtures in maize-soybean systems, crop rotational diversity, and the integration of winter oilseed crops in northern climates. His work aims to enhance agricultural resilience, environmental sustainability, and crop productivity in the upper Midwest.

Research topics

• Agronomy
• Biology
• Agroforestry
• Natural resource economics
• Geography
• Economics
• Environmental science
• Business
• Botany
• Ecology
• Environmental resource management

Selected publications

• Water use of interseeded cover crops in rainfed maize–soybean rotations in the Northern U.S.

  Frontiers in Agronomy · 2026-03-23

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Introduction Cover crop adoption in U.S. crop rotations is steadily increasing. In the upper Midwest, where the conventional maize ( Zea mays L.)–soybean [ Glycine max (L.) Merr.] rotation is mostly rainfed, there is legitimate concern that cover crops may affect available soil water and the establishment of the subsequent main crop. Methods A study was conducted to evaluate 1) the effect of interseeded cover crops on soil moisture at seeding and termination, and subsequent maize and soybean yields, and 2) seasonal evapotranspiration ( ET ) or water use of the main crops and cover crops. Field trials were conducted from 2016 to 2019 at three locations in the upper Midwest using four treatments: monoculture cereal rye ( Secale cereale L.), two-species rye + crimson clover ( Trifolium incarnatum L.), three-species rye + clover + forage radish ( Raphanus sativus L.), and a fallow (no-cover planted) as the control. Results The ET of cover crops varied between 52 and 110 mm, 70% of which was attributed to its evaporation component. Meanwhile the ET for maize and soybean ranged from 364–516 mm and 378–503 mm, respectively, 20% of which was attributed to evaporation. Regardless of the interseeding strategy, the biomass of cover crops was low in two out of the three experimental years due to weather conditions, resulting in little to no effect on soil water content or crop yield. Discussion Our findings suggest that late interseeded cover crops for conditions in the northern U.S. may have limited impact on soil available water or the productivity of the subsequent crop when cover crop growth is low.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Potential Role of Hybrid Rye in Crop Rotations for Provision of Feed and Bedding in Organic Pig Production: A Simulation Study

  Sustainability · 2026-03-10

  articleOpen access

  This study utilized a modeling approach to explore the long-term effects of integrating hybrid rye into organic crop production on crop yields and water use, and rye’s theoretical impact on feed and bedding self-sufficiency in organic pig production. Crop yield and water use were simulated using DSSAT models for three exploratory scenarios (R1: corn–soybean–silage followed by 3 years of alfalfa; R2: rye replaced the first year of alfalfa; and R3: rye replaced the third year of alfalfa). Potential feed and bedding requirements were estimated based on a recently completed pig feeding trial. The models predicted higher rye yields and water use in R3 than in R2 (p < 0.01), suggesting a theoretical yield benefit when rye follows alfalfa. Based on these simulations, R3 could potentially provide feed and bedding for a 38 pigs·ha−1·rotation cycle−1, compared to a 10 pigs·ha−1·rotation cycle−1 in R2. While these findings represent theoretical scenarios rather than validated field performance, they demonstrate the potential of crop simulations for evaluations of long-term effects of organic crop rotations on yield and water use. The results suggest that integrating hybrid rye after legumes warrants further field-scale validation as a strategy to enhance resource self-sufficiency in organic pig production.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Evaluating the economic viability of growing winter hybrid rye to feed and bed organic pigs

  Frontiers in Animal Science · 2025-07-16

  articleOpen access

  The high production cost is one of the biggest challenges to the sustainability of organic pig production. Growing winter hybrid rye to feed and bed organic pigs might be a strategy to reduce production costs. In this study, we evaluated the economic viability of integrating rye into an organic swine production system. Winter hybrid rye was grown organically over two years, yielding an average of 5,430 kg/ha of grain and 3,135 kg/ha of straw. Replacing 50% of corn with rye grain in feed and using rye straw as bedding materials did not negatively impact growth performance of organic growing-finishing pigs. This replacement resulted in $14/pig savings on feed and bedding and increased net return for a swine enterprise (swine savings) by $6/pig, compared with feeding corn soybean meal diets and bedding with wheat straw. Sensitivity analysis was conducted to evaluate how crop net returns may vary with changes in market prices, yield, and production costs of a rye crop. Results indicate that for farmers to be profitable by growing rye as a cash crop, the minimal price of rye grain needs to be $0.24/kg at a yield of around 5,000 kg/ha with production costs of $1,642/ha. Growing rye to feed and bed organic pigs can offset crop net returns, resulting in $319 to $666/ha of crop net returns and swine savings for the combined crop and swine enterprise. These results suggest that integrating hybrid rye into organic swine production is economically viable under the circumstances described in this study and can benefit both crop and pig farmers.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Spacecraft Rendezvous and Precise Landing in the Cislunar Region with a Lidar

  SSRN Electronic Journal · 2025-01-01 · 1 citations

  preprintOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Irrigation Management in Vegetable Crops

  2025-01-01

  book-chapter
  PublisherDOI

• Analysis of LiDAR and Point Cloud Registration Algorithms for Spacecraft Rendezvous and Precision Landing on the Moon

  2025-01-03 · 2 citations

  articleSenior author

  As interest in the exploration of the cislunar region and establishment of lunar bases grows, so does the need for rendezvous and proximity operation (RPO) maneuvers and landing. However, due to the large distance between Earth and Moon, autonomous control using on-board sensors is required during the mission. A light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensor, with its independent illumination source, is able to provide precise range and pose estimation under any lighting conditions, which is highly desired in RPO and landing. This paper analyzes algorithms that changes cloud data acquired through LiDAR into a usable state in the controller.

  PublisherDOI

• Effects of landscape position on perennial biomass and food crop performance in buffer areas

  Ecosphere · 2024-07-01 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  Abstract Due to the environmental consequences of annual‐dominated cropping systems, there is an increasing need to identify agronomic strategies that incorporate perennial crops. One strategy for increasing perennial cover is through the targeted use of annually harvested perennial food and bioproduct crops in buffer strips, which has the potential to create new revenue streams for farmers and substantially mitigate agricultural nutrient pollution from conventional cropping systems. As buffers are typically installed on marginal land, it is critical to understand how landscape position influences the success of perennial crops. The objectives of this study were to determine the relatively early influence of landscape position on the productivity of a variety of perennial crops and their subsequent soil nutrients and soil water storing capabilities. In this experiment, nine perennial (alfalfa, alsike clover, indiangrass, switchgrass, big bluestem, prairie cordgrass, intermediate wheatgrass, high‐diversity polyculture, low‐diversity polyculture) and two annual (corn, soybean) crops were planted across two landscape positions (hillslope and deposition). Plant biomass, plant tissue nitrogen, soil moisture, and soil NO 3 ‐N and NH 4 ‐N were measured and compared at two different locations in Minnesota. Overall, the polyculture mixes, and to some extent intermediate wheatgrass, performed the best with respect to biomass production while also providing ecosystem services across most soil by landscape position combinations tested in this study. However, there were some important findings specific to each soil and landscape position combination, mainly oriented toward biomass production. We also observed temporal patterns in soil moisture and depth‐related patterns in soil N reductions. This study presents an opportunity to optimize the use of perennial crops on marginal agricultural lands for improved environmental and economic benefit.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Rotational complexity increases cropping system output under poorer growing conditions

  One Earth · 2024-08-06 · 27 citations

  articleOpen access

  Growing multiple crops in rotation can increase the sustainability of agricultural systems and reduce risks from increasingly adverse weather. However, widespread adoption of diverse rotations is limited by economic uncertainty, lack of incentives, and limited information about long-term outcomes. Here, we combined 36,000 yield observations from 20 North American long-term cropping experiments (434 site-years) to assess how greater crop diversity impacts productivity of complete rotations and their component crops under varying growing conditions. Maize and soybean output increased as the number of species and rotation length increased, while results for complete rotations varied by site depending on which crops were present. Diverse rotations reduced rotation-level output at eight sites due to the addition of lower-output crops such as small grains, illustrating trade-offs. Diverse rotations positively impacted rotation-level output under poor growing conditions, which illustrates how diverse cropping systems can reduce the risk of crop loss in a changing climate.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Nitrogen Uptake and Use Efficiency in Winter Camelina with Applied N

  Nitrogen · 2024-06-06 · 4 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  Maize (Zea mays L.) and soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] rotations in the upper Midwest are highly productive. However, these narrow rotations are followed by a long winter fallow period. Over time, this has contributed to the loss of agroecological functioning, including increased ground water pollution from nitrate-nitrogen (NO3–N). Winter camelina [Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz] is a third crop that could grow during this fallow period, but its nitrogen (N) use and efficiency are not well known. A study was conducted at three locations in the U.S. upper Midwest to determine the N uptake and use efficiency of winter camelina in response to applied N and N application timing. Agronomic efficiency (AE), internal efficiency (IE), and nitrogen recovery efficiency (NRE) tended to decrease with increasing N rates, especially beyond 67 kg N ha−1 in most instances. Total N uptake ranged from 34 to 176 kg ha−1 across N rates, and was on average 1.5 fold the applied rate. Based on the observed decline in N use efficiency with increasing N rates, an application rate of 67 kg N ha−1 appears to balance efficient N use, high yield, and lower environmental risk compared to higher N rates.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Crop rotational diversity can mitigate climate‐induced grain yield losses

  Global Change Biology · 2024-05-01 · 41 citations

  articleOpen access

  Diversified crop rotations have been suggested to reduce grain yield losses from the adverse climatic conditions increasingly common under climate change. Nevertheless, the potential for climate change adaptation of different crop rotational diversity (CRD) remains undetermined. We quantified how climatic conditions affect small grain and maize yields under different CRDs in 32 long-term (10-63 years) field experiments across Europe and North America. Species-diverse and functionally rich rotations more than compensated yield losses from anomalous warm conditions, long and warm dry spells, as well as from anomalous wet (for small grains) or dry (for maize) conditions. Adding a single functional group or crop species to monocultures counteracted yield losses from substantial changes in climatic conditions. The benefits of a further increase in CRD are comparable with those of improved climatic conditions. For instance, the maize yield benefits of adding three crop species to monocultures under detrimental climatic conditions exceeded the average yield of monocultures by up to 553 kg/ha under non-detrimental climatic conditions. Increased crop functional richness improved yields under high temperature, irrespective of precipitation. Conversely, yield benefits peaked at between two and four crop species in the rotation, depending on climatic conditions and crop, and declined at higher species diversity. Thus, crop species diversity could be adjusted to maximize yield benefits. Diversifying rotations with functionally distinct crops is an adaptation of cropping systems to global warming and changes in precipitation.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Gerrit Hoogenboom

  University of Florida

  53 shared

• Jeffrey S. Strock

  University of Minnesota

  30 shared

• Joel O. Paz

  Mississippi State University

  18 shared

• Larry C. Guerra

  17 shared

• Durval Dourado Neto

  17 shared

• Gregg A. Johnson

  University of Minnesota

  16 shared

• Ronghao Liu

  Shandong University

  15 shared

• Clyde W. Fraisse

  University of Florida

  11 shared

Education

• PhD, Plant Sciences

  College of Agriculture