Climate Change as a Conditional Opportunity for Plant Growers in India: A Critical Narrative Review of Evidence, Limits and Competing Risks

Climate Change and Plantation Crops: A Critical Narrative Review of Physiological, Spatial, Biotic and Adaptive Responses

Plantation crops such as coffee, cocoa, tea, oil palm, natural rubber, banana, coconut and sugarcane underpin the rural economies of much of the tropical and subtropical world, yet their long production cycles and comparatively narrow climatic tolerances make them acutely exposed to a changing climate. This review synthesises and critically evaluates evidence on how rising temperature, altered rainfall, elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide and shifting biotic pressures are affecting these crops, and asks whether the literature supports a coherent account of vulnerability and adaptive capacity across such a heterogeneous group of species. Evidence was drawn from open-access and publisher-indexed peer-reviewed journals, institutional sources, and citation searching of recent reviews. Three broad conclusions emerge. First, thermal and hydrological stress already constrain yield and quality in several crops, with effects that are frequently non-linear around genotype-specific optima rather than simple linear declines. Second, elevated carbon dioxide confers a measurable but contested physiological benefit that interacts with, and in some cases partially offsets, warming and drought stress; the magnitude of this offset varies sharply between short-duration controlled experiments and field-scale, water-limited conditions, and carries consequences for crop quality that are distinct from its effects on biomass. Third, species distribution and process-based models converge on a general poleward and upslope redistribution of both crops and their associated pests and pathogens, although the two modelling traditions disagree substantially on magnitude and, in the case of cocoa, on the direction of projected change once carbon dioxide fertilisation and land-use constraints are incorporated. Agroforestry and shade management emerge as the most consistently supported agronomic adaptation strategy, buffering microclimatic extremes, although the net effect on resilience is contingent on soil water availability and on the forward-looking climatic suitability of the shade species selected. The evidence base is markedly uneven across crops, with coffee and cocoa disproportionately represented relative to rubber, coconut, tea, oil palm, banana and sugarcane. The review identifies priority needs for longitudinal, multi-decadal field trials that combine elevated carbon dioxide with realistic water limitation, for process-based models capable of separating suitability from harvestable yield, and for expanded physiological research on the least-studied plantation crops.

Evidence on agroforestry practices for climate change adaptation in Africa from a systematic review

Climate change presents profound challenges to agricultural systems across Africa, particularly in regions dependent on rain-fed farming and characterized by limited adaptive capacity. Traditional agroforestry, which integrates trees with crops and livestock, has been employed for generations and is increasingly recognized as an effective strategy for climate change adaptation. This systematic review synthesizes empirical evidence on the contribution of traditional agroforestry to climate resilience across African agroecological zones. Guided by the PRISMA framework, peer-reviewed English and French language studies published between 2015 and 2025 were identified through Web of Science, ProQuest, and Scopus, with 40 studies meeting inclusion criteria for detailed analysis. Findings indicate that traditional agroforestry enhances adaptive capacity by improving soil fertility and structure (89.3% of studies), increasing water infiltration and retention (60.7%), moderating local microclimates (42.9%), supporting biological pest regulation (35.7%), and diversifying livelihoods (71.4%). Across multiple regions, these systems were associated with higher crop productivity (92.9%), reduced vulnerability to drought and erratic rainfall, strengthened food security, and enhanced livelihood resilience among smallholder farmers. However, six studies (21.4%) documented negative outcomes attributed to poor species selection, inadequate spacing, water scarcity, and insecure tenure. Persistent barriers to adoption include land tenure insecurity (55% of studies), limited extension services (47.5%), delayed economic returns (42.5%), and policy fragmentation (27.5%). The review underscores traditional agroforestry as a context-specific, scalable adaptation strategy. Policy interventions that integrate indigenous knowledge, enhance access to extension services and planting materials, and provide institutional support are critical to realizing its full adaptive potential in Africa.

Climate-Smart Horticulture: Emerging Strategies for Sustainable Fruit and Vegetable Production

The convergence of anthropogenic climate change and global food security demands represents one of the most pressing challenges of the 21st century. Horticulture—encompassing fruit and vegetable production—is uniquely vulnerable to climatic perturbations due to the biological sensitivity of horticultural crops to temperature extremes, irregular precipitation, and shifting pest dynamics. Simultaneously, horticultural systems offer considerable potential for adaptation and mitigation through diversified, resource-efficient production models. This narrative review synthesises emerging evidence on climate-smart strategies for sustainable fruit and vegetable production, drawing on peer-reviewed literature and authoritative international reports published predominantly between 2000 and 2026. Literature searches were conducted using multiple academic databases, including Web of Science, Scopus, Google Scholar, PubMed, AGRIS (the agricultural science and technology information database maintained by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations), CAB Abstracts, and the CGIAR research portal. The review examines the multidimensional impacts of climate change on horticultural systems and evaluates a suite of responses spanning crop genetic improvement, precision irrigation, soil carbon management, protected agriculture, agroforestry, digital technologies, and policy frameworks. Evidence indicates that no single strategy is sufficient; rather, transformative change requires integrated, context-specific combinations of adaptation and mitigation interventions supported by enabling policy environments. The review identifies key knowledge gaps and advocates for greater investment in transdisciplinary research, smallholder inclusion, and digital innovation to accelerate the transition to climate-smart horticulture globally.

Natural Farming for Sustainable Crop Production and Soil Health: A Critical Comprehensive Review

Natural farming has moved from a group of locally adapted, low-external-input practices to a prominent agricultural policy proposition, particularly in India. Its appeal rests on the linked aims of reducing dependence on purchased agrochemicals, rebuilding soil biological function, maintaining crop production and improving farm profitability. Yet the label encompasses heterogeneous systems, and evidence for particular components is often stronger than evidence for the complete package. This critical narrative review examines natural farming as an agroecological redesign strategy, with emphasis on crop productivity, soil health, nutrient sufficiency, water relations, biodiversity, farm economics and implementation at scale. Literature available from 1990 to 5 June 2026 was identified through accessible scholarly indexes, bibliographic searches, institutional sources and citation tracing. Direct comparative evidence from Indian natural-farming programmes was integrated with higher-level evidence on organic amendments, soil cover, reduced disturbance, crop diversification and microbial inoculation. The strongest and most transferable support concerns permanent or frequent soil cover, organic-matter return, diversified rotations and intercrops, and reduced reliance on broad-spectrum pesticides. These practices can improve soil aggregation, moisture retention, microbial biomass and several regulating ecosystem services. Direct field studies in south-eastern India indicate that well-managed natural farming can maintain or increase yields and reduce production costs in some settings, while recent landscape evidence shows comparable yields, higher profits and improved farmland bird abundance. Confidence is nevertheless moderated by short experimental duration, treatment bundles that prevent attribution to individual practices, uneven geographical coverage and limited nutrient budgets. Biological activity cannot create phosphorus, potassium or other exported elements, and nitrogen supply may become constraining in high-yielding systems without legumes, recycled biomass or other accountable sources. Natural farming is therefore best understood as context-specific ecological intensification rather than universal input elimination. Credible scaling requires phased transition, soil- and crop-specific nutrient accounting, independent long-term trials, multidimensional monitoring and adaptive safeguards for farmers whose production systems have high nutrient demand.

Advances and challenges in using smart agroforestry and climate- modified outdoor planting techniques in the last decade: a systematic literature review

Expanding the frontiers of global crop production using climate-smart agronomy: a detour from the century-old paradigm limiting expansion in cocoa farming beyond 20°N and 20°S of the equator

For over a century, cocoa production was widely believed to be restricted to latitude 20°N-20°S of the equator. This long-standing assumption dictated global cocoa production status, investments, researches, pests and disease control; and inadvertently tilted demand-supply curve, creating a regionalized marketing system with monopolized market policies. However, emerging empirical evidences probed the universality of this constraint. Base on the proof provided by Peter Mudiaga Etaware (in his previous research), the current study was designed to systematically investigate the ecological validity of the cocoa belt concept by the use of classical agro-ecological analysis to identify favorable production regions (FPR), climate appraisal to determine climate fitness (CF)/cocoa survival odds (CSO), and climate-smart disease forecasting to evaluate host-pathogen affinity i.e., black pod disease (BPD) outbreak. The findings from this study showed that cocoa can actually thrive outside the predefined latitudinal boundaries for cocoa farming in some identified geographical regions within countries like Bahamas (Lat. = 25.03°N, FPR=North/South, CF/CSO ≤ 100%, 9.2≤BPD%≤16.6), Bangladesh (Lat. = 23.81°N, FPR=North/South, CF/CSO ≤ 100%, 3.3≤BPD ≤ 13.5), Bhutan (Lat. = 27.47°N, FPR=South, CF/CSO=0-75%, 0.0≤BPD%≤7.9), China (Lat. = 39.90°N, FPR=South, CF/CSO=0-75%, 0.0≤BPD%≤10.6), Cuba (Lat. = 21.52°N, FPR=North/South, CF/CSO ≤ 100%, 10.0≤BPD%≤17.7), India (Lat. = 28.61°N, FPR=South, CF/CSO ≤ 100%, 0.0≤BPD%≤17.0), Mexico (Lat. = 23.63°N, FPR=South, CF/CSO ≤ 100%, 0.0≤BPD%≤14.0), Nepal (Lat. = 27.71°N, FPR=South, CF/CSO ≤ 100%, 0.0≤BPD%≤12.1), Paraguay (Lat. = 25.26°S, FPR=North/South, CF/CSO ≤ 100%, 4.8≤BPD%≤17.5), Taiwan (Lat. = 23.70°N, FPR=North/South, CF/CSO ≤ 100%, 1.9≤BPD%≤13.1), and Vietnam (Lat. = 21.03°N, FPR=North/South, CF/CSO ≤ 100%, 7.3≤BPD%≤17.0). Therefore, the current research was able to identify new geographical regions for cocoa cultivation worldwide. However, consistency and improvement in cocoa production within these countries depend on the adoption of highly specialized techniques like the use of climate-smart agroforestry, and good cultural and agricultural practices. Finally, the outcome of this research is a pathfinder to a limitless channel of positive possibilities.