Crops can adapt to shifting environmental conditions due to the diversity of traits and characteristics that genetic diversity gives. The capacity to adapt is a fundamental component of crop resilience. Breeding and natural selection are necessary for developing hardy crop types. Breeders can create more resilient crops by subjecting them to various stresses and identifying individuals with favorable features. Agroecological approaches and sustainable farming can improve crop resilience. Crop rotation, intercropping, and agroforestry increase agroecosystem resilience and promote biodiversity. Developing crop varieties with improved resilience to extreme weather events, such as droughts, floods, and heat waves, is essential to addressing the difficulties posed by climate change. Crop resilience can be improved by utilizing agroecological methods, genetic variety, and adaptive ability. The productivity and adaptability of our agricultural systems in the face of shifting environmental conditions can be increased by creating resilient crop types.
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Crop resilience is the capacity of crops to tolerate and recover from a variety of challenges, including drought, pests, diseases, extremely warm or cold temperatures, and various environmental circumstances that might impact their development and, ultimately, yield (Gojon et al., 2023). Resilient crops can maintain productivity even in challenging situations, supporting food sufficiency and sustainable farming (Seppelt et al., 2022). Considering climate change, crop resilience is crucial because shifting weather patterns and an upsurge in the rate of utmost weather incidence can make crop production extremely difficult. Therefore, one of the most important methods for ensuring the availability of food and alleviating the impacts of climate disruption on agriculture is the development and cultivation of resilient crop genotypes. Crop variety resilience is influenced by several variables, including genetic and environmental influences (Kansiime & Mastenbroek, 2016). Environmental circumstances, including water shortage, pests, diseases, harsh heat waves, and other challenges can severely impact crop growth and productivity. For example, drought stress can lower crop output and quality, whereas pests and diseases can seriously harm and destroy crops. Especially during crucial growth stages, extreme temperatures, such as heatwaves or cold snaps, can affect crop growth and production. Crop resilience is critically affected by genetic variables as well (Liliane & Charles, 2020). Crop types can tolerate stressors and recover from them thanks to traits like drought tolerance, pest and disease resistance, and heat tolerance. These characteristics are inherited and can also be acquired by crop breeding or modern genetic modification.
An essential tactic for guaranteeing food security and tackling the impacts of climate variability on agriculture is the development and cultivation of robust crop types (Raza et al., 2019). To create resilient crop types, a variety of procedures can be used, such as traditional breeding methods, modern genome editing techniques, and crop diversification. In traditional breeding methods, crops with desirable traits are chosen and crossed to create offspring with the desired attributes. For example, by looking for plants that use less water or can continue growing in water-limited settings, breeders can choose drought-tolerant cultivars. Similarly, by looking for plants that naturally resist pests or illnesses, breeders can choose for pest and disease resistance. Numerous hardy crop types have been developed over the course of many years using conventional breeding methods (Spaldon et al., 2015). These methods, nevertheless, are prolonged and are dependent on the availability of breeding stock or crop wild relatives (CWR) with desired qualities. Utilizing contemporary science, genetic engineering entails adding or changing genes to crops to give desired qualities.
In genetic engineering, it is possible to change the genetic makeup of crops or to introduce genes for high-temperature tolerance, pest, and disease resistance, or drought tolerance into crops to create strains that are more resilient to stresses. The safety of transgenic organisms and the possibility of genetic tainting of non-GMO crops are two ethical issues that are raised by genetic engineering (Azeem et al., 2023). These issues should be addressed by adopting specific measures and protocols for biosafety and biosecurity in GM plant engineering (Azeem et al., 2023). Crop diversity application plays a significant role in growing several crops with various traits in the same location. Intercropping is also practiced overcoming the effect of various environmental stressors during the whole life span of the crop; by using this methodology, different crop genotypes can lessen the effect of biotic and abiotic stressors by providing a mixed environment that makes it harder for pests and diseases to spread (Han et al., 2023). Agricultural diversity can increase robustness by preserving agricultural genetic variation. The genetic variety that can be derived from diversity can be used to create novel crop types with improved resilience (McCouch & Rieseberg, 2023).