Crop Science & Agronomy
How field crops grow, yield and respond to management, weather and stress.
Crop science and agronomy study how field crops - cereals, oilseeds, legumes, root and tuber crops, fiber and sugar crops, forages - grow and produce yield, and how that is shaped by management decisions such as sowing date, plant density, crop rotation and intercropping.
A large part of the discipline is crop physiology: how plants respond to drought, heat, waterlogging, salinity or rising atmospheric CO2, and which traits and practices keep yields stable under those conditions.
Typical research questions
- Which management practices close the gap between actual and attainable yield?
- How do crops respond physiologically to drought and heat stress?
- When do intercropping and diversified rotations outperform monocultures?
- How should forage and grassland systems be managed for yield and persistence?
Publications per year
Papers whose main topic belongs to this field, 2010–2025.
Research fronts: fastest-growing topics
Papers 2024–2025 compared with 2021–2022, topics with at least 500 recent papers.
| Topic | 2021–2022 | 2024–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pasture and Agricultural SystemsPerennial Pastures · Grazing Management · Water Use Efficiency · Drought Survival | 649 | 1,135 | +75% |
| Plant Growth Enhancement TechniquesBiostimulants · Plant Growth · Seaweed Extracts · Humic Substances | 2,946 | 4,763 | +62% |
| Cocoa and Sweet Potato AgronomyCacao · Agroforestry · Biodiversity Conservation · Climate Change Resilience | 1,640 | 2,551 | +56% |
| Crop Yield and Soil FertilityMaize Yield · Nitrogen Uptake · Plant Density · Lodging Resistance | 6,050 | 8,961 | +48% |
| Sesame and Sesamin ResearchSesame · Antioxidant · Lignans · Nutraceutical | 1,006 | 1,314 | +31% |
| Leaf Properties and Growth MeasurementLeaf Area · Estimation · Non-destructive · Digital Image Analysis | 2,122 | 2,657 | +25% |
Largest topics
By number of papers 2024–2025.
- Crop Yield and Soil FertilityMaize Yield · Nitrogen Uptake · Plant Density · Lodging Resistance 8,961
- Plant Stress Responses and ToleranceReactive Oxygen Species · Antioxidants · Abiotic Stress · Signal Transduction 6,729
- Rice Cultivation and Yield ImprovementRice · Water Management · Drought Resistance · Yield Potential 6,561
- Potato Plant ResearchAcrylamide · Maillard Reaction · Carcinogen · Potato 5,107
- Plant Growth Enhancement TechniquesBiostimulants · Plant Growth · Seaweed Extracts · Humic Substances 4,763
- Agronomic Practices and Intercropping SystemsIntercropping · Agricultural Productivity · Soil Nutrient Management · Crop Diversity 4,604
Highly cited recent papers
Most-cited articles and reviews published 2024–2025. Citation counts favor reviews and papers published early in the window.
- Utilization of Differently Processed Sesame Seed Meal as a Source of Methionine in Guinea Fowls Diets
- Complex plant responses to drought and heat stress under climate change
- Impacts of Drought on Photosynthesis in Major Food Crops and the Related Mechanisms of Plant Responses to Drought
- Antioxidant Defense System in Plants: Reactive Oxygen Species Production, Signaling, and Scavenging During Abiotic Stress-Induced Oxidative Damage
- Drought Tolerance in Plants: Physiological and Molecular Responses
- Regulatory networks in plant responses to drought and cold stress
Study programs in this field
- Plant Sciences Master Wageningen University & Research · Netherlands Taught in English
- Agriculture Master University of Copenhagen · Denmark Taught in English
- Agrarwissenschaften (Agricultural Sciences) Master University of Göttingen · Germany Taught in German
- Agricultural Sciences Master ETH Zurich · Switzerland Taught in English
- Agricultural Sciences and Technologies Master University of Bologna · Italy
- International Agricultural Development Bachelor University of California, Davis · United States Taught in English
- Integrative Plant Science (MPS) Master Cornell University · United States Taught in English
- Plant and Environmental Soil Science Bachelor Texas A&M University · United States Taught in English
- Bachelor of Science in Agriculture Bachelor University of Guelph · Canada Taught in English
- Engenharia Agronômica (Agronomic Engineering) Bachelor Universidade de São Paulo · Brazil Taught in Portuguese
- Agronomia (Agronomy) Bachelor Universidade Federal de Viçosa · Brazil Taught in Portuguese
- Agronomy and Horticulture Bachelor IPB University · Indonesia
- Bachelor of Agricultural Science Bachelor Universiti Putra Malaysia · Malaysia
- Bachelor of Agricultural Science Bachelor The University of Queensland · Australia Taught in English
- Master of Agricultural Science Master The University of Queensland · Australia Taught in English
- Master of Agricultural Sciences Master The University of Melbourne · Australia Taught in English