Agricultural sciences in transition from 1800 to 2020: Exploring knowledge and creating impact

• Developments and transitions in agricultural research from 1800 to 2020.
• Evolution of new concepts on plant nutrition in the 19th century.
• New discoveries in genetics, plant breeding and crop improvement.
• Crop modelling, resource use and closing the yield gap interfaces between science and society.

Transitions in agricultural sciences are brought about by incorporating new findings and insights emerging from biological, chemical and biophysical sciences, by more advanced ways of experimentation and last but not least by quantitative methods and models for data analyses and processing. Major breakthroughs occurred from 1800 onwards when new insights on photosynthesis and mineral nutrition were incorporated in the theory on the growth of crops. It took almost half a century before the humus theory was replaced by a more sound theory on mineral nutrition. The publication by Darwin on domestication in 1868 and the rediscovery of Mendel's laws in 1900 gave a boost to genetics underlying classical plant and animal breeding, which was mainly based on crossing and selection. A major accomplishment of the evolutionary synthesis was the compatibility of Mendelian inheritance with Darwinian natural selection. The discovery of the DNA-structure in the mid-fifties of the 20th century on modern plant breeding showed already impact within some decades. To assess the wide diversity of plant traits for the performance of plants in yield and quality of the produce advanced phenotyping method under controlled conditions has become popular. Genome-wide selection for environments with multiple stresses, however, does require phenotyping in situ. Since 1800 the transition from observations on the plant, field and farm towards dedicated experimentation took place. During the 19th and 20th century the methods for experimentation and data analyses were strongly improved. It took until the mid-20th century before the importance of experiments under controlled conditions was recognized. Studies of plant processes under controlled conditions provided the building blocks for mechanistic modelling of crop growth and production. A systems approach combining knowledge at different scales and incorporating cutting-edge findings from the basic sciences into applied sciences will become important for making a great leap forward in developing agricultural science with impact. Transitions in agricultural research will continue to depend on progress made in the related basic sciences and the capacity for agricultural research and innovation. Therefore, an adequate public funding is required to maintain or even accelerate progress in sciences. This requires the support of the public at large. Public–private partnerships will be needed to bridge the gap between science and innovation.