A global dataset gathering 37 field experiments involving cereal-legume intercrops and their corresponding sole crops.

The overall description of the dataset is reported in the data_report.pdf file. The methodology for data curation and tidying is published in Peer Community Journal (Mahmoud2024).

This dataset gathers the results of 37 field experiments, which involved cereal-legume intercrops and their corresponding sole crops. The field experiments were carried in 5 European countries (France, Denmark, Italy, Germany and England) from 2001 to 2017. The dataset includes:

• 5 legume species , i.e. chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), faba bean (Vicia faba L.), lentil (Lens culinaris Med.), lupin (Lupinus albus L.) and pea (Pisum sativum L.),
• 3 cereal species, i.e. barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L.) and soft wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), 
• 8 resulting intercrops, i.e. i) barley associated with faba bean, lupin or pea, ii) durum wheat associated with chickpea, faba bean or pea, and iii) soft wheat associated with lentil or pea. 

In total, the dataset contains 299 sole crop and 308 intercrop experimental units, one given experimental unit being defined as the unique combination of {site, year, crop management}, with the crop management including species and cultivar choice as well as agricultural interventions (sowing conditions, inputs).

The global dataset includes four tables, all sharing a common identifier (experiment_id):

• data_trials.csv: the global features describing the experimental sites,
• data_management.csv: the agricultural management actions carried out on each of the experimental sites,
• data_traits.csv: measured plant and crop characteristics,
• data_climate.csv: climate for the experimental sites, retrieved from NASA POWER API.

Additionally, a metadata file is provided (metadata.xlsx), describing the table to which the variables belong (variable_type, i.e. trials, management, traits or climate), their name (variable_name), their significance (description) and their unit (unit). Finally, a table including the original references related to experimental files gathered (references.xlsx) is also provided.

Data providers and field experiments: Laurent Bedoussac, Eric Justes, Etienne-Pascal Jour- net, Christophe Naudin, Henrik Hauggaard-Nielsen, Erik Steen Jensen, Elise Pelzer, Guénaëlle Corre-Hellou, Bochra Kammoun, Loic Viguier, Romain Barillot, Antoine Couëdel, Philippe Hinsinger

Database and management: Noémie Gaudio, Rémi Mahmoud, Pierre Casadebaig