Simulating dynamic crop growth with an adapted land surface
model – JULES-SUCROS: Model development and validation The
increasing demand for ecosystem services, in conjunction with
climate change, is expected to significantly alter terrestrial
ecosystems. In order to evaluate the sustainability of land and
water resources, there is a need for a better understanding of
the relationships between crop production, land surface
characteristics and the energy and water cycles. These
relationships are analysed using the Joint UK Land Environment
Simulator (JULES). JULES includes the full hydrological cycle
and vegetation effects on the energy, water, and carbon fluxes.
However, this model currently only simulates land surface
processes in natural ecosystems. An adapted version of JULES for
agricultural ecosystems, called JULES-SUCROS has therefore been
developed. In addition to overall model improvements, JULES-
SUCROS includes a dynamic crop growth structure that fully fits
within and builds upon the biogeochemical