SUSTAINABLE APRICOT ORCHARD MANAGEMENT TO IMPROVE SOIL FERTILITY AND WATER USE EFFICIENCY

This 4-year on-farm study reports the effects of different agricultural practices on yield and carbon input in an apricot orchard grown in Mediterranean area.
Groups of plants under local orchard management (L_OM) practices (i.e., soil tillage, removing of pruning residues, mineral fertilisers) were compared with plots under sustainable orchard management (S_OM) actions (i.e., cover crop, no-tillage, compost application, mulching of pruning residues). In the S_OM blocks, fertilization was based on plant demand and soil availability and irrigation volumes were calculated on the evapotranspiration values basis, while in the L_OM plots fertilization and irrigation were empirically managed.
Results show that yield was enhanced by 28% by S_OM. In comparison with L_OM plots, changed practices increased the amount of N, P, K annually incorporated into soil thus increasing their reservoir in the soil.
The study demonstrates that appropriate crop management can increase the mean annual carbon soil inputs from about 1.5 t ha^-1 to 9.0 t ha^-1 per year.

XIV International Symposium on Apricot Breeding and Culture

C. Xiloyannis, B. Dichio, G. Montanaro

crop residues, land use, organic matter, soil carbon input, SOC, Mediterranean soil

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2010.862.64