Articles
ADDITIONAL BENEFITS OF THE EFFICACY IN CONTAINING SOILBORNE PEST AND PATHOGENS WITH BIOFUMIGANT PLANTS AND MATERIALS
Article number
883_40
Pages
323 – 329
Language
English
Abstract
Biofumigation by Brassicaceous plant materials is a non chemical alternative for low environmental impact soil disinfestation.
The incorporation of selected Brassica plants and products containing the Glucosinolate-Myrosinase system, in addition to the significant organic matter effect, provides a natural control of some soil borne pathogens and pests such as fungi, nematodes and wireworms as shown in more than ten years of scientific and applicative experiences.
The incorporation of biofumigant materials permits a partial or total substitution of chemical fertilizers and of conventional soil disinfestation methods and materials, but determines also a series of additional benefits to the biofumigant effect that has to be considered as an important part of treatment results.
The use of 100% vegetable materials as biofumigant purpose in soil fertility management permits, in fact, a positive environmental balance (expressed as CO2 equivalents) due to the different greenhouses gases emission derived after the application of a biofumigant approach in comparison to a conventional chemical one.
Balance includes: i) assessment of inputs needed during green manure crop production and saved due to chemical fumigants and fertilizers substitution on following cultivation, and ii) carbon sink effect due to the constant biomass incorporation year after year.
With this aim it will be presented a case study of a thirteen-year experience of a biofumigant green manure application in a wheat-potato cropping system carried out at open field level in Moses Lake area (WA, USA) in which a metam-sodium treatment, conventionally applied before potato cultivation, was substituted by a Brassica juncea biofumigant green manure.
The results show how the complete replacing of chemical fumigant treatment conventionally applied in potato rotation is made possible by biofumigant green manure approach to save more than 700 kg of CO2eq for hectare in comparison to the conventional technique.
At this amount it has to be added the part of biomass that remains stable in soil organic fraction, that allowed a reduction of more than 3 t of CO2eq for hectare for every two-years crop rotation cycle, increasing organic matter content in soil.
The incorporation of selected Brassica plants and products containing the Glucosinolate-Myrosinase system, in addition to the significant organic matter effect, provides a natural control of some soil borne pathogens and pests such as fungi, nematodes and wireworms as shown in more than ten years of scientific and applicative experiences.
The incorporation of biofumigant materials permits a partial or total substitution of chemical fertilizers and of conventional soil disinfestation methods and materials, but determines also a series of additional benefits to the biofumigant effect that has to be considered as an important part of treatment results.
The use of 100% vegetable materials as biofumigant purpose in soil fertility management permits, in fact, a positive environmental balance (expressed as CO2 equivalents) due to the different greenhouses gases emission derived after the application of a biofumigant approach in comparison to a conventional chemical one.
Balance includes: i) assessment of inputs needed during green manure crop production and saved due to chemical fumigants and fertilizers substitution on following cultivation, and ii) carbon sink effect due to the constant biomass incorporation year after year.
With this aim it will be presented a case study of a thirteen-year experience of a biofumigant green manure application in a wheat-potato cropping system carried out at open field level in Moses Lake area (WA, USA) in which a metam-sodium treatment, conventionally applied before potato cultivation, was substituted by a Brassica juncea biofumigant green manure.
The results show how the complete replacing of chemical fumigant treatment conventionally applied in potato rotation is made possible by biofumigant green manure approach to save more than 700 kg of CO2eq for hectare in comparison to the conventional technique.
At this amount it has to be added the part of biomass that remains stable in soil organic fraction, that allowed a reduction of more than 3 t of CO2eq for hectare for every two-years crop rotation cycle, increasing organic matter content in soil.
Publication
Authors
L. Lazzeri, L. D’Avino, D. Gies
Keywords
biofumigation, Brassica juncea, carbon sink, greenhouse gas reduction, environmental balance, rotation
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