engleski

Organic soil mulching impacts on lettuce agronomic traits

Application of undegradable polyethylene (PE) mulches ensures higher yield and earlier harvest in conventional production of lettuce and some kinds of vegetables. Use of polymer materials, however, increases inputs into production and poses a serious environmental pollution problem. Different organic surpluses – residues from the processing industry and agricultural production are singled out as alternative, promising mulching materials for vegetable crops. The research goal was to determine the effect of degradable organic mulches on agronomic traits of iceberg lettuce. Field trials with organic mulches (hay, straw, chopped up maize cobs and stalks), white/black PE-mulch, paper and uncovered soil were conducted in the continental climate zone of Croatia, in the spring-summer and summer-autumn growing periods of 2006. Daily fluctuations of air (5 cm above ground) and soil (10 cm depth) temperatures were monitored in each treatment throughout the lettuce growing period. Yield components were analyzed at harvest that is head biomass, number, mass, diameter and height of marketable heads, and were used to calculate marketable yield. The studied parameters of lettuce grown on PE-film and paper were in the rank of statistically highest values in both growing periods. Hence, a possible alternative to PE-film is paper mulch, while chopped up stalks and straw are promising organic mulches.

organic degradable mulch; PE-film; soil temperature; Lactuca sativa L.; yield components

Rad je prezentiran na skupu 'VII. Alps-Adria Scientific Workshop' održanom od 28.04.-03.05.2008. u Stara Lesna, Slovačka.