scholarly journals USE OF OF BLACK PLASTIC MULCH AND ROW COVERS AS A METHOD OF INDUCING RESISTANCE OF LEAF SPOT DISEASES OF VEGETABLES

HortScience ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 271A-271
Author(s):  
C. Stevens ◽  
V.A. Khan ◽  
M.A. Wilson ◽  
D. Ploper ◽  
P. Backman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Leaf Spot ◽  
Early Blight ◽  
Bare Soil ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
New Yorker ◽  
Row Covers ◽  
Plant Grown ◽  
Clear Plastic ◽  
Black Plastic ◽  
New Crop

The application of plastic mulches, row cover or a combination of the two were evaluated from 1987 to 1991 for reducing early blight of tomatoes and Alternaria leaf spot of okra. Early blight on early season tomatoes (TU-80-130, New Yorker and Floradade) was significantly reduced by the application of black plastic mulch (BM) or BM plus spunbonded polyester row cover (RC) compared to bare soil. Early blight evaluation of late season tomato (Better Boy) showed that BM significantly reduced the incidence and number of lesions per leaf on the fruit clusters compared to bare soil, but the spunbonded polyester RC treatment didn't improve disease reduction of the BM. Alternaria 14 spot of Clemson Spineless okra in 1989 was severe on plant grown in bare soil compared to those grown on BM, BM plus VisPore row cover, clear plastic mulch (CM) and CM plus VisPore RC treatments. These soldier indicted that the application of agriplastic techniques could be used as a new crop management option in an IPM program to reduce the application of foliar fungicides or application of biological control agents.

Effect of plastic mulch and row covers on photosynthesis and yield of watermelon

2005 ◽  
Vol 45 (12) ◽  
pp. 1653 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Ibarra-Jiménez ◽  
J. Munguía-López ◽  
A. J. Lozano-del Río ◽  
A. Zermeño-González
Keyword(s):  
Total Yield ◽  
Net Photosynthesis ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Bare Soil ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Row Covers ◽  
Number Of Leaves ◽  
Clear Plastic ◽  
Black Plastic ◽  
Growing Conditions

The effect of row covers on watermelon (Citrullus vulgaris) grown on plastic mulch is well documented. However, row covers have not been adequately evaluated under Mexican growing conditions. Watermelon plants were grown on plastic mulch alone or with row covers to study their effect on photosynthesis, and early and total yields. Treatments were clear plastic mulch (C); black plastic mulch (B); B plus a Vispore cover of polypropylene (BV); B plus a white cover of perforated polyethylene (BW); B plus a clear cover of perforated polyethylene (BC); B plus an Agribon cover of polypropylene (BA); and bare soil as the control. For plants grown in treatment C, B or B combined with row covers, plant dry weight and number of leaves 40 days after seeding (DAS) were higher than the control (P<0.05), except BC which was comparable to the control. Total yields of treatments C, B, BV, BW and BA differed (P<0.05) from BC and the control. Total yields increased by 46.1, 43.2, 35.7, 41.6, 13.3, 15.4 and 35.8 t/ha for the C, B, BV, BW, BC and BA treatments, respectively, over the control, which yielded 27.1 t/ha. Total yield was highest for the C and the B treatment suggesting that there was no need for additional covers. The number of leaves per plant or dry weight per plant better explains the changes in yield than net photosynthesis rate. Stomatal conductance was explained in part by changes in photosynthesis.

The effect of plastic mulch and row covers on the growth and physiology of cucumber

2004 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 91 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Ibarra-Jiménez ◽  
M. R. Quezada-Martín ◽  
M. de la Rosa-Ibarra
Keyword(s):  
Block Design ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Bare Soil ◽  
Physiological Changes ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Yield Increase ◽  
Row Covers ◽  
Black Plastic ◽  
Whole Plants ◽  
Polyethylene Mulch

To determine the effectiveness of black plastic mulch alone and in combination with row covers, on growth and physiological changes of cucumber plants, 6 treatments were established in a randomised complete block design with 4 replications: bare soil (control); black polyethylene mulch alone (B); B plus a clear cover of perforated polyethylene (BRCP); B plus a white cover of perforated polyethylene (BRWP); B plus an Agribon cover of polypropylene (BRA); and B plus a Kimberly farm row cover (BRK). For the plants grown with mulch or mulch combined with row covers, the dry weight of leaves 50 days after seeding (DAS), and the dry weight of whole plants (at 50 and 110 DAS) were significantly (P<0.05) different from the control. Early yields of treatments B, BRCP, BRWP, BRA and BRK were 2.1, 1.9, 2.6, 1.9 and 2.4 times higher than the control, which yielded 10 t/ha. Total yields were increased by 9.7, 15.4, 19.8, 14.9 and 20 t/ha, over the control which yielded 104 t/ha. Increases in plant dry weight explained the changes in yield. Stomatal conductance may explain in part, the increase in photosynthetic rate, but may not explain yield increase.

scholarly journals Effects of Mulch Type and Planting Date on Tomato Earliness within a High Tunnel

HortScience ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 867A-867
Author(s):  
Lewis Jett* ◽  
Andrew Read
Keyword(s):  
Great Plains ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Marketable Yield ◽  
Tomato Production ◽  
High Tunnel ◽  
Row Covers ◽  
High Tunnels ◽  
Clear Plastic ◽  
Black Plastic ◽  
Growing Conditions

High tunnels are passive solar greenhouses that are used to extend the traditional growing season for many horticulture crops. Growing conditions within a high tunnel are significantly different from growing conditions encountered in field production. Tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) are wells suited for high tunnel culture having an upright growth habit and a significant economic premium for precocious harvest. The objective of this research was to investigate three planting dates (15 Mar., 30 Mar., and 10 Apr.) and three mulch types (black plastic, bareground, and clear plastic) with or without row covers, for early tomato production within a high tunnel in the Central Great Plains. High tunnels increased the average daily temperature by ≈6 °C. Early planting (i.e., mid- to late March) resulted in significantly earlier yield (i.e., early July). Using clear plastic mulch increased total marketable yield, but was not significantly different from black plastic. Row covers and plastic mulch are necessary for early tomato production. Row covers are specifically necessary for frost protection, but can be removed when the risk of frost has decreased.

scholarly journals Reduction of Tomato Early Blight by Combining Soil Solarization and Biological Control Strategies

HortScience ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 600F-601
Author(s):  
C. Stevens ◽  
V.A. Khan ◽  
L.D. Ploper ◽  
P. Backman ◽  
R. Rodriguez-Kabana ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Early Blight ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Bare Soil ◽  
Combined Treatments ◽  
Row Covers ◽  
Biological Treatments ◽  
Foliar Treatment ◽  
Black Plastic ◽  
Commercial Fungicide ◽  
Low Rate

Combinations of solarized soil (SBS), bare soil control (BS), black plastic mulched soil (BM), row cover (RC), fungicide (chlorothalonil) and biological treatments (Bacillus cereus) were evaluated. SBS vs. BS treatments were main plots, mulch and row covers splitplots and foliage treatments split-splitplots. Application of either foliar treatment was superior to BS. Using a 1/2 rate of fungicide on plants from solarized soil treatments showed equal or comparable reduction of the disease when compared to tomatoes grown in BS with high rates of the fungicide. Combined treatments of solarized + BM, BM with or without RC and low rate of fungicide or biological agent, were the most effective when compared to BS + fungicide, indicating that integration of plasticulture and biological strategies can reduce early blight below the levels of commercial fungicide applied to tomatoes grown on BS.

scholarly journals Aluminum Foil, Aluminium-painted, Plastic, and Degradable Mulches Increase Yields and Decrease Insectvectored Viral Diseases of Vegetables

2003 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 276-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lane Greer ◽  
John M. Dole
Keyword(s):  
Crop Yields ◽  
Insect Pests ◽  
Aluminum Foil ◽  
Bare Soil ◽  
Early Spring ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Weed Growth ◽  
Clear Plastic ◽  
Black Plastic ◽  
And Control

For decades, vegetable growers have used black polyethylene mulch to warm the soil in early spring, reduce weeds, and conserve soil moisture. Use of plastic mulch can increase crop yields and improve fruit quality. This article reviews research performed with plastic, aluminum foil, aluminum-painted, and degradable mulches. Most research focused on the effects of plastic mulches on insects and viruses they vector, and on yields. Aluminum foil and aluminum-painted mulches are effective at repelling insect pests, especially aphids (Aphididae) and thrips (Thripidae). Yields are often higher with black plastic compared to bare ground. Clear plastic is rarely used in the U.S. because it can encourage weed growth, unless a herbicide or fumigant is used underneath. Colored mulches can increase yields and control pests, but color may be less important than brightness of the mulch or contrast with bare soil. New forms of photodegradable mulches eliminate the need to remove and dispose of plastic at the end of the growing season, but have not been widely adapted because they tend to degrade prematurely.

scholarly journals The Effects of Colored Plastic Mulches and Row Covers on the Growth and Yield of Okra

2010 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 224-233 ◽  
Author(s):  
Garry G. Gordon ◽  
Wheeler G. Foshee ◽  
Stewart T. Reed ◽  
James E. Brown ◽  
Edgar L. Vinson
Keyword(s):  
Sandy Loam ◽  
Total Yield ◽  
Bare Soil ◽  
Leafy Vegetables ◽  
Growth And Yield ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Row Covers ◽  
Air Temperatures ◽  
Soil Temperatures ◽  
Black Plastic

Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus ‘Clemson Spineless’) was grown on an Orangeburg sandy loam soil in Shorter, AL. Okra was direct-seeded in single rows. Treatments consisted of five mulch colors: black, white, red, silver, and blue installed either with or without spun-bonded row cover. Soil temperatures were 4 to 7 °C lower than air temperatures in all treatments. The use of darker (black, blue, red) -colored plastic mulches increased early and total yield of okra compared with bare soil with and without row cover. Increased soil and air temperatures did not always correlate to an increase in yield. It can be concluded that the use of dark plastic mulch is advantageous to growers of okra in climates that do not have cool springs, but the added use of row covers to plastic mulch has no effect on growth and yield. The profit of marketable okra produced using a row cover was $1.37 versus $1.35 per pound without a cover in 2003 and $1.28 versus $1.29 per pound in 2004. Blue plastic mulch is ≈$0.08 per foot more expensive than black plastic. Our data do not show an economic advantage for blue over black mulch for okra, but the positive effect cited by other authors may be more pronounced with leafy vegetables.

scholarly journals Effect of Plastic Mulch, Floating Rowcovers, and Microtunnels on Insect Populations and Yield of Muskmelon

HortScience ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 677b-677 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Farias-Larios ◽  
M. Orozco ◽  
S. Guzman ◽  
J. Perez
Keyword(s):  
Bare Soil ◽  
Growth And Yield ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Western Mexico ◽  
National Quality ◽  
Tropical Conditions ◽  
Insect Populations ◽  
Clear Plastic ◽  
Black Plastic ◽  
Marketable Fruit

This work was conducted for evaluate the influence of clear and black polyethylene mulches, used alone or combined with floating rowcover (FRC) and plastic perforated microtunnels, on insect populations, growth and yield of muskmelon. Treatments evaluated were 1) clear plastic + FRC, 2) polyethylene perforated microtunnel, 3) clear plastic + polyethylene not perforated microtunnel, 4) black plastic + FRC, 5) clear plastic, 6) black polyethylene, 7) clear plastic + oil, and 8) bare soil. Aphids and sweetpotato whitefly adults and nymphs were completely excluded by floating rowcovers while the plots covered. The export and national quality fruit yield was major in the mulched beds in relation to control. Clear polyethylene mulch + FRC increased number of fruit and export marketable fruit of cantaloupe (45.2% and 44.8%) with respect to black plastic + FRC, respectively. It is proposed that, under tropical conditions and under high insect stress, mulches combined with floating rowcovers should be selected for their effects on insects in addition to their effects on melon yield. Polyethylene microtunnels were found not economical for cantaloupe production in western Mexico.

scholarly journals CULTURAL MODIFICATION TECHNIQUES FOR ALLEVIATION OF HEAT STRESS IN BELL PEPPERS

HortScience ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 27 (6) ◽  
pp. 681e-681
Author(s):  
B.W. Roberts ◽  
Jeff Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Heat Stress ◽  
Bare Soil ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Black And White ◽  
Row Covers ◽  
Yield Parameters ◽  
Bell Peppers ◽  
Soil Temperatures ◽  
Black Plastic ◽  
Cultural Modification

Bell pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) was grown in 1989, 1990, and 1991. Cultural modifications were used in an effort to alleviate heat stress, improve fruit set, reduce sunscald, and improve yield quantity and quality. Treatments included bare soil, plastic mulch (both black and white), straw mulch, living rye (Secale cereale) mulch, and row covers (white and black) suspended above the foliage. Soil temperature at 2.5, 10, and 20 cm, soil moisture at 20 cm, and yield parameters were recorded. In general, plots containing white rowcovers produced good yields each year, straw mulched plots produced good yields two out of three years, plots with black plastic mulch gave poor yields two out of three years, and plots with living rye gave consistently poor yields. Yield inconsistency from year to year was correlated with, and can be explained by, soil temperatures. Sunscald was reduced by rowcovers.

scholarly journals Mulches for yacon cultivation

2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 389-394
Author(s):  
Fabio Luiz Oliveira ◽  
Cristiano Henrique P Venturim ◽  
Diego Mathias N Silva ◽  
Mateus Augusto L Quaresma ◽  
Leandro P Dalvi
Keyword(s):  
Block Design ◽  
Bare Soil ◽  
Good Alternative ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Coffee Husk ◽  
Corn Husk ◽  
Randomized Complete Block Design ◽  
Total Productivity ◽  
Black Plastic ◽  
Commercial Yield

ABSTRACT In Brazil, studies on commercial exploitation of yacon are still scarce. A growing interest in this vegetable has demanded some researches on this crop cultivation management, though. Considering that yacon has a long cycle, which exposes the soil, studies on mulch management will be of great value. We used a randomized complete block design, with five replicates, under different soil mulches for yacon cultivation: two plastic film covers (black and double-sided), four mulches (corn husk, coffee husk in three levels), and the control (bare soil). Plastic mulch can be used for yacon cultivation, considering that the double sided plastic provides greater production of total roots; however, the same yield of the most valued roots was obtained using black plastic. The second highest total productivity and the highest commercial yield in the most valued root classes were obtained using 50 L m-² of coffee husk as mulch, representing a good alternative for farmers.

scholarly journals Weed Suppression in Pumpkin by Mulches Composed of Organic Municipal Waste Materials

HortScience ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 51 (6) ◽  
pp. 720-726 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caitlin E. Splawski ◽  
Emilie E. Regnier ◽  
S. Kent Harrison ◽  
Mark A. Bennett ◽  
James D. Metzger
Keyword(s):  
Soil Temperature ◽  
Bare Soil ◽  
Weed Suppression ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Soil Conditions ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Weed Biomass ◽  
Squash Bug ◽  
Black Plastic

Field studies were conducted in 2011 and 2012 to compare mulch treatments of shredded newspaper, a combination of shredded newspaper plus turfgrass clippings (NP + grass), hardwood bark chips, black polyethylene plastic, and bare soil on weeds, insects, soil moisture, and soil temperature in pumpkins. Newspaper mulch or black plastic reduced total weed biomass ≥90%, and woodchip or NP + grass mulch each reduced total weed biomass 78% compared with bare soil under high rainfall conditions in 2011. In 2012, under low rainfall, all mulches reduced weed biomass 97% or more compared with bare soil. In both years, all mulches resulted in higher squash bug infestations than bare soil. The woodchip, newspaper, and NP + grass mulches retained higher soil moistures than bare soil or black plastic over the course of each growing season, and the woodchip and NP + grass mulches caused greatest fluctuations in soil temperature. Pumpkin yields were abnormally low in 2011 and did not differ among treatments. In 2012, all mulches produced greater total marketable pumpkin fruit weights compared with bare soil, but only black plastic, newspaper, and NP + grass mulches resulted in greater total numbers of marketable pumpkins. Overall results indicate that shredded newspaper or NP + grass mulches may be useful for organic and/or small-scale urban crop producers as sustainable alternatives to black plastic mulch; however, their weed suppression efficacy may require higher application rates with increasing moisture conditions, and they may require greater squash bug control measures than under bare soil conditions.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document