scholarly journals Summer Cover Crops and Soil Amendments to Improve Growth and Nutrient Uptake of Okra

2006 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 328-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qingren Wang ◽  
Yuncong Li ◽  
Waldemar Klassen
Keyword(s):  
Nutrient Uptake ◽  
Cover Crops ◽  
Cover Crop ◽  
Soil Amendments ◽  
Coal Ash ◽  
Organic Soil ◽  
Yard Waste ◽  
Organic Soil Amendments ◽  
Sunn Hemp ◽  
Sorghum Sudangrass

A pot experiment with summer cover crops and soil amendments was conducted in two consecutive years to elucidate the effects of these cover crops and soil amendments on `Clemson Spineless 80' okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) yields and biomass production, and the uptake and distribution of soil nutrients and trace elements. The cover crops were sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea), cowpea (Vigna unguiculata), velvetbean (Mucuna deeringiana), and sorghum sudangrass (Sorghum bicolor × S. bicolor var. sudanense) with fallow as the control. The organic soil amendments were biosolids (sediment from wastewater plants), N-Viro Soil (a mixture of biosolids and coal ash, coal ash (a combustion by-product from power plants), co-compost (a mixture of 3 biosolids: 7 yard waste), and yard waste compost (mainly from leaves and branches of trees and shrubs, and grass clippings) with a soil-incorporated cover crop as the control. As a subsequent vegetable crop, okra was grown after the cover crops, alone or together with the organic soil amendments, had been incorporated. All of the cover crops, except sorghum sudangrass in 2002-03, significantly improved okra fruit yields and the total biomass production (i.e., fruit yields were enhanced by 53% to 62% in 2002-03 and by 28% to 70% in 2003-04). Soil amendments enhanced okra fruit yields from 38.3 to 81.0 g/pot vs. 27.4 g/pot in the control in 2002-03, and from 59.9 to 124.3 g/pot vs. 52.3 g/pot in the control in 2003-04. Both cover crops and soil amendments can substantially improve nutrient uptake and distribution. Among cover crop treatments, sunn hemp showed promising improvement in concentrations of calcium (Ca), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), boron (B), and molybdenum (Mo) in fruit; magnesium (Mg), Zn, Cu, and Mo in shoots; and Mo in roots of okra. Among soil amendments, biosolids had a significant influence on most nutrients by increasing the concentrations of Zn, Cu, Fe, and Mo in the fruit; Mg, Zn, Cu, and Mo in the shoot; and Mg, Zn, and Mo in the root. Concentrations of the trace metal cadmium (Cd) were not increased significantly in either okra fruit, shoot, or root by application of these cover crops or soil amendments, but the lead (Pb) concentration was increased in the fruit by application of a high rate (205 g/pot) of biosolids. These results suggest that cover crops and appropriate amounts of soil amendments can be used to improve soil fertility and okra yield without adverse environmental effects or risk of contamination of the fruit. Further field studies will be required to confirm these findings.

Influence of cover crops and soil amendments on okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L.) production and soil nematodes

2007 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qingren Wang ◽  
Yuncong Li ◽  
Waldemar Klassen ◽  
Zafar Handoo
Keyword(s):  
Cover Crops ◽  
Cover Crop ◽  
Soil Amendments ◽  
Organic Amendments ◽  
Coal Ash ◽  
Abelmoschus Esculentus ◽  
Subtropical Region ◽  
Root Knot Nematodes ◽  
Sunn Hemp ◽  
Sorghum Sudangrass

AbstractA pot experiment to determine the effects of summer cover crops and soil amendments on okra yields and population densities of various soil nematode taxa was conducted in two consecutive growing seasons in a subtropical region. Two cover crops, sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea) and sorghum sudangrass (Sorghum bicolor×S. bicolor var. sudanense), were grown and returned to the soil with fallow as a control. As soon as these cover crops were harvested, they were soil-incorporated together with one of several organic amendments. These organic amendments were biosolids, N-Viro soil (a 1:1 mixture of coal ash and biosolids), coal ash, co-compost (a 3:7 mixture of biosolids and yard wastes), and yard waste compost compared with a control (no additional amendment). Other treatments were fumigation with MC-33 (a mixture of 33% of methyl bromide and 67% of chloropicrin) and cover crop removal (harvested and removed cover crops and their residues from the soil). A nematode-susceptible vegetable crop, okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L.), was grown under these treatments. Among organic amendments, the application of biosolids produced the highest okra yield and biomass, and greatly suppressed root-knot nematodes, Meloidogyne incognita, in the soil. Between these two cover crops, sunn hemp was superior to sorghum sudangrass in improving okra production and in suppressing root-knot nematodes. The result indicates that growing sunn hemp as a cover crop and applying certain organic amendments can improve okra production and suppress root-knot nematodes, which are very damaging to okra plants. Such combined practices show a significant potential for application in organic farming and sustainable agriculture systems in a tropical or subtropical region.

scholarly journals Weed Suppression, Nitrogen Availability, and Cabbage Production Following Sunn Hemp or Sorghum-sudangrass

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Thierry E. Besançon ◽  
Maggie H. Wasacz ◽  
Joseph R. Heckman
Keyword(s):  
Cover Crops ◽  
Cover Crop ◽  
Weed Suppression ◽  
N Availability ◽  
Weed Species ◽  
Common Lambsquarters ◽  
Dry Biomass ◽  
Sunn Hemp ◽  
Sorghum Sudangrass ◽  
Smooth Pigweed

Cover crops included in a crop rotation can help increase nitrogen (N) availability to subsequent crops, raise soil organic matter, and suppress emergence and growth of various weed species. However, weed suppression by cover crops has mostly been investigated shortly after cover crop termination and not over a longer period spanning into the next cropping season. The effects of sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea) and sorghum-sudangrass (Sorghum ×drummondi) planted the previous year on N availability before transplanting of late summer cabbage (Brassica oleracea), weed germination and growth, and cabbage yield was examined in field studies conducted in 2018 and 2019 at Pittstown, NJ. Results established that there was little evidence for a functional difference in soil N availability for fall cabbage production because of previous cover crop type. Heavy rainfall events both years may have caused major losses of available N that might otherwise be expected to come from N mineralization of residues of legume cover crop like sunn hemp. During the cover crop season, smooth pigweed (Amaranthus hybridus) and common lambsquarters (Chenopodium album) dry biomass was 77% and 82% lower, respectively, in sorghum-sudangrass compared with sunn hemp plots. The subsequent season following sorghum-sudangrass cover crop, dry biomass of broadleaf weeds was lower by 74% and 56% in June and July, respectively, compared with preceding sunn hemp. Smooth pigweed, common lambsquarters, and hairy galinsoga (Galinsoga quadriradiata) were the weed species most consistently affected by preceding sorghum-sudangrass cover crop with biomass decreased by up to 80%, 78%, and 64%, respectively. Thus, it appears that sorghum-sudangrass can provide suppression of some broadleaf species over a relatively long period and is indicative of sorghum-sudangrass allelopathic activity. On the contrary, density and biomass of grassy weeds as well as commercial yield of transplanted cabbage were unaffected by the preceding cover crop. These results suggest that sorghum-sudangrass cover crop could be integrated to transplanted cole crop rotation for providing weed suppression benefits without altering crop yield in New Jersey organic vegetable cropping systems.

scholarly journals Areawide management of fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), using selected cover crop plants

2022 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert L. Meagher ◽  
Rodney N. Nagoshi ◽  
Shelby J. Fleischer ◽  
John K. Westbrook ◽  
David L. Wright ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spodoptera Frugiperda ◽  
Cover Crops ◽  
Cover Crop ◽  
Field Experiments ◽  
Fall Armyworm ◽  
Crop Plants ◽  
Larval Feeding ◽  
Vegetable Crops ◽  
Sunn Hemp ◽  
Sorghum Sudangrass

Abstract Background Fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith) is a migratory moth that annually migrates northward each spring from sites in southern Florida and southern Texas. This caterpillar pest feeds on and damages row, turf and vegetable crops in the eastern and central U.S. Before migrating in spring, it feeds on cover crops in central and eastern Florida and expands its populations. Our objective was to use multi-year studies to compare fall armyworm populations that develop in cover crop plants. Methods A series of field experiments and a laboratory feeding study were conducted to compare infestation and feeding and of fall armyworm on different cover crop plants. Field experiments had plots planted with corn (Zea mays L.), sorghum-sudangrass [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench], a standard cover crop in Florida, and two alternative cover crops, sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea L.) and cowpea [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walpers spp. unguiculata]. Another trial compared populations in sorghum-sudangrass and in mixtures of sorghum-sudangrass with buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum Moench) or pearl millet (Cenchrus americanus (L.) Morrone). Fall armyworm larvae were fed and allowed to develop on different sunn hemp germplasm in a laboratory trial. Results Field populations of fall armyworm were highest on corn, followed by sorghum-sudangrass. Sunn hemp and cowpea had larval populations 70–96% less than on sorghum-sudangrass, suggesting replacement of this cover crop with either plant species might help reduce areawide populations of resident or migratory fall armyworm. Larvae collected from cover crop plots had parasitism levels that averaged 30%, with Chelonus insularis (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) emerging as the most commonly-collected species. Larval feeding on different sunn hemp germplasm lines resulted in no difference in weight gain. Conclusions Replacing sorghum-sudangrass with sunn hemp varieties or germplasm should be acceptable as a replacement cover crop for areawide management of fall armyworm.

Host suitability of summer cover crops to Meloidogyne arenaria, M. enterolobii, M. incognita and M. javanica

Nematology ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Hung X. Bui ◽  
Johan A. Desaeger
Keyword(s):  
Cover Crops ◽  
Nematode Species ◽  
Host Suitability ◽  
Parasitic Nematodes ◽  
Plant Parasitic Nematodes ◽  
Root Knot Nematode ◽  
Sunn Hemp ◽  
Host Status ◽  
Susceptible Control ◽  
Sorghum Sudangrass

Summary Cover crops can be a useful tool for managing plant-parasitic nematodes provided they are poor or non-hosts for the target nematode species. A glasshouse experiment was done to determine the host status of four common cover crops in Florida, sunn hemp, cowpea, sorghum sudangrass and sunflower, to pure populations of four common tropical root-knot nematode (RKN) species Meloidogyne javanica (Mj), M. incognita (Mi), M. enterolobii (Me) and M. arenaria (Ma). Tomato was included as a susceptible control. Eight weeks after nematode inoculation (WAI), tomato showed the highest root gall damage for all tested RKN species, with gall indices (GI) between 7 (Ma) and 8.5 (Me) and reproduction factor (RF) ranging from 20 (Ma) to 50 (Mj). No visible root galls were observed for any of the RKN species on sunn hemp and sorghum sudangrass at 8 WAI. However, Mj and Mi were able to reproduce slightly on sorghum sudangrass (RF = 0.02 and 0.79, respectively). Sunflower and cowpea were infected by all four tested RKN species, but host suitability varied. Sunflower root galling ranged from 1.1 (Me) to 4.5 (Mj) and RF = 3.2 (Me) to 28.7 (Mj), while cowpea root galling ranged from 0.6 (Mi) to 5.1 (Me) and RF = 0.8 (Mi) to 67.3 (Mj). Sunn hemp and, to a lesser extent, sorghum sudangrass were poor hosts to all four tested RKN species. Sunflower was a good host to all RKN species, but root gall damage and RF were lowest for Me. Cowpea was a good host to Mj, Me and Ma, but a poor host to Mi. Our results confirm and stress the importance of RKN species identification when selecting cover crops as an RKN management strategy.

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