Mulch Effects on Floral Resources and Fruit Production of Squash, and on Pollination and Nesting by Squash Bees

Zucchini squash (Cucurbita pepo) has a high pollination demand, and the native, ground-nesting squash bee (Peponapis pruinosa) provides the majority of the crop’s pollination requirement in some environments. Squash bees nest directly in crop fields, and nests can be disturbed by tillage and other management operations. Mulches that use municipal waste materials may provide a weed control strategy for squash plantings that is more benign to squash bees than cultivation. Field and greenhouse studies were conducted in 2011 and 2012 to compare the effects of nontillage weed control methods including polyethylene black plastic, woodchips, shredded newspaper, a combination of shredded newspaper plus grass clippings (NP + grass), and bare soil (control) on soil characteristics, squash pollination and fruit production, and squash bee nesting. Woodchips, shredded newspaper, and NP + grass mulch decreased soil temperature, while soils beneath newspaper mulch retained more moisture. Unmarketable, misshapen fruit occurred more frequently in plastic than in the other mulch treatments. No measurable differences in floral resource production or crop pollination were found among treatments, suggesting that misshapen fruit resulted from high soil temperatures in black plastic plots rather than poor pollinator attraction. Squash bee nests were located within bare soil, newspaper, and NP + grass plots, indicating that these mulches did not prevent nesting. NP + grass mulch had a positive effect on plant growth and fruit production, possibly from an addition of plant-available nitrogen or the presence of preferable nesting ground. Shredded newspaper when combined with grass clippings performed as an effective mulch material that improved crop performance with no apparent negative impacts on squash bee nesting or on squash floral resources and pollination.

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Floral resource use and interactions between Apis mellifera and native bees in cucurbit crops in Yucatán, México

The Canadian Entomologist ◽

10.4039/n04-043 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 137 (4) ◽

pp. 441-449 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Miguel Angel Pinkus-Rendon ◽

Víctor Parra-Tabla ◽

Virginia Meléndez-Ramírez

Keyword(s):

Apis Mellifera ◽

Resource Use ◽

Interspecific Interactions ◽

Citrullus Lanatus ◽

Niche Overlap ◽

Fruit Production ◽

Floral Resources ◽

Native Bees ◽

Native Bee ◽

Floral Resource

AbstractDespite the importance of native pollinators in agricultural systems, little is known about the potential competitive interactions among them or the way they exploit crops' floral resources. This study determines the temporal use of floral resources by, and interspecific interactions between, native bees and Apis mellifera L. (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in experimental plots of squash, Cucurbita moschata (Duchesne ex Lam.) Duchesne ex Poir. (Cucurbitaceae), and watermelon, Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) (Cucurbitaceae). General and specific niche overlap analyses were done to determine whether temporally differential use of floral resources occurred. Direct displacement interactions at the floral level were quantified. The species with the greatest abundances were Peponapis limitaris Cockerell (Apidae), Partamona bilineata Say (Apidae), and A. mellifera. Overall, the niche overlap analyses in both crops suggested that floral resources are not used simultaneously by different bee species. Winner events during aggressive encounters suggested a hierarchy among bee species, with A. mellifera being one of the species with more winner encounters in both crops. It is suggested that those deciding whether or not to introduce A. mellifera into crops should consider whether the abundance of native bee species is sufficient to ensure efficient fruit production.

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WATERMELON SEEDLING MORTALITY ASSOCIATED WITH Pythium aphanidermatum

HortScience ◽

10.21273/hortsci.40.3.873a ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 40 (3) ◽

pp. 873a-873 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Warren Roberts ◽

Benny Bruton ◽

Jonathan Edelson ◽

Wenhua Lu ◽

Penny Perkins-Veazie ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Citrullus Lanatus ◽

Bare Soil ◽

Pythium Aphanidermatum ◽

Seedling Mortality ◽

Predominant Pathogen ◽

Soil Temperatures ◽

Black Plastic

Forty-one cultivars of triploid and diploid watermelons (Citrullus lanatus) were grown at Lane, Oklahoma in 2003. Seeds were placed in Jiffy-9 pellets in a greenhouse on 21 May. Fields were prepared with raised beds 1 m wide covered with black plastic. Plots were 3 m wide by 15 m long, with 4 replications, arranged as a randomized complete block. Seedlings were transplanted to the field on 4 June. From 4–9 June, rainfall occurred 5 days. Maximum soil temperatures at 5 cm, under bare soil, from 1–9 June were 34, 34, 35, 26, 22, 26, 31, 29, and 32 °C, respectively. On 9 June, 84% of the seedlings were dead. Lesions were observed on the roots and stems and isolations were made from symptomatic tissues. The predominant pathogen isolated from the seedlings was Pythium aphanidermatum. Some of the cultivars appear to have some degree of resistance to P. aphanidermatum. Mortality among the cultivars, averaged across all replications, ranged from 33% to 100%. The cultivars with the lowest mortality were “Tri-X Carousel” (33%), `Sunny' (40%), `WT-02-31' (53%), `Ole' (58%), and `Tri-X Palomar' (68%). New seeds were seeded in the greenhouse on 16 June, and transplanted to the field on June 30. The replacement seedlings were planted in the same field, in the same location as the previous plants. Maximum soil temperatures for the two week interval following the second planting ranged from 33 to 39 °C, with only one rain of 0.8 cm occurring 10 days after planting. There was no apparent plant loss due to P. aphidermatum in the second planting.

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Mulch Color Influence on Annual Hill Plasticulture Strawberries

HortScience ◽

10.21273/hortsci.32.4.596b ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 32 (4) ◽

pp. 596B-596

Author(s):

David G. Himelrick

Keyword(s):

Production System ◽

Bare Soil ◽

Bare Ground ◽

Late Season ◽

Top Performers ◽

Soil Temperatures ◽

Black Plastic

The effect of seven types of plastic mulches on total, early, and late season yield was evaluated for three years in the annual hill strawberry production system. Black plastic mulches differed only from the significantly reduced yields found on unmulched bare ground treatments. Although not significantly different in any year, the top performing mulch treatments varied with production year and cultivar. In the wet and warm harvest season of 1991, the highest yielding treatments were IRT-76, clear, and ALOR-brown. In the dry and cool 1992 season, the top performers were white on black, black, and ALOR-brown. For the cool and moderately wet 1993 season, the best performance was recorded on black, white on black, and clear. Average soil temperatures from warmest to coolest were found with black, black on white, clear, IRT-76, ALOR-brown, red, silver, white on black, and bare soil treatments.

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490 Effects of Rye–Vetch No-till and Habitat Strips and Black Plastic Mulch on Insect Densities, Weed Control, and Freshmarket Cucumber Growth and Yield

HortScience ◽

10.21273/hortsci.35.3.478e ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 35 (3) ◽

pp. 478E-479

Author(s):

John Caldwell ◽

Maurice Ogutu

Keyword(s):

Weed Control ◽

Plant Diversity ◽

Insect Pest ◽

Bare Soil ◽

Growth And Yield ◽

Vegetable Production ◽

Plastic Mulch ◽

No Till ◽

Direct Seeded ◽

Black Plastic

Greater plant diversity is associated with reduced insect pest pressure, but field-scale vegetable production systems incorporating plant diversity have been lacking. Cucumber was grown in 1998 and 1999 at the Virginia Tech Kentland experimental farm, by direct seeding or transplanting into rye/vetch mixture rolled to make a no-till mulch alternating with strips of vetch left to flower as a habitat for beneficial insects between cucumber rows, or direct-seeded into black plastic mulch between habitat strips or with bare soil between rows. Rye and hairy vetch were seeded at 56 kg·ha–1 each the preceding fall; only rye was planted in plots without habitats. A rippled coulter, cutting shank, and daisy wheels mounted on a tractor-drawn toolbar enabled a belt-driven seeder to seed cucumbers without pulling the no-till mulch. One hand weeding in cucumber rows at 3 weeks after planting (WAP) provided weed control equivalent to pre-emergence herbicide. At 3 WAP, no-till transplanted cucumbers had higher above-ground plant dry weights than no-till direct seeded cucumbers in both years, but, at 6 WAP, cucumber above-ground plant dry weights were equal (1999) or higher (1998) in direct seeded no-till than in transplanted no-till or black plastic mulch on bare soil. In 1999, Pennsylvania leatherwings, Chauliognathus pennsylvanicus DeG. (Coleoptera: Cantharidae), a cucumber beetle predator, had higher densities and cucumber beetles lower densities in no-till plots than in black plastic mulch plots, and bacterial wilt incidence was reduced in plots with habitat strips and no insecticide application compared to plots without habitat strips and four insecticide applications. Cumulative marketable yields in no-till were 59% higher in 1998 and 23% higher in 1999 compared to yields on black plastic mulch.

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Effect of Arachis pintoi groundcover on performance of bananas in northern New South Wales

Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture ◽

10.1071/ea9941197 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 34 (8) ◽

pp. 1197 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

GG Johns

Keyword(s):

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Bare Soil ◽

Fruit Production ◽

Nutrient Concentrations ◽

Banana Plant ◽

Arachis Pintoi ◽

South Wales ◽

Soil Temperatures ◽

Marketable Fruit

Legume groundcovers have been promoted for controlling soil erosion in hillside banana plantations in northern New South Wales. An experiment was conducted at Alstonville to determine the effect of an Arachis pintoi (Pinto peanut) groundcover on banana productivity. The Arachis groundcover was slow to establish in the first year, but thereafter grew vigorously. While standing dry matter of groundcover was reduced at closer banana plant spacings, it was always more than adequate to control erosion. After 5.5 years many soil chemical parameters had been significantly affected by the presence of groundcover. Organic carbon concentrations to 30 cm depth were 5.6% greater on the groundcover plots (3.94 v. 3.71%), and total nitrogen was 8.5% greater (0.42 v. 0.39%). Other increases were exchangeable potassium 52%, calcium 26%, magnesium 43%, sodium 23%, electrical conductivity 24%, and pH 0.13 units. Banana leaf nutrient concentrations were not affected. Banana plants with groundcover produced 9% fewer bunches than their bare soil counterparts, with 4% fewer fingers per bunch. By the end of the experiment, fingers on the groundcover treatment were 9% lighter; consequently, the weight of marketable fruit (i.e. >120 g/finger) per bunch was reduced by 31% in the final year. The presence of groundcover reduced total fruit production over the whole trial by 16% and marketable fruit by 19%. In the last year of the experiment, total fruit production was reduced by 25%, and marketable fruit production by 40%. Over the whole trial, banana plants with groundcover produced 22% fewer suckers than the bare soil controls, with most of the effect occurring in the first 2 years. Soil temperatures at 20 cm under groundcover were as much as 0.7�C cooler than the controls in October-January, but similar for the rest of the year. This effect possibly contributed to decreased yields. Although the experiment was irrigated, the irrigation was possibly inadequate for the groundcover treatment, and competition for water between the Arachis and banana plants may also have been responsible for part of the yield depression. Rats fed on the buried Arachis seed each winter.

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

HortTechnology ◽

10.21273/horttech.20.1.224 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 20 (1) ◽

pp. 224-233 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

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.

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Transparent, Black and Organic Mulches Effect on Weed Suppression in Green Pepper (Capsicum annuum) in Western Kenya

Journal of Agricultural Studies ◽

10.5296/jas.v5i1.10807 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 67

Author(s):

Ocharo N. Edgar ◽

Joseph P. Gweyi-Onyango ◽

Nicholas Kibet Korir

Keyword(s):

Weed Control ◽

Management Practices ◽

Bare Soil ◽

Weed Suppression ◽

Weed Species ◽

Plastic Mulch ◽

Transparent Plastic ◽

Green Pepper ◽

Physical Methods ◽

Black Plastic

Weed suppression through physical methods in cultivation constitutes of many methods but this experiment focused on application of various mulches. Recently, herbicide-free weed control methods in the world are getting more attention due to environmental and ecological factors. Green pepper production requires good management practices in order to attain potential yields. Most of the known physical practices of weed control cause both positive and negative effects. Therefore, great attention should be paid when selecting the appropriate mulch with the aim of weed suppression in any specific cultivation. Three types of mulches were examined for weed control namely; black plastic mulch, transparent plastic mulch, straw mulch and bare soil as control during the 2015 short and long raining seasons in Busia County. In both seasons, the black plastic mulch treatment significantly (P<0.05) showed the lowest number of weed species (3) per m2 quadrat while the control had the highest with a maximum of 8 and 7 during the long and short raining seasons respectively. The number of species reduced after four weeks from transplanting when the first sampling was carried out. The lowest weed vigor was exhibited in the plastic treatments for both seasons at 4, 6 and 8 weeks after transplanting. Control had the highest weed fresh biomass for both seasons at all the sampling stages with the highest observed during the short raining season with 1626 g/m2 at 4 weeks after transplanting. This also translated to the highest weed dry biomass for both seasons in the control plots with the lowest recorded in the black plastic mulch. Out of several physical methods of weed control, mulching seems to be the most appropriate with the black plastic mulch being the best.

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CULTURAL MODIFICATION TECHNIQUES FOR ALLEVIATION OF HEAT STRESS IN BELL PEPPERS

HortScience ◽

10.21273/hortsci.27.6.681e ◽

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.

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EFFECT OF SPECTRAL QUALITIES OF PLASTIC MULCH ON WEED DEVELOPMENT AND GROWTH

HortScience ◽

10.21273/hortsci.29.4.251c ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 29 (4) ◽

pp. 251c-251

Author(s):

Fahrurrozi Aziz ◽

Katrine A. Stewart

Keyword(s):

Growth And Development ◽

Block Design ◽

Bare Soil ◽

Plastic Mulch ◽

Weed Growth ◽

Randomized Complete Block Design ◽

Soil Temperatures ◽

Black Plastic ◽

Set Up ◽

Soil Temperature And Moisture

The types of plastic mulch used in horticultural production often fulfill only a few of the grower's needs. Black plastic mulch controls weeds, but can burn young plants. Clear mulch, while warming the soil and enhancing early crop growth, allows prolific weed growth and development. Accordingly, an experiment using a randomized complete-block design with-four replications was set up to compare the effects of black, microperforated black, silver, and wavelength-selective (IRT-76) green mulches, and bare soil on weed growth and development, and on soil temperature and moisture. Each mulch was evaluated for its optical properties. All mulches significantly reduced final stands of seeded weeds compared with bare soil. IRT-76 green had the warmest mean soil temperatures, followed by silver, black, and microperforated black mulches, and bare soil. Soil moisture content was generally higher under plastic mulches than bare soil.

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Quality control of 10-min soil temperatures data at RMI

Advances in Science and Research ◽

10.5194/asr-12-23-2015 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

pp. 23-30 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

C. Bertrand ◽

L. González Sotelino ◽

M. Journée

Keyword(s):

Quality Control ◽

Soil Temperature ◽

Bare Soil ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Air Temperatures ◽

Temperature Observation ◽

Soil Temperatures ◽

Different Depths ◽

Temperature Records ◽

Energy Processes

Abstract. Soil temperatures at various depths are unique parameters useful to describe both the surface energy processes and regional environmental and climate conditions. To provide soil temperature observation in different regions across Belgium for agricultural management as well as for climate research, soil temperatures are recorded in 13 of the 20 automated weather stations operated by the Royal Meteorological Institute (RMI) of Belgium. At each station, soil temperature can be measured at up to 5 different depths (from 5 to 100 cm) in addition to the bare soil and grass temperature records. Although many methods have been developed to identify erroneous air temperatures, little attention has been paid to quality control of soil temperature data. This contribution describes the newly developed semi-automatic quality control of 10-min soil temperatures data at RMI.

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