Weed Suppressing Effect of Perennial Living Mulch Mixtures
Main Article Content
Abstract
Organic farmers are not allowed to use herbicides. This is the reason why in bigger scale vegetable production beside mechanical weed management, mainly interrow hoeing, mulching is the other frequently used weed management method. Dead or living mulch could be used to cover the soil and suppress weeds. Living mulch means plants growing together with the main crop on the whole surface or only in the interrows of it. Compared to dead mulches this technique provides several well-known benefits, like improving soil structure, water intake capacity and soil life. It also fulfils one of the main objectives of mulching, which is to control weeds that compete with the crop with as little energy and time input as possible. This last effect was examined in three two-component perennial living mulch mixtures, which were sown in 2018 and they were compared to a hoed control. Main crops were transplanted sweet corn in 2018 and shell beans sown on the same field in 2019. All three perennial mixtures contained perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) as grass component and white clover (Trifolium repens), black medic (Medicago lupulina) or kidney vetch (Anthyllis vulneraria) as leguminous components. Living mulches were mowed more times per growing season. Coverage of living mulch plants and weeds and yield of the main crops were measured. The two years long experiment provided possibility not only to measure the yield affecting and weed suppressing effect of the mixtures on different life forms of weeds, but to follow also the changes of the living mulch plants' coverage during the two years. In the first year the leguminous component, while in the second year the already well-established grass component too suppressed the weeds. Yield of transplanted sweet corn was not, but the one of sown shell beans was affected negatively by the living mulch.
Downloads
Article Details
References
/848 (EU) rendelet (2018) az ökológiai termelésről és az ökológiai termékek jelöléséről, valamint a 834/2007/EK tanácsi rendelet hatályon kívül helyezéséről
Bhaskar, V., Westbrook, A., Bellinder, R., DiTommaso, A. (2021): Integrated management of living mulches for weed control: A review. Weed Technology, 35 (5): 856–868. https://doi.org/10.1017/wet.2021.52
FAO (2019): Soil erosion: the greatest challenge to sustainable soil management. Róma.
Frye, W. W., Smith, W. G., Williams, R. J. (1985): Economics of winter cover crops as a source of nitrogen for no-till corn. J. Soil Water Conserv., 40: 246–249.
Grundy, A. C., Bond, B. (2007): Use of non-living mulches for weed control. In: Upadhyaya, M. K., Blackshaw, R. E. (szerk) Non-chemical Weed Management: Principles, Concepts and Technology. Wallingford, UK: CABI 135–153. https://doi.org/10.1079/9781845932909.0135
Hartwig, N., Ammon, H. U. (2002): Cover crops and living mulches. Weed Science, 50 (6): 688–699. https://doi.org/10.1614/0043-1745(2002)050[0688:AIACCA]2.0.CO;2
Hartwig, N. L. (1988): Crownvetch and min- or no-tillage crop production for soil erosion control. Abstr. Weed Sci. Soc. Am., 28: 98.
Hartwig, N. L., Hoffman, L. D. (1975): Suppression of perennial legume and grass cover crops for no-tillage corn. Proc. Northeast. Weed Sci. Soc., 29: 82–88.
Hunyadi K., Béres I., Kazinczi G. (szerk.) (2000): Gyomnövények, gyomirtás, gyombiológia. Mezőgazda Kiadó, Budapest.
KSH (2023): <https://www.ksh.hu/stadat_files/mez/hu/mez0045.html> (2023.02.17.)
Leary, J., DeFrank, J. (2000): Living Mulches For Organic Farming Systems, HortTechnology, 10 (4): 692–698. https://doi.org/10.21273/HORTTECH.10.4.692
Malézieux, E., Crozat, Y., Dupraz, C., Laurans, M., Makowski, D., Ozier-Lafontaine, H., Rapidel, B., de Tourdonnet, S., Valantin-Morison, M. (2009): Mixing plant species in cropping systems: concepts, tools and models: a review. In: Lichtfouse, E., Navarrete, M., Debaeke, P., Véronique, S., Alberola, C. (szerk): Sustainable Agriculture. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands. 329–353. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2666-8_22
Petit, S., Cordeau, S., Chauvel, B., Bohan, D., Guillemin, J-P., Steinberg, C. (2018): Biodiversity-based options for arable weed management. A review. Agron Sustain Dev, 38: 48. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13593-018-0525–3
Pusztai P. (2010): Talajtakarási módszerek összehasonlító értékelése paradicsomtermesztésben. PhD dolgozat, Budapest.
Wojciechowski, W., Adamczewska-Sowińska, K., Krygier, M. (2012): Effect of Living Mulches on Selected Soil Structure Indicators in Eggplant Cultivation. Veg. Crops Res. Bull., 77: 49–59. https://doi.org/10.2478/v10032-012-0015-0