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- Author or Editor: David Granatstein x
The semiarid climate of the Pacific Northwest allows for the production of organic, temperate tree fruit relatively free of disease and with fewer key insect pests compared with other regions of the United States. Weed control and soil fertility are two of the higher cost areas for organic tree fruit where alternatives are being sought through research and on-farm innovation. Mulches, both living [e.g., white clover [(Trifolium repens)] and inert (e.g., wood chips) show promise for controlling weeds, conserving water, providing nitrogen (N), or improving tree growth, but potentially have system trade-offs such as increased rodent pests and unwanted late-season N. Growers need orchard floor management practices that help them maintain or improve soil quality per the requirements of the National Organic Standards.
The drive alley in modern apple (Malus ×domestica Bork.) orchards often receives enough light to grow plants other than the typical perennial grass cover. By planting leguminous species in this area, it is possible to produce a portion of the nitrogen needs of the orchard by mowing the vegetation and blowing it onto the tree row where it mineralizes and releases available N over the tree roots. Four perennial legume species [alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.), ladino white clover (Trifolium repens L.), birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.), kura clover (Trifolium ambiguum L.)] were compared with the resident grass cover crop in a mature apple orchard. All legumes were direct-seeded into the alley to avoid any soil disturbance and were successfully established. Legume biomass and tissue N were monitored, along with biweekly monitoring of tree row soil nitrogen with both soil sampling and ion exchange resins using Plant Root Simulator® probes. Four mowings of alfalfa contained ≈43 kg total N/ha that was added to the tree row during the second season (2009), with a dry matter C:N of 10.8. Economically, legume nitrogen appears to be less expensive than other sources of organic N and may be cost competitive with synthetic fertilizer N when prices are high.
Covering the soil surface with opaque plastic sheets to kill vegetation is referred to as tarping and is used by small-scale and organic growers to control weeds before planting crops. There are few published studies on tarping, and here we present a review of the literature in combination with observations from two on-farm case studies, one carried out in northern California and the other in northwestern Washington. An advantage of tarping is that it enables growers to control weeds without herbicides or tillage equipment, which can be cost-prohibitive for small-scale growers. Tarping is also suitable for no- or reduced-tillage systems, which is a primary goal for many small-scale and organic growers. Silage tarps that are 5 to 6 mils thick and black on one side and white on the other are most commonly used for tarping, are readily available new or used from some local agricultural suppliers or online, and can be reused for six or more seasons. Tarps are placed with the black side up to warm the soil, which encourages weed seed germination. When the soil is tilled and then tarped, a 3-week period with sufficient soil temperature and moisture is sufficient to kill emergent weeds in the top ≈1 inch of soil and provides a 95% to 100% weed-free surface at tarp removal. When a tarp is applied from autumn until spring to a plot that has established weeds, winter annual weeds can be controlled for several weeks after tarp removal, and then soil disturbance results in germination of additional weed seeds. For established perennial weeds, it may be necessary to extend the tarp application time to several months during critical weed growth phases or a full year to break the vegetative life cycle. Tarping does not reduce the weed seed bank, thus minimal soil disturbance after tarp removal is needed to maintain a reduced weed population during the cropping period.
Global production of highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) has continuously increased since the early 1990s, with substantial growth occurring after 2000. Benefiting from this growth is the organic blueberry (Vaccinium sp.) industry, which has been strengthened by increases in organic food sales and the price premiums received for organic products. Washington State is a national and global leader in organic blueberry production, with 47% of the national organic blueberry crop harvested in 2008. As this statewide industry continues to grow, it is important to recognize both the opportunities and challenges related to organic blueberry production and marketing. This paper addresses those issues and describes trends in organic highbush blueberry production using Washington State as a case study due to its scale and distinctive regional differences within the state in regard to climate, horticultural production, and market venues. Challenges related to the introduction and management of new diseases and pests, changes in the federal organic regulations, infrastructural limitations, and climate change threaten current production capabilities in Washington State. However, the industry is still poised to capitalize on organic blueberry markets and has a lower market risk in the medium term compared with other crops.
Organic orchards represent a significant and growing component of Washington state agriculture. Comparison studies have shown that organic apple systems can be equally profitable yet more environmentally sustainable than their conventional counterparts. Despite this success, sustainable methods of weed control, fertility, and soil quality stabilization and improvement have remained a challenge. Intensive cultivation is commonly used to control weeds in organic orchards. This can lead to reduced or degraded soil organic matter, structure, water infiltration, aerated pore space, and other soil productivity parameters. In addition, tillage accelerates nutrient cycling and can result in the loss of valuable nutrients from the system. To address the need for sustainable organic methods of weed management, an integrated study of alternative understory management options was established in a newly planted orchard in 2005. Weed control measures included efficient tillage using a Wonder weeder, organically approved herbicide, wood chip mulch, and living cover mulches. Three rates of nitrogen (low, medium, and high) were applied across the Wonder weeder, wood chip, and living cover mulch plots in order to determine ideal N fertility rate. Analyses of total C and N and N-15 in organic fertilizers, soil pools, living cover biomass, and tree leaves are being used to track N and C cycling and partitioning, N-use efficiency, soil quality, and to determine optimal fertility guidelines. Preliminary results indicate intense competition between living mulch understory and orchard trees, and a trade-off may exist between maximizing soil quality and orchard productivity.
This study evaluated the effects of in-row groundcovers (bare ground, brassica seed meal, cultivation, wood chip mulch, legume cover crop, and non-legume cover crop) and three compost rates (48, 101, and 152 kg available nitrogen (N)/ha/year) on soil carbon (C) pools, biological activity, N supply, fruit yield, and tree growth in a newly planted apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) orchard. We used nonlinear regression analysis of C mineralization curves to differentiate C into active and slow soil C pools. Bare ground and cultivation had large active soil C pools, 1.07 and 0.89 g C/kg soil, respectively, but showed little stabilization of C into the slow soil C pool. The use of brassica seed meal resulted in increased soil N supply, the slow soil C pool, and earthworm activity but not total soil C and N, fruit yield, or tree growth. Legume and non-legume cover crops had increased microbial biomass and the slow soil C pool but had lower fruit yield and tree growth than all other groundcovers regardless of compost rate. Soils under wood chip mulch had elevated earthworm activity, total soil C and N, and the slow soil C pool. Wood chip mulch also had the greatest cumulative C mineralization and a high C:N ratio, which resulted in slight N immobilization. Nevertheless, trees in the two wood chip treatments ranked in the top four of the 13 treatments in both fruit yield and tree growth. Wood chip mulch offered the best balance of tree performance and soil quality of all treatments.
Synchronizing the supply of plant-available nitrogen (N) from organic materials with the N needs of apple trees is essential to cost-effective organic apple production. Tree growth and organic matter mineralization are affected by orchard floor management. This study examines the effects of three orchard floor management systems, cultivation, wood chip mulch, and a legume cover crop, on the accumulation and partitioning of compost-derived N in young apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) trees at different compost application dates across two growing seasons. Compost enriched with 15N was applied to apple trees in April, May, and June of 2006 and 2007, and trees were excavated in Sept. 2007 to determine the fate of labeled compost N. Trees with wood chip mulch had significantly greater dry weight and N accumulation in vegetative tree components than trees with cultivation or legume cover. Fruit yields were similar between cultivation and wood chip treatments despite less vegetative growth under cultivation, as these trees partitioned more dry weight into fruit (44%) than wood chip mulch trees (31%). Nitrogen-use efficiency by trees was lower with a living legume cover crop than in other treatments due to competition for resources. In the cover crop aboveground biomass, 20% to 100% of the N was derived from compost. In comparison, only 5% to 40% of N in the decomposing wood chip mulch originated from compost. Tree reserves were an important source of N for spring fruit and leaf growth in all treatments, but significantly more so for trees in the cultivation treatment. Fruit and leaves were strong sinks for compost N early in the season, with trees allocating 72% of spring N uptake into leaves and fruit. In the summer, N uptake increased improving compost N-use efficiency. Summer N was preferentially allocated to perennial tissues (71%), bolstering N reserves. Trees with wood chip mulch performed well and had greater capacity to build N reserves, making wood chips ideal for establishing young organic apple orchards. However, as the orchard matures, it may be beneficial to switch to a groundcover that reduces tree vegetative growth.
Living mulch cover crops can improve soil health and build organic matter, yet their use in fruit orchards comes with a risk of encouraging meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus), a rodent that can be destructive to fruit trees. Several living mulch cover crop species were assessed in an apple (Malus ×domestica) orchard understory along with wood chip mulch and bare ground. Desired species characteristics were weed competitiveness, low growth habit, nitrogen fixation, and potential rodent repellency. Legume species included birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus), medic (Medicago spp.), and subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum), which were planted in solid stands as well as mixtures. Nonlegume species included sweet woodruff (Galium odoratum), sweet alyssum (Lobularia maritima), creeping thyme (Thymus serpyllum), and colonial bentgrass (Agrostis tenuis). Meadow vole presence was evaluated in fall and spring with point-intersect and run-length measurements. A legume mix (medic, birdsfoot trefoil, subterranean clover, and colonial bentgrass) had the highest meadow vole presence, with no reduction under the “sandwich” system of tilling either side of the tree trunks while leaving a cover crop in a narrow strip with the trunks. The nonlegume mix [colonial bentgrass, sweet alyssum, creeping thyme, and fivespot (Neomophila maculata)] had similar results. However, the sweet woodruff (planted in the “sandwich” system) had significantly lower presence of meadow voles than the other living mulches. Wood chip mulch, cultivation, and bare ground control were all similar, with very low presence, indicating low risk of meadow vole damage. The results from the sweet woodruff suggest that we need more research on the potential to select living mulches that are nonattractive or repellent to meadow voles for use in orchards.
Apple maggot (Rhagoletis pomonella) is an insect pest of apple (Malus domestica) that is currently limited in extent in the commercial production areas of Washington State thanks to a quarantine program. We estimate the costs to the Washington economy if this pest were to spread more widely. Apple maggot control costs are related to the pressure of codling moth (Cydia pomonella), the most prevalent insect pest in commercial apple production in Washington State. It was found that the losses for the Washington apple industry’s range from $510 million to $557 million, depending on the codling moth pressure. Our findings underscore the importance of an efficient quarantine program that minimized the risk of spreading the pest along with additional costs associated with quarantined areas.