A precise estimation of plant water use is crucial for efficient irrigation management and understanding of plant–water interactions. Metalized-polyethylene mulch as a ground cover, combined with irrigation management, can improve water and fer...
(1) Background: Climate change associated with a warm autumn often hampers the development of colouration of many fruits including late ripening apple varieties in New Zealand. (2) Objective: This study will provide detailed information on the possib...
The use of plastics in horticulture is reviewed with respect to its sustainability based on the traditional criteria of triple Rs (reduce, reuse, and recycling) plus a re-place strategy, taking into account possible alternatives. Hail (and insect) ne...
A push-pull strategy for reducing populations of the thrips Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande), F. bispinosa (Morgan) and F. tritici (Fitch) in tomato was evaluated. Push components consisted of ultraviolet (UV)-reflective mulch and foliar applica...
Onion thrips (Thrips tabaci Lindeman) is a major pest in organic onion production and effective integrated pest management strategies are lacking. Our objective was to evaluate combinations of semi-glossy (“Rossa di Milano” and B5336AxB5351C) and wax...
While crushed pinecone mulch holds promise as a beneficial material for blueberry cultivation, research on its effectiveness remains limited. Crop leaf characteristics can serve as parameters for assessing mulching effects, although there are several...
The challenges that sweet potato whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) creates for vegetable production have increased in the southeastern U.S. Growers must use intensive insecticide spray programs to suppress extremely high populations during the fall growing s...
Soil mulching materials play an important role in regulating the greenhouse crop microclimate, as they influence light distribution, plant physiological activity, and crop yield. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of two plastic mulche...
Agro-food chain impacts global greenhouse gas emissions by around 30%. To reduce this score without worsening food crops’ yield, new and more sustainable technologies (i.e., mulching membranes, advanced irrigation systems) were implemented. Within th...
Inter-row mulching with reflective film (RF) has been increasingly adopted in cool-climate vineyards to improve light availability and promote grape ripening. This study investigated the effects of ground-reflected light on the flavoromic profiles of...
The sweetpotato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci MEAM1 Gennadius (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), and the complex of viruses it transmits are major limiting factors to squash production in the southeastern United States. At this time, insecticides are extensively r...
In the USA, tomato chlorotic spot virus (TCSV) was first identified in Miami-Dade County of Florida in 2012. This viral disease is transmitted by thrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) of different species, imposing a serious threat to the entire tomato pr...
The ‘Diaoganxing’ is the experimental material, with natural grass cover as the control, to compare the effects of 5 different mulching materials. The aim was to identify the most effective mulching type for improving orchard microenviron...
Plastic mulching is widely used in arid and semi-arid cotton systems to improve soil hydrothermal conditions and water–nutrient use efficiency. However, residual mulch and its potential contribution to microplastic inputs pose growing environme...
Citrus fruit, the most abundant global fruit, is primarily concentrated in China. Mulching techniques have demonstrated a favorable effect on the soil’s hydrothermal environment, resulting in enhanced plant growth, yield, and quality. Neverthel...
Semi-arid conditions are favorable for the cultivation of late ripening peach cultivars; however, seasonal water scarcity and reduction in soil biological fertility, heightened by improper soil management, are jeopardizing this important sector. In t...
Sugarcane cultivation is suitable for the exploitation of organic waste products. However, minimum complementary mineral input is necessary for optimal fertilisation. Control mineral fertilisation treatments with mulch (MCM) or without mulch (MC) wer...
Precision field measurements were conducted to evaluate the mechanism of organic basin mulching on water and thermal dynamics in arid date palm orchards in central Saudi Arabia. Partly mulched zones (20 m radius) and fully mulched basins were compare...
Diplotaxis tenuifolia, a species with high nutritional value, was recently introduced in Romania, making in-depth research necessary to develop an efficient cultivation technology to increase agronomic and economic potential. Therefore, the present s...
Rapid and accurate mapping of the spatial distribution of cotton fields is helpful to ensure safe production of cotton fields and the rationalization of land-resource planning. As cotton is an important economic pillar in Xinjiang, accurate and effic...
Canopy conductance (Gc) is an important biological constant for quantifying the water vapor flux at the canopy-atmosphere interface, reflecting the coupling strength between crop transpiration and microclimate. To elucidate how mulching modulates Gc...
Canopy reflectance sensors are a viable technology to optimize the fertilization management of crops. In this research, canopy reflectance was measured through a passive sensor to evaluate the effects of either crop features (N fertilization, soil mu...
To increase food availability, optimizing production systems and reducing burdens related to human activities is essential in a scenario of population growth and limited natural resources. In this context, the life cycle methodology can represent a v...
Biodegradable mulch films (BDMs) have emerged as a promising alternative to conventional polyethylene (PE) films in modern horticulture, yet the effect of film thickness on crop performance remains inadequately understood. In this study, a two-year f...
Soil mulching practices in apple orchards offer an effective solution to combat declining soil quality, restore land productivity, and boost apple yield. The kinetic parameters of soil enzymes, specifically the maximum reaction rate (Vmax) and the Mi...
Food security, a crucial issue for the development of humankind, is often severely constrained by water scarcity. As a globally recognized most advanced agricultural water-saving technology, drip irrigation under plastic mulch (DIPM) has played a sig...
Ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride [BMIM][Cl] was used to prepare cellulose (CELL), cellulose/polycaprolactone (CELL/PCL), cellulose/polycaprolactone/keratin (CELL/PCL/KER), and cellulose/polycaprolactone/keratin/ground calcium carbona...
Microplastics (MPs) in agricultural soils pose risks to human health in their potential accumulation along the food chain, and their characteristics require further understanding to implement targeted measures. This study investigated the MP characte...
The successful establishment of young chestnut orchards is increasingly challenged by drought stress and limited irrigation availability, especially in areas with limited water access. This study evaluated the effects of ridge planting and plastic fo...
Soft robotics is an emerging technology that provides robots with the ability to adapt to the environment and safely interact with it. Here, the ability of these robots to identify the surface of interaction is critical for grasping and locomotion ta...
(1) Background: Plastic in fruit orchards represents an environmental issue due to large CO2eq emissions associated with its production from fossil fuel and disposal (often incineration). (2) Materials and methods: Apple cv. “Braeburn Hillwell&...
Soil water and temperature are important factors to reflect variations in soil heat and water flows especially for tillage systems. The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of the CoupModel in predicting the effect of tillage pract...
Easily extractable glomalin-related soil protein (EEG) released from arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi exhibits many roles in soil and plants, while it is not clear whether the biostimulator alone or in combination with agronomic practices can improve soi...
In Mediterranean areas, fire has increased soil degradation and erosion. For this reason, the application of soil quality indices can help to determine soil recovery and degradation levels. By using a multiparameter soil quality index fitted to undis...
Blueberry is a high-value fruit crop in the United States, with Georgia and Florida serving as important early-season production regions. In these areas, several thrips species (Thysanoptera: Thripidae), including Frankliniella tritici (Fitch), Frank...
There is an urgent need for developing degradable polymeric systems based on bio-derived and sustainable materials. In recent years, polyurethanes derived from castor oil have emerged due to the large availability and sustainable characteristics of c...
The accurate quantification of evapotranspiration (ET) is critical to the sustainable management of irrigated agriculture. In this study, we proposed a remote sensing data fusion method for predicting ET, coupling a surface energy balance system mode...
Citrus is a crucial agricultural commodity of the hilly subtropical regions of southern China. Attempts in recent years to combat the destructive disease Huanglongbing (HLB) have led to citrus orchards being covered with insect-proof screens (IPS). U...
The current research aims to study the impacts of adding corncob biochar to a sandy soil irrigated with drainage water on wheat productivity, heavy metals fate, and some soil properties that reflect healthy soil conditions. This research consists of...
Sloping farmland is prevalent in hilly red soil areas of South China. Improper tillage patterns induce decreased soil organic matter, soil aggregate breakdown, and nutrient imbalance, thereby restricting crop production. However, the stoichiometric c...
Terrace erosion has become increasingly pronounced due to the rising incidence of heavy rainfalls resulting from global climate change; however, the processes and mechanisms governing erosion of loess terraces during such events remain poorly underst...
Cold climate viticulture is challenged by climatic variability, including increased frost risk, shorter growing seasons, and unpredictable weather events that impact vine productivity and grape quality. Global warming is altering traditional viticult...
Applying hyperspectral remote sensing technology to the prediction of soil moisture content (SMC) during the growth stage of soybean emerges as an effective approach, imperative for advancing the development of modern precision agriculture. This inve...
The article presents predicted changes in soil water content in the Bystra river catchment (eastern Poland) for various scenarios of climate change and adaptation practices obtained on the basis of a SWAT model simulation for three regional climate m...