Environmental Science
A. Iriany; F. Hasanah; D. Roeswitawati; M.F. Bela
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Increasing global temperature imposes large risks to food security globally and regionally. Besides, adaptation effort on cultivation practices, such as mulching, is urgent to overcome environmental problem due to certain material used, commonly plastic that is not biodegradable. ...
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BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Increasing global temperature imposes large risks to food security globally and regionally. Besides, adaptation effort on cultivation practices, such as mulching, is urgent to overcome environmental problem due to certain material used, commonly plastic that is not biodegradable. Biodegradable mulch is a mulch that could be degraded by microorganism and made from renewable organic materials. It plays a role in carbon sequestration and will contribute carbon and nutrients to the soil after being degraded. This current research aimed at investigating soil microclimate under various biodegradable mulch compositions and optimizing the compositions of biodegradable mulch that can be used to support the growth of short-cycle crops i.e. horenso (Spinacia olearecea L.).METHODS: This study was carried out using a simple randomized complete block design with one control (without mulch) and five treatments (biodegradable mulch compositions), namely the percentage of water hyacinth (40-80%) and coconut coir (20-60%). FINDINGS: All tested biodegradable mulch compositions could modify microclimate by decreasing 1-2°C of soil temperature and maintaining the soil moisture within the range of 63-84%. Although there was no significant difference in the growth and yield of horenso among the differing biodegradable mulch compositions, the biodegradable mulch composition treatments resulted in signficantly higher value than the control (without mulch). The biodegradable mulch composition treatments could increase fresh shoot weight around 38-55%, fresh root weight for about 55-94%, and dry shoot weight approximately by 1.6-2.8 times compared to the control (without mulch). CONCLUSION: This finding has emphasized that all tested biodegradable mulch compositions are potentially used as mulch for horenso (Spinacia oleracea L.) cultivation. This study provide information in the formulation of biodegradable mulch to adapt the compositions on other short-cycle crops and other horticulture crops.==========================================================================================COPYRIGHTS©2021 The author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, as long as the original authors and source are cited. No permission is required from the authors or the publishers.==========================================================================================
Environmental Engineering
P. Gholamiderami; P. Lahooti; H. Darbam
Abstract
The aim of this study was to produce mulch by combining natural mineral and organic substances in order to reach soil stabilization and improve soil physical and mechanical properties in Koopal area. The effects of organic mulch (at 3 levels of O1: combination of 1% sugarcane bagasse biochar+0.5% gum ...
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The aim of this study was to produce mulch by combining natural mineral and organic substances in order to reach soil stabilization and improve soil physical and mechanical properties in Koopal area. The effects of organic mulch (at 3 levels of O1: combination of 1% sugarcane bagasse biochar+0.5% gum Arabic+0.5% gelatin; O2: combination of 3% sugarcane bagasse biochar+1% gum Arabic+1% gelatin; and O3: combination of 5% sugarcane bagasse biochar+1.5% gum Arabic+ 1.5% gelatin) and MNF organomineral mulch (at 3 levels of MNF1: 1%; MNF2: 3%; and MNF3: 5%) on soil were investigated. The soil samples were incubated for 2 and 4 months and finally placed in a wind tunnel. Some physical and chemical properties of soil were obtained as pH=7.42, O.M%=0.223, and soil texture of silty loam. The obtained results showed that compared to control, application of the mulches increased soil organic carbon percentage (1.1%), mean weight diameter (2.47 mm), geometric mean diameter (1.27 mm), penetration resistance (370), shear strength (27.38) and tensile strength (0.8) significantly and decreased soil loss (0.10 g/m2/s), fracture index, soil texture index (62.16), and crust index (1.18) significantly (p <0.01) in both incubation periods. Effects of the mulches on soil organic carbon were reduced after 4 months. In mulch treatments, soil loss rate, mean weight diameter, geometric mean diameter and tensile strength were increased significantly. In general, the organic mulch could stabilize the soil and improve the physical and mechanical properties of the soil.
