Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment最新文献

{"title":"Compost Teas Reduce Verticillium dahliae Growth In Vitro via Direct and Volatile Effects","authors":"Hatem M. Younes,&nbsp;Summer R. A. Lockhart,&nbsp;Lynne Carpenter-Boggs","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70067","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70067","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Verticillium wilt of potatoes is caused by the fungus <i>Verticillium dahliae</i>, which leads to significant economic losses in potato production. The fungus is soil-borne and can remain for up to 14 years in the soil or previous crop residues as hard-to-suppress microsclerotia. Compost teas (CTs) have been shown to suppress a variety of pathogenic fungi in food crops and are a sustainable option for pathogen suppression and crop nutrient provision. CTs are prepared by extracting compost in water and allowing it to brew for a period of time. In this study, we used a factorial experiment of two composts with four combinations of additives and aeration time to prepare eight CTs. Each CT was used after 3, 6 and 10 days of brewing. We tested the direct and volatile effects of unsterilised and filter-sterilised CTs on the mycelial growth of <i>V. dahliae</i> in vitro. Unsterilised CTs inhibited <i>V. dahliae</i> growth by 90.1% via direct suppression and 71.7% via volatile suppression. Sterilised CTs inhibited <i>V. dahliae</i> growth by 79.3% via direct suppression and 26.6% via volatile suppression. CT efficacy was least at 3 days of brewing time and greatest at 6 days. Scanning electron microscopy revealed mycoparasitism by several fungal species on <i>V. dahliae</i>, indicating that mycoparasitism may be a source of CT efficacy as a biocontrol agent. This study demonstrates that, with further development, CTs have the potential to be a sustainable solution for suppressing verticillium wilt in potatoes.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70067","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143875682","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Are There Potential Benefits From Using Microbial Products to Control Ammonia and Greenhouse Gases Released From Pig Slurry?","authors":"Marianna Magyar,&nbsp;Márton Dencső,&nbsp;Anita Szabó,&nbsp;Eszter Tóth","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70056","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70056","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Livestock farming and its slurry management represent a significant contributor to global anthropogenic ammonia (NH₃) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, resulting in negative impacts on the environment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of two microbial slurry additives (A1, A2) on the emissions of NH₃, methane (CH₄) and carbon dioxide (CO₂) as well as on the changes in chemical properties of slurry in a mesocosm experiment. Two different controls (C1 and C2) were established, due to differences in the methodology of the additives studied. Although the A1 treatment showed significantly (3.3 times) higher NH₃ emissions than the A2 treatment, it is not evident that the additive alone is responsible for the observed differences, as (3.5 times) higher NH₃ emissions were also detected in the control C1 treatment than in the C2. An opposite trend was observed for CH₄ emissions, with higher average values in the A2 and C2 treatments. The differences can also be attributed to the different conditions in the use of the additive. Incubation of the A2 additive required additional water and maize grits, which diluted the slurry and changed its pH. The two additives had no impact on the emissions when compared to their respective control treatments. The results for CO₂ were more nuanced with no clear trends. The treatments had a significant effect on NH₃ emissions, whereas the weekly addition of pig slurry was the main contributing factor in the variation of CO₂ and CH₄ emissions.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70056","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143875683","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Identification of Endophytic Bacterial Community Associated With Roots of Desert Vegetation","authors":"Shafeeq Rahman,&nbsp;Mughair Abdul Aziz,&nbsp;Azra Shamim,&nbsp;Manzoor Ahmad,&nbsp;Juma Ali Saif Alneyadi,&nbsp;Ahmed Nasser Youssef,&nbsp;Abdulrahman Saeed Alreyashi,&nbsp;Abdulla Mohammed Alshamsi,&nbsp;Khaled Masmoudi","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70065","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70065","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Native plants thriving in extreme environments host unique microbial communities that might play crucial roles in promoting their growth and enhancing tolerance to harsh environmental conditions. In this study, the root-associated microbial communities were analysed from ten desert native plant species. The analysis was conducted using the V3–V4 regions of the 16S rRNA gene to assess the taxonomic diversity, composition, and functional characteristics of root-associated bacterial microbiomes. A total of 1,078,916 high-quality sequences obtained from ten different plants were clustered into 3,842 Amplicon Sequence Variants (ASVs). Alpha and beta diversity indices revealed that trees and grasses exhibited higher diversity and richness in root-associated bacterial microbial community compared to shrubs and herbs. Analysis of Similarities (ANOSIM) and PERMANOVA further confirmed significant differences between the bacterial communities of the four plant types. At the phylum level, Proteobacteria (31%–75%) dominated the microbial communities associated with trees and shrubs. Herbs and grass exhibited a different composition, with Fermicutes (41%) and Actinobacteriota (56%), respectively. In the bacterial order, Lachnospirales (41%–44%) was dominant bacterial community in trees and herbs, Rickettsiales (80%) in shrubs, and Streptomycetales (50%) in the grass. At the genus level, <i>Muribaculum</i> was dominant in trees, while <i>Nocardioides</i> in shrubs, herbs and grass (30%–80%). Functional prediction analyses indicated that nitrogen assimilation was abundant mainly in herbs. While methane and ammonia oxidation processes were enriched in the microbial communities of shrubs and trees. Our findings determine the common bacterial microbiome communities associated with the different desert plant roots that may support their growth in the arid environment. These findings can potentially improve sustainable agricultural practices in arid regions.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70065","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143857121","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Temperate Forest Soil Microbiomes and Their Assembly Processes are Modulated by the Interplay of Co-Existing Tree Species Identity, Diversity and Their Mycorrhizal Type","authors":"Hafeez Ul Haq,&nbsp;Bala Singavarapu,&nbsp;Amelie Hauer,&nbsp;Nico Eisenhauer,&nbsp;Olga Ferlian,&nbsp;Helge Bruelheide,&nbsp;Tesfaye Wubet","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70064","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70064","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Recent studies have highlighted the significant role of tree species' mycorrhizal traits on forest soil microbial communities and their associated ecosystem functions. However, our understanding of how tree species richness in mono-mycorrhizal (arbuscular mycorrhiza [AM] or ectomycorrhiza [EcM]) or mixed-mycorrhizal (AM and EcM = AE) stands affects the rooting zone microbial community assembly processes remains limited. We investigated this knowledge gap using the MyDiv tree diversity experiment, which comprises plantings of AM and EcM tree species and their mixture in one-, two-, and four-species plots. Soil microbiomes in the target tree rooting zone were analyzed using meta-barcoding of the fungal ITS2 and bacterial 16S V4 rRNA regions. We examined the effects of plot mycorrhizal type, tree species identity and richness on microbial diversity, community composition, and microbial community assembly processes. We found that AM plots exhibited higher fungal richness compared to EcM and mixed mycorrhizal type (AE) plots, whereas tree species identity and diversity showed no significant impact on fungal and bacterial alpha diversity within mono and mixed mycorrhizal type plots. The soil fungal community composition was shaped by tree species identity, tree diversity, and plot mycorrhizal type, while bacterial community composition was only affected by tree species identity. EcM tree species significantly impacted both soil fungal and bacterial community compositions. Plot mycorrhizal type and tree species richness displayed interactive effects on the fungal and bacterial community composition, with AM and EcM plots displaying contrasting patterns as tree diversity increased. Our results suggest that both stochastic and deterministic processes shape microbial community assemblage in mono and mixed mycorrhizal type tree communities. The importance of deterministic processes decreases from AM to EcM plots primarily due to homogeneous selection, while stochastic processes increase, mainly due to dispersal limitation. Stochastic processes affected fungal and bacterial community assembly differently, through dispersal limitation and homogenous dispersal, respectively. In fungi, the core, intermediate and rare abundance fungal taxa were mainly controlled by both stochastic and deterministic processes whereas bacterial communities were dominantly shaped by stochastic processes. These findings provide valuable insights into the role of tree species identity, diversity and mycorrhizal type mixture on the soil microbiome community composition and assembly processes, highlighting the differential impacts on core and rare microbial taxa. Understanding the balance between deterministic and stochastic processes can help forest ecosystem management by predicting microbial community responses to land-use and environmental changes and influencing ecosystem functions critical for ecosystem health and productivity.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70064","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143856993","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Comparing of Nutritional and Environmental Aspects of Soilless and Nonchemical Farming Food Production Systems","authors":"Wannaporn Hatongkham,&nbsp;Kitti Sranacharoenpong,&nbsp;Unchalee Suwanmanee","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70060","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70060","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Plant factory with artificial light (PFAL) technology is a soilless cultivation system designed to optimize plant growth, productivity, and product quality while ensuring the efficient use of water and fertilizers. In contrast, nonchemical farming (N-CF) focuses on using natural materials and intentionally avoids synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides. Both systems can be employed for commodity production to help ensure food security. However, there are ongoing concerns regarding nutritional value and environmental sustainability. This study compared nutritional compositions, antioxidant contents, environmental impacts, and carbon footprints of kale (<i>Brassica oleracea</i> L.) cultivated in PFAL and N-CF systems. The proximate values of kale from both systems did not show significant differences (<i>p</i> &lt; 0.05). However, the results indicated that antioxidant contents—measured through polyphenol analysis, oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assay, and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay—were significantly lower in kale harvested from PFAL system compared to N-CF system after 3 months of growth. The polyphenol, ORAC and FRAP of PFAL kale were 68.95 mg GAE/100 g, 1321.25 and 111.95 μmol TE/100 g fresh weight, respectively, while those of N-CF kale were 136.06 mg GAE/100 g, 3,519.87 and 220.17 μmol TE/100 g fresh weight, respectively. The carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions of 3 month-kale from PFAL and N-CF productions were 168.61 and 14.75 kg CO₂ eq./kg of kale, respectively. Therefore, new policies must focus on mitigating environmental impacts by implementing process certifications that encourage reduced environmental footprints. However, these policies must prioritize the nutritional adequacy of food produced through various agricultural systems.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70060","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143840847","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Novel Strategies for Designing Climate-Smart Crops to Ensure Sustainable Agriculture and Future Food Security","authors":"Ali Raza,&nbsp;Tushar Khare,&nbsp;Xinyue Zhang,&nbsp;Md. Mezanur Rahman,&nbsp;Muzammil Hussain,&nbsp;Sarvajeet Singh Gill,&nbsp;Zhong-Hua Chen,&nbsp;Meixue Zhou,&nbsp;Zhangli Hu,&nbsp;Rajeev K. Varshney","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70048","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70048","url":null,"abstract":"<p>To fulfil food and nutritional demand for nine billion people by the mid-21st century, global food production must increase by 60% regardless of challenges such as environmental pollution, water scarcity and land degradation. Climate change exacerbates the frequency and intensity of biotic and abiotic stresses, which, in turn, severely compromise global crop yields, jeopardize food supply, deteriorate sustainable development goals for achieving global food safety, and limit sustainable climate-smart crop production. Current food production and consumption practices negatively influence the environment, posing a major threat to the global ecosystem and human health. Addressing these critical issues to achieve sustainable agriculture necessitates designing future crops employing cutting-edge breeding strategies for enhanced productivity with minimal environmental footprints. This endeavour requires a comprehensive understanding of plant stress adaptation, signalling pathways and mitigation mechanisms. In this review, we first explain the diverse impacts of ongoing climate change events on crop production. Subsequently, we outline various strategies to tackle climate change, including agronomic practices, and advanced technologies for understanding the physiological and molecular mechanisms of plant stress tolerance. We also discuss breeding and engineering crops with superior stress tolerance and disease resistance and nurturing healthy microbial partnerships between plants and soil to ensure food and nutrition security for current and future populations amidst mounting environmental challenges.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70048","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143741494","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Sustainability, Reporting and Market Access for Grain and Oilseed Growers: Can Yield Data Provide More Rigour and Transparency?","authors":"Robert Clark,&nbsp;Peter Dahlhaus,&nbsp;Nathan Robinson,&nbsp;Elizabeth Morse-McNabb","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70059","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70059","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The adoption of sustainable farming practices will improve food security around the world. The evidence that food is produced sustainably has become important for maintaining access to global markets and is influencing commodity marketing and pricing. This paper explores the current state of global sustainability reporting and examines whether yield data could improve the sustainability of farming by adding more rigour and transparency to the evidential basis of sustainability. The Australian grains and oilseeds industry is used as a case study with most of the Australian grain and oilseed crop grown for export markets. Sustainability policies in the European Union, United States of America and Australia are contrasted, with a focus on the improved management of nitrogenous fertiliser, which is viewed as the most efficient way to reduce the environmental impact of agriculture. Generally, sustainability reporting is based on a suite of indicators that are easy to measure and interpret, sensitive to change, technically sound and cost-effective. These indicators serve as a mechanism to quantify and document the practices used to produce crops but some of the current measures are relatively coarse and lack transparency. The time and cost incurred to collect these measurements could be reduced by using secondary data to report on sustainability. Yield data are already collected by many grain, and oilseed growers, and provide a transparent, evidence-based way to optimise and report on fertiliser application at fine scale. Yield data can help to maintain soil health and farm profit, reduce environmental damage and generate quantitative data for reporting on agricultural sustainability, but some challenges remain before it could be implemented as a universal reporting measure.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70059","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143741492","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Physiological Stress Indices: A Valuable Tool to Mitigate the Impacts of High Temperatures and Drought on Durum Wheat Yield and Quality","authors":"Noemi Tortorici,&nbsp;Nicolò Iacuzzi,&nbsp;Antonella Iurato,&nbsp;Federica Alaimo,&nbsp;Antonio Giovino,&nbsp;Teresa Tuttolomondo,&nbsp;Mauro Sarno","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70058","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70058","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Durum wheat (<i>Triticum turgidum</i> L. var. <i>durum</i> Desf.) is one of the world's most important and widely grown cereals, playing a fundamental role in global food security. In countries where it is traditionally cultivated, abiotic stress caused by high temperatures and limited precipitation, exacerbated by the ongoing climate crisis, is the main cause of production losses quality deterioration, and uncertainty in meeting market demand. The objective of this study was to monitor, across five experimental sites, the effect of climatic variability on phenological, morpho-physiological, and agronomic parameters, using physiological stress indices such as RWC, NDVI, and SPAD. The research was conducted during the 2023/2024 season across the southern Italian landscape of Sicily, a region representative of the durum wheat cultivation scenario in hot-arid environments, and one of the main production areas. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed significant differences in most parameters, with the exceptions of the number of spikelets per spike, harvest index, and test weight. In general, a decline in yield and quality was observed across all the sites, with notable variability. High temperatures and the absence of precipitation shortened the elongation-flowering and flowering-maturation stages, influencing the accumulation of growing degree days (GDD) in the more inland sites. In most environments, plants showed reduced growth (average culm height: 41.5 cm), while yields ranged from 10.0 to 27.0 q ha⁻¹. Quality parameters, such as yellow pigment (22.9%–24.3%), protein content (13.6%–15.8%), and gluten content (8.8%–11.9%), were variable depending on environmental conditions. Finally, Pearson's correlation analysis showed strong positive correlations between physiological parameters (SPAD, RWC, NDVI) and yield (<i>r</i> ≥ 0.8), between the yellow index and yield (<i>r</i> &gt; 0.8), and strong negative correlations between proteins, dry gluten, and yield (<i>r</i> &lt; −0.8).</p><p>Although durum wheat is drought-tolerant, it is affected by water and thermal stress, which causes spatial and temporal variability in production. Monitoring cereal systems and adopting appropriate techniques could mitigate this vulnerability, supporting cereal farming businesses.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70058","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143741493","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Bacterivorous Nematodes Drive Ammonification and Bacterial Community Growth in a Strongly Acidic Soil","authors":"Shuo Na,&nbsp;Helen L. Hayden,&nbsp;Ji-Zheng He,&nbsp;Zi-Yang He,&nbsp;Reza Ghaderi,&nbsp;Li Bi,&nbsp;Hang-Wei Hu","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70057","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70057","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Nematodes, the most abundant animals on Earth, play a vital role in the soil biosphere by regulating microbial communities and influencing nutrient cycling. However, their grazing impact on soil nitrogen (N) cycling and microbial communities remains insufficiently understood. In this study, we addressed this knowledge gap through a microcosm experiment using gamma-sterilised acidic soil (pH &lt; 4.5), inoculated with either microbial suspension alone or in combination with low or high concentrations of nematodes. Our results revealed that nematodes significantly increased soil NH₄⁺–N content and bacterial abundance, with bacterivorous nematodes increasingly dominating the microcosm environment. This study provides new evidence that bacterivorous nematodes significantly enhance ammonification in acidic soil, with implications for soil N availability and agricultural productivity.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70057","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143707560","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Does the Addition of Silicon-Based Biostimulants Increase Production and Reduce Disease Incidence in Strawberry Crops?","authors":"Daniela Costa,&nbsp;Anthony Gargan,&nbsp;Orla O'Halloran,&nbsp;Zoia A. Awan,&nbsp;Caroline Elliott-Kingston,&nbsp;Michael T. Gaffney,&nbsp;Lael Walsh","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70052","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70052","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 \u0000 <section>\u0000 \u0000 <h3> Introduction</h3>\u0000 \u0000 <p>The use of pesticides in agriculture is crucial for crop protection although it potentially poses risks to the environment and human health. This has led to European Union initiatives to reduce chemical pesticide inputs which has driven innovation for more environmentally sustainable solutions. Biostimulants, including silicon-based products, represent a promising strategy to improve crop growth and quality in horticultural crops, such as strawberries. This research investigates silicon-based biostimulants and their impact on production and disease control in strawberry crops.</p>\u0000 </section>\u0000 \u0000 <section>\u0000 \u0000 <h3> Material and Methods</h3>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Three commercial style trials were conducted in glasshouse and polytunnel growing environments to evaluate different silicon-based biostimulant (Si_bio) products and application methods against a standard pesticide and reduced pesticide programme.</p>\u0000 </section>\u0000 \u0000 <section>\u0000 \u0000 <h3> Results</h3>\u0000 \u0000 <p>The main findings of this research point to growing system having a major effect on strawberry production where biostimulants are used, with a positive effect of biostimulant use only noted in the polytunnel system. Our results show that although certain parameters responded positively to silicon-based biostimulant application, such as increases to total weight and total yield, these were only significant in a single trial. Where overall yield increases were detected, this did not result in an increase in marketable yield. Pesticides remain more effective than biostimulants in reducing disease incidence of the fungal diseases grey mould and powdery mildew.</p>\u0000 </section>\u0000 \u0000 <section>\u0000 \u0000 <h3> Conclusion</h3>\u0000 \u0000 <p>The impact on most agronomic parameters was limited and inconsistent across trials, however this work expands our understanding of the effectiveness of silicon biostimulants in strawberry production and disease management.</p>\u0000 </section>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70052","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143698777","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}