CO-FREE Alternative Test Products for Copper Reduction in Agriculture

The project CO-FREE (2012-2016) aimed to develop strategies to replace/reduce copper use in organic, integrated and conventional farming. CO-FREE alternative test products (CTPs) were tested and integrated together with decision support systems, disease-tolerant varieties, and innovative breeding goals (ideotypes) into improved management strategies. CO-FREE focused on apple/apple scab (Venturia inaequalis), grape/downy mildew (Plasmopara viticola), and tomato and potato/late blight (Phytophthora infestans). Starting point of the project were ten CTPs with direct or indirect modes of action including Trichoderma atroviride SC1 and protein extract SCNB, Lysobacter spp., yeast-based derivatives, Cladosporium cladosporioides H39, the oligosaccharidic complex COS-OGA, Aneurinibacillus migulanus and Xenorhabdus bovienii, sage (Salvia officinalis) extract, liquorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) extract, PLEX- and seaweed plant extracts. As the project progressed, further promising CTPs were included by the partners. Field trials were performed in different European countries in 2012-2015 following EPPO standards. In the first years, stand-alone applications of CTPs were tested. In the following years these were integrated into complete strategies. Effects on main and further diseases, on yield and on non-target organisms were assessed. Here, field trial results with CTPs are summarized

Development of a botanical plant protection product from Larix by-products to protect grapevine from Plasmopara viticola

Extracts from European Larch (Larix decidua) were shown to be efficient to control grapevine downy mildew (Plasmopara viticola) under controlled and field conditions. Larixyl acetate and larixol were identified as the active compounds

Effect of variety choice and use of resistant rootstock on crop yield and quality parameters of tomato plants grown in organic, low input and conventional production systems/growth media

Soil-borne diseases are one of the most important problems in organic and other ‘low input’ soil-based greenhouse production systems. While chemical soil disinfection has been the method of choice in conventional farming systems, soil steaming has been the main strategy for the control of soil borne diseases in organic production. Both methods are extremely expensive and have been increasingly restricted for environmental reasons by government and organic standard setting bodies respectively. The use of tolerant varieties and of grafting onto resistant rootstocks were evaluated as potential replacements for soil steaming in organic and low input systems and found to be as effective in reducing root disease and increasing root fresh weight, fruit yield and number. The effects on fruit yield and quality characteristics were then further evaluated using different varieties for grafting and different growth media typically used in (a) organic (soil amended with manure), and (b) conventional (perlite fertilised with mineral fertilisers via the irrigation system) growth media/fertilisation regimes, and also a (c) novel “low input” growth medium designed to provide better aeration of the rooting zone. Fruit numbers, diameters and weights and total fruit yields were significantly different between growth media and highest for plants grown in the “low input” system, slightly lower for plants grown in the perlite and lowest for plants grown in the organic system. The potential for replacing chemical and steam soil disinfection methods in organic and ‘low input’ soil based greenhouse production systems is discussed

Effect of organic and conventional production methods on fruit yield and nutritional quality parameters in three traditional Cretan grape varieties: results from a farm survey

The antioxidants found in grapes and wine have been linked to health benefits in humans, but may be affected by agronomic parameters, grape type/variety, and processing. Here, we report results of a farm survey which investigated the effects of production system (organic vs. conventional) and grape variety on fruit yield, total antioxidant activity/capacity (TAA, assessed by the Trolox Equivalent Antioxidant Capacity (TEAC) and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assays), and total concentrations of total phenolics (TPC) and anthocyanins (TAC) in grapes of one red (Kotsifali) and two white (Villana and/or Vidiano) traditional Cretan grape varieties. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) results showed that grape variety choice had a more substantial effect on TPC, TAA, and TAC than primary production protocols, and significant interactions were identified between production system and grape variety choice for TAATEAC. Specifically, TAATEAC was significantly (57%) higher in organic than conventional Vidiano grapes, while there was no significant effect of production system on TAATEAC in Kotsifali and Villana grapes. As expected from previous studies, the TAC was substantially higher in red Kotsifali grapes. Redundancy analysis (RDA) identified grape variety as the only strong explanatory variable/driver for yield, TPC, TAA, and TAC of table grapes, and positive associations were detected between the variety Vidiano and both TPC and TAATEAC. All other explanatory variables included in the RDA (including supplementary irrigation, orchard orientation, production system, soil type, vineyard age, plant density, and fertiliser inputs) explained only a small proportion of the additional variation

Reducing copper use in the environment: the use of larixol and larixyl acetate to treat downymildew caused by Plasmopara viticola in viticulture

BACKGROUND: Plant extracts might provide sustainable alternatives to copper fungicides, which are still widely used despite their unfavourable ecotoxicological profile. Larch bark extract and its constituents, larixyl acetate and larixol, have been shown to be effective against grapevine downy mildew (Plasmopara viticola) under semi-controlled conditions. The aim of this study was to reduce the gap between innovation and the registration of amarketable product, namely to develop scalable extraction processes and to evaluate and optimise the performance of larch extracts under different conditions. RESULTS: Toxicologically and technically acceptable solvents like ethanol were used to extract the active compounds larixyl acetate and larixol from bark in sufficient amounts and their combined concentration could be increased by up to 39% by purification steps. The combined concentration of larixyl acetate and larixol from larch turpentine could be increased by up to 66%. The Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC100) against P. viticola in vitro (6-2