Evaluation of organic matter stability during the composting process of agroindustrial wastes.

Composting of wastes from citrus industrial processing (pastazzo and sludge) was studied in order to evaluate the evolution of organic matter during the process and to individuate chemical and/or biochemical techniques able to set the stability of the final product. Composts from two open-air piles of different composition were sampled every month during the whole period of composting (5 months) and the organic matter of each sample was characterised by chemical and biochemical techniques. Humification rate (HR%) and humification index (HI) were determined. Extracted organic matter of six samples collected for each compost was investigated by isoelectric-focusing technique (IEF). The biochemical analysis was based on the study of C-mineralisation after the addition of each collected sample to soil. Results obtained clearly demonstrated organic matter evolution during composting processes. Humification rates increased and humification indexes decreased over time, while extracted organic matter showed electrophoretic behaviour typical of stabilised organic compounds. Moreover, mineralisation patterns confirmed the increased level of organic matter stability during the composting process

Lo sviluppo dell'orticoltura biologica: la ricerca incontra il mondo operativo

Brochure - SUREVEG dissemination Open day in field for disseminating SUREVEG objectives and applied tools to local farmers and for discussing on advantages and limits of application of the strip-cropping system in organic vegetable production

Filtrate seaweed extract as biostimulant in nursery organic horticulture

Many naturally-derived products are used as growth promoters or biostimulants on vegetables, even if their mechanisms of action are not still now completely clarified. Among them, seaweeds and seaweed products are inserted as admissible organic fertilizers in the Annex I of the Reg. (EC) No. 889/2008, even if their biostimulant properties are not recognized in organic farming. After a previous bioassay on maize germination for defining the optimal water dilution ratios of the filtrate seaweed extract (FSE), in the present research we applied the FSE at two diluted doses to a greenhouse organic lettuce, for assessing its biostimulant effect on vegetable growth and nutrient uptake. The greenhouse pot trials were conducted on Lactuca sativa L., by applying FSE at 1/250 and 1/500 v/v water dilutions. After 90 days, root fresh/dry weight, shoot fresh/dry weight and dry matter, number of leaves, LAI, specific leaf fresh/dry weight, total dry biomass, leaf macro and micro elements (P, K, Ca, Mg, Fe, Na, Mn, Cu, Zn, B) content and total chlorophyll were determined. Obtained results indicated that FSE plays a role in promoting the increase of lettuce shoot dry weight and related nutrient uptake, with particular efficacy in relation to P and K macroelements. This property is better expressed at the highest dilution, confirming that the biostimulating activity of the formulate acts without any nutritional effect: thus, the FSE appears to be a good opportunity for promoting the early-stage development for organic nursery productio

Le nuove frontiere del biologico: la ricerca incontra il mondo operativo

La press release descrive la giornata rivolta ad agricoltori, tecnici, ricercatori, portatori di interesse, consumatori e appassionati di agricoltura. I ricercatori della Sede CREA OF di Monsampolo illustreranno i temi di fondo che animano le ricerche nazionali ed internazionali attualmente in atto, compreso il progetto SUREVEG, e che mirano ad ottenere protocolli agronomici per produzioni rispettose dell'ambiente, con elevate caratteristiche qualitative (sanitarie, organolettiche, nutrizionali e nutraceutiche) e che nello stesso tempo siano remunerativi del lavoro degli agricoltori

Le nuove frontiere del biologico: la ricerca incontra il mondo operativo

La press release descrive come i ricercatori della Sede CREA Centro di Ricerca Orticoltura e Florovivaismo di Monsampolo illustrano i temi di fondo che animano le ricerche nazionali ed internazionali attualmente in atto e che mirano ad ottenere protocolli agronomici per produzioni rispettose dell' ambiente, con elevate caratteristiche qualitative (sanitarie, organolettiche, nutrizionali e nutraceutiche) e che nello stesso tempo siano remunerativi del lavoro degli agricoltori. In tale contesto viene rappresentato, tra gli altri, anche il progetto SUREVEG, basato sull'applicazione dello strip-cropping in orticoltura biologica

Orticoltura BIO: il progetto SUREVEG vuole innovarla

The press release furnish a description of SUREVEG Project, based on strip-cropping introduction in organic vegetable systems, in terms of: 1) objectives; 2) participated approach; 3)expected results on food and environmental quality, soil biodiversity and resilience

MERCATI E COMPETITIVITÀ DI IMPRESA, NEWS CONVEGNO CREA “LE NUOVE FRONTIERE DEL BIOLOGICO: LA RICERCA INCONTRA IL MONDO OPERATIVO”

la press release presenta l’evento, rivolto ad agricoltori, tecnici, ricercatori, portatori di interesse, consumatori e appassionati di agricoltura che si svolgerà all’aperto presso i campi sperimentali della sede di Monsampolo. Nel corso della manifestazione, i ricercatori illustreranno gli studi attualmente in corso, finalizzati all’ottenimento di protocolli agronomici sostenibili che portino a produzioni remunerative per gli agricoltori e a prodotti con elevate caratteristiche qualitative

Soil fertility comparison among organic and conventional managed citrus orchards in Sicily.

In recents years, organic farming is expanding in Southern Italy and in the Mediterranean area, due to interest of consumers and EU agricultural policies. Evaluation of organic farming system introduction on soil quality and fertility status should be taken into account in order to define medium-long term environmental and agricultural strategies, on both locol and national scale. Soil physical, chemical and biological parameters represent effective tools to evaluate soil quality and changes in soil fertility status, as a consequence of different agronomic management (i.e. organic vs coventional). The aim of this work was to compare soil fertility of conventional and organic managed citrus Orchards, using specific soil system descriptors. The research was carried out in a Mediterranean environment (Sicil Region, Southern Italy), on Navelina and Tarocco orchards. Soil characteristics were analysed in 54 farms under both organic and conventional management. Farms were selected to obtain similar pairs (27) in the same environmental conditions. Moreover, orchards pairs were homogeneous for age, cultivar and rootsock to reduce effects not linked to soil management. For each soil, total organic carbon, total nitrogen, mineral NO3-N and NH4-N were determined. In addition, in order to evaluate biological fertility of the considered soils, carbon mineralisation and nitrogen mineralisation in anaerobic conditions were studied. Soils' humic fraction was at least characterised qualitatively by isoelectric focusing technique,to obtain information on soil organic matter stability. Potenzially mineralisable carbon and cumulative mineralised carbon determined on 21 days experimental trials differed significantly in organic and conventional soils. Since this significance was detected also for cumulative mineralised carbon after 7 days, probably C-mineralisation represents the more reliable and prompter indicator to discriminate soil biological fertility with respect to the other tested ones. Moreover, it should be remarked that some parameters (as total nitrogen content, mineralised carbon after 1 days and the more humified organic matter fraction), even if not yet significantly different, revealed a strong tendency to increase in organic managed soils, attesting that the organic citrus orchards can be considered systems able to conserve energy and store nutrients more than the conventional ones

Faba Bean: A Potential Intercrop In Organic Vegetable Production In A European Perspective?

Intercropping can provide ecological and yield benefits when selecting crops and management practices that balance the competition for resources. A field experiment was carried out under temperate conditions to study the effect of intercropping faba bean (Vicia faba L.) and pointed cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. capitata f. conica) on yield and plant nitrogen (N) uptake. Both crops were grown in mono cropping (MC) and intercropping systems (IC). The yield of pointed cabbage per meter row was 28% higher under IC compared to MC. The ratio between marketable yield and total yield of pointed cabbage was also higher in IC. However, faba bean yield per meter row was reduced by 15% under IC. There was an indication of higher total N accumulation under IC followed by cabbage-MC and faba bean-MC. Soil mineral N at harvest (0-2.5 m depth) was lower in cabbage-MC, followed by IC and faba bean-MC. The intercropping system had a positive land equivalent ratio (LER) of 1.06, which points to the potential of using faba bean as an intercrop in sustainable organic vegetable production systems with higher N use efficiency. Results will be discussed in the wider perspective of several European trials on intercropping from the SureVeg-project (Strip-cropping and recycling for biodiverse and resource-efficient intensive vegetable production) and point to new knowledge for farmers wanting to implement intercropping