The use of cover crops and green manures has some potential to control soil-borne diseases of field and hor-ticultural crops. But as their immediate efficacy is lower compared to more radical methods, such as chemical soil disinfestation or heat treatments, they have to be used in a more preventive and strategic manner. Cover crops and green manures are grown with no inten-tion of harvesting their biomass, either partly or comple-tely, at the end of the cropping season. The difference between these two types of crops is their final use. The above-ground part of green manures is incorporated into the soil at the end of the growing period with the aim of returning accumulated nutrients (e.g., nitrogen) or useful secondary metabolites (e.g., glucosinolates) to the soil. Cover crops are grown for different reasons, such as to reduce leaching of nutrients (e.g., nitrate, then also designated as catch crops), avoid erosion, improve soil structure or suppress weeds. A combined use is also possible, a crop can serve first as cover crop (e.g., for weed control) and then be incorporated as green manu-re (e.g., for nutrient input) (Campiglia et al., 2009).
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Agricultural run-off and subsurface drainage tiles transport a significant amount of nitrogen and phosphorus leached after fertilization. alchemia-nova GmbH in collaboration with University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna developed two multi-layer vertical filter systems to address the agricultural run-off issue, which has been installed on the slope of an agricultural field in Mistelbach, Austria. While another multi-layer addressing subsurface drainage water is implemented in Gleisdorf, Austria. The goal is to develop a drainage filter system to retain water and nutrients. Both multi-layer filter systems contain biochar and other substrates with adsorption properties of nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus). The filter system can be of practical use if an excess of nutrients being washed out is of concern in the fields of the practitioner by keeping the surrounding waters clean. This approach may result in economic value by re-using the saturated biochar as fertilizer and improving the soil structure, thus increasing long-term soil fertility. Link: https://wateragri.eu/a-bio-inspired-multilayer-drainage-system/
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under Grant Agreement No 858735This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under Grant Agreement No 858735. FACTSHEET NANOCELLULOSE MEMBRANES FOR NUTRIENT RECOVERY Key information Functionalized nanocellulose membranes can take up nitrate and phosphate. These membranes can be put in a water treatment unit. As the membranes are biobased, degradable materials, they can after use be added to the soil, thus returning the leached nutrients back for their original purpose providing fertilizers (nutrient recycling).
Because variables such as temperature and humidity have a profound effect on the activity of crop pests, diseases and natural enemies, the ability to monitor environmental conditions within a crop has always been important for crop protection.