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"vegetable crops"
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Vegetables, chickens & bees : an honest guide to growing your own food anywhere
\"For anyone who's ever wanted to grow their own food, comes gardening guru Carson Arthur's honest, and often hilarious, advice for any and every skill level and space. Everyone appreciates the glory of a fresh vine-ripened vegetable, but how do you successfully grow your own? Nobody wants to see their vegetable dreams die the tragic death of a #gardenfail! That is where Carson Arthur comes in, with a wealth of knowledge to guide your gardening decisions and set you up for success in any space. Whether it's a backyard, a rooftop, a balcony or even just a window ledge, this book has everything you need to know about sunlight, space, soil, seeds, and setup. Six years ago, Carson bought a small plot of land two hours outside of the city to try his hand at having his own farm. As a gardener by trade, and with a childhood spent on an apple farm, he had a little experience to back him up! Now he's sharing all of that in Vegetables, Chickens & Bees. Carson provides very real advice on how to choose the right garden for you, how to prepare your dirt and seeds, and gives step-by-step guidance for 20 key veggies you can grow--as well as how to dodge the many pitfalls out there (like checking about the locations of cable wires and gas lines before you start digging up your yard.) Then he shares his favourite recipes for those vegetables so you can have delicious options for everything you grow. Also included are primers on raising your own chickens and keeping your own bees.\" -- ONIX annotation.
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Irrigation water requirement of drip irrigated tomato and capsicum under controlled and open-field environments
Freshwater scarcity poses a major challenge for Indian agriculture. This study presents an optimized irrigation scheduling framework for tomato and capsicum cultivation under protected and open-field conditions in Jalandhar, Punjab, over the 2021 and 2022 seasons. The CROPWAT model was used to estimate reference evapotranspiration (ETo) and irrigation needs. Results showed that ETo and ETc values were consistently lower under protected cultivation due to microclimatic control, reducing irrigation requirements by up to 27% compared to open-field cultivation. Water use efficiency and yields improved significantly under protected cultivation, with increases of 96% and 43% for tomato, and 92.8% and 40% for capsicum. This study demonstrates that optimized irrigation scheduling and protected cultivation can conserve freshwater and enhance agricultural sustainability in water-limited regions like Punjab.
Journal Article
“Nakima” (Tupistra clarkei Hook.f., Asparagaceae): a potential vegetable crop of Sikkim, India
During survey and field collection of crop genetic resources in Sikkim and Darjeeling area of Eastern Himalaya, the authors came across the cultivation of “nakima” at homestead as well as field level for its inflorescence being cooked as vegetable. Though past reports refer to it as
Tupistra nutans
Wall., a critical study revealed its correct identity as
T. clarkei
Hook.f., an endemic species of Eastern Himalaya and adjoining Meghalaya. Its preference over other vegetables by the local tribal people was noted during market survey in Sikkim and adjoining areas of West Bengal. Apart from being preferred and easy-to-cultivate, higher nutritive and therapeutical values indicate its potential for popularization. Detailed information on botany, ecology, cultivation and utilization of this species is provided. Collecting diverse germplasm, identifying elite types, and developing standard cultivation practices would aid in popularizing the crop.
Journal Article
Emissions of nitrous oxide and ammonia after cauliflower harvest are influenced by soil type and crop residue management
The decomposition of vegetable crop residues, e.g. from
Brassica
species, can cause substantial nitrous oxide (N
2
O) and ammonia (NH
3
) emissions due to their high nutrient and water contents. One promising approach to reduce these harmful emissions is optimizing post-harvest crop residue management. So far published results on the effects of different crop residue placement techniques on N
2
O and NH
3
emissions do not give a consistent picture. One of the key issues is the diverse experimental conditions, in particular with respect to soil characteristics. Therefore, we studied the effects of cauliflower residue management, i.e. no residues (control), surface application (mulch), incorporation by mixing (mix), incorporation by ploughing (plough), on N
2
O and NH
3
emissions in a 7.5-months field study, using a unique open-air facility featuring three different soils with contrasting soil texture (loamy sand, silt loam, sandy clay loam). Cauliflower residues caused the highest N
2
O emissions after ploughing (2.3–3.4 kg N
2
O–N ha
−1
, 1.5–2.2 % of residue-N), irrespective of the soil type. In contrast, ammonia emissions were only affected by the residue placement technique in loamy sand, which exhibited the highest emissions in the mulch treatment (1.9 kg NH
3
–N ha
−1
, 1.2 % of residue-N). In conclusion, under the given conditions incorporating crop residues by ploughing appears to produce the highest N
2
O emissions in a range of soils, whereas surface application may primarily increase NH
3
emissions in coarse-textured soils.
Journal Article
A Review of Insect Pest Management in Vegetable Crop Production in Nigeria
Insect pest infestations and damage can limit the production of vegetables in the farming systems in Nigeria. This review looks at integrated insect pest management as a possible panacea for resolving insect pest issues in vegetable crops. The main vegetable crops which include okra, tomatoes, chilli peppers, cucumbers, green amaranth, carrots and onions are highlighted. The major insect pests of the various vegetables which include foliage beetles, caterpillars, aphids, fruit flies, stink bugs, and grasshoppers are also mentioned. The various control measures that have been empirically verified for the mitigation of the impact of these insect pests, including the application of synthetic insecticides, modification of agronomic practices, use of resistant varieties, application of botanicals, biological and mechanical controls, are discussed. Studies which have been carried out attempting to integrate two or more of the control strategies for better insect pest control are also reviewed. Strategies that can be put in place for the integrated pest management of vegetable insect pests in Nigeria are considered. Among the IPM (Integrated Pest Management) practices instituted for the mitigation of pest infestations on vegetable crops in Nigeria, intercropping of suitable vegetables in combination with the application of aqueous extracts of Azadirachta indica and Piper guineense seeds under good farm hygiene and sanitation proved to be most successful.
Journal Article
Effect of Rural Black-Gray Water Treatment by Subsurface Wastewater Infiltration System on Soil Environment of Vegetable Crop Field
A field trial was conducted in Tianjin to assess the impact of “three-compartment septic tank (SPT) + soil wastewater infiltration system (SWIS)” on vegetable crop soil, determine the SPT effluent quality, and establish the consumer safety of vegetables grown above the SWIS. The effluent total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), ammonium-N (NH4+-N), chemical oxygen demand (COD), and 5-d biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5) levels all varied largely every month. The average COD failed to meet the criteria of the Standard for Irrigation Water Quality (No. GB5084-2021) but significantly influenced bacterial community distribution. Hierarchical clustering disclosed seasonal variation in SPT effluent. SWIS treatment of rural black-grey water significantly affected both the vegetable soil TN and TP content, and it promoted microbial community diversity and richness in deep soil. The treatment also increased the relative abundances of the beneficial bacterial genera Thiobacillus and Arthrobacter by more than 320% and decreased the relative abundance of the pathogenic bacterial genus Streptomyces in vegetable soil by more than 20.33%. The faecal coliform levels and ascaris egg mortality rates in the vegetable crop soils lay within published human health and safety thresholds both before and after SWIS treatment. All vegetable crops grown above the SWIS were fit for human consumption. The VC level in the vegetables planted in experimental households were higher than those for the vegetables planted in ordinary households. The present work provides reasonable theoretical and empirical bases for optimising the “SPT + SWIS” process and SPT discharge standards in rural areas.
Journal Article
Subirrigation of Container-Grown Tomato I: Decreased Concentration of the Nutrient Solution Sustains Growth and Yield
Subirrigation of containerized vegetable crops is a promising strategy to increase water and fertilizer use efficiency. However, the nutrient solution may cause salts accumulation in the substrate top layer. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of nutrient solution concentration in container-grown tomato under surface drip-irrigation and subirrigation. The plants were irrigated with solutions at concentrations of −0.072, −0.058 and −0.043 MPa (100%, 80% and 60% of Steiner’s nutrient solution, respectively). Except at the highest concentration, the greatest yields occurred in subirrigated (10.6 kg plant−1) compared to drip-irrigated plants (9.5 kg plant−1). In drip-irrigated plants, yield was higher with the highest solution concentration. The increased yield in subirrigated plants at low solution concentrations was related with increased fruit N and Ca content. The higher accumulation of N, P, K and Ca demonstrates that subirrigation allows for increased nutrient use efficiency, particularly when using nutrient solutions of low concentration. Water use efficiency was markedly increased in subirrigated tomato, as 300 to 460 g of fruit L−1 were produced, compared to 50 g L−1 in drip-irrigated plants. Our results indicate that subirrigation is a feasible system for soilless-cultivated tomato provided the nutrient solution is reduced to a 60% of the total concentration.
Journal Article
Cover Crop for Early Season Weed Suppression in Crops: Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis
Core Ideas Cover crops can effectively suppress weeds after termination and up to early stage of crop growth. Use of cover crops for early season weed suppression did not affect grain crop yield, but improved yield of vegetable crops. Use of a single cover crop species provided early weed suppression similar to that of cover crop species mixtures. There were differences in cover crop and main crop management among studies that evaluated cover crop for weed suppression. Cover crops are gaining importance as their use has numerous benefits including improved soil health, reduced soil erosion, and weed suppression. Weeds are most competitive with crops at early growth stages, and a management strategy that ensures early season weed suppression in crops is crucial for crop growth, development, and yield. In this study, systematic and meta‐analytic reviews of published studies from 1990 to January 2017 were conducted to provide evidence on whether using cover crops can provide satisfactory weed suppression at termination of the cover crop and up to 7 wk after planting of the main crop. The impact of cover crops as a weed control input on main crop yield was also evaluated. A total of 46 relevant field studies were evaluated. Main crops were planted 1 to 3 wk after termination of the cover crops. Overall, our meta‐analysis results indicated that cover crops provided early season weed suppression comparable to those provided by chemical and mechanical weed control methods in cropping systems. The use of cover crops for early season weed suppression had no effect on main crop grain yields, but could increase vegetable crop yields when compared with no cover crop. Decisions about selecting cover crops species type (broadleaf or grass) or number (single or mixtures) were not as important as identifying cover crops with inherent characteristics that suppress weeds, such as high biomass productivity and persistent residue.
Journal Article
Subirrigation of Container-Grown Tomato II: Physical and Chemical Properties of the Growing Medium
Subirrigation of containerized vegetable crops is a promising strategy to increase water and nutrient use efficiency, however, the longer growing seasons for cultivation of vegetable species may cause marked changes in the physical and chemical substrate properties. This study determined the effects of the irrigation system, subirrigation vs. drip-irrigation, and the concentration of the nutrient solution on the substrate physical and chemical properties in containerized tomato plants. Plants were irrigated with solutions at concentrations of −0.072, −0.058 and −0.043 MPa. Root dry weight of subirrigated plants was decreased by 35% in the substrate top layer when the highest concentration was used. Substrate electrical conductivity increased while pH was acidified as solution concentration increased and from the bottom to the top substrate layers in subirrigated plants. Salts buildup was associated with increased concentration of oxalic and tartaric acids and pH acidification. The improved substrate physical and chemical properties in subirrigated plants were associated with higher fruit yield (11.0 kg per plant) provided nutrient solution concentration was reduced to −0.043 MPa; in contrast, the highest yield in drip-irrigated plants (10.1 kg per plant) was obtained when the solution concentration was −0.072 MPa. In conclusion, subirrigation with reuse of the nutrient solution is a promising strategy to reduce water waste through runoff and leaching as water use efficiency increases due to greater water retention properties in the substrate, the maintenance of an EC within a range the plants can tolerate, and a lower acidification of substrate pH.
Journal Article
Biostimulants Application in Horticultural Crops under Abiotic Stress Conditions
Abiotic stresses strongly affect plant growth, development, and quality of production; final crop yield can be really compromised if stress occurs in plants’ most sensitive phenological phases. Additionally, the increase of crop stress tolerance through genetic improvements requires long breeding programmes and different cultivation environments for crop performance validation. Biostimulants have been proposed as agronomic tools to counteract abiotic stress. Indeed, these products containing bioactive molecules have a beneficial effect on plants and improve their capability to face adverse environmental conditions, acting on primary or secondary metabolism. Many companies are investing in new biostimulant products development and in the identification of the most effective bioactive molecules contained in different kinds of extracts, able to elicit specific plant responses against abiotic stresses. Most of these compounds are unknown and their characterization in term of composition is almost impossible; therefore, they could be classified on the basis of their role in plants. Biostimulants have been generally applied to high-value crops like fruits and vegetables; thus, in this review, we examine and summarise literature on their use on vegetable crops, focusing on their application to counteract the most common environmental stresses.
Journal Article