Version 1
: Received: 18 September 2023 / Approved: 19 September 2023 / Online: 20 September 2023 (05:09:03 CEST)
Version 2
: Received: 1 November 2023 / Approved: 2 November 2023 / Online: 3 November 2023 (09:07:07 CET)
Pedra, F.; Inácio, M.L.; Fareleira, P.; Oliveira, P.; Pereira, P.; Carranca, C. Long-Term Effects of Plastic Mulch in a Sandy Loam Soil Used to Cultivate Blueberry in Southern Portugal. Pollutants2024, 4, 16-25.
Pedra, F.; Inácio, M.L.; Fareleira, P.; Oliveira, P.; Pereira, P.; Carranca, C. Long-Term Effects of Plastic Mulch in a Sandy Loam Soil Used to Cultivate Blueberry in Southern Portugal. Pollutants 2024, 4, 16-25.
Pedra, F.; Inácio, M.L.; Fareleira, P.; Oliveira, P.; Pereira, P.; Carranca, C. Long-Term Effects of Plastic Mulch in a Sandy Loam Soil Used to Cultivate Blueberry in Southern Portugal. Pollutants2024, 4, 16-25.
Pedra, F.; Inácio, M.L.; Fareleira, P.; Oliveira, P.; Pereira, P.; Carranca, C. Long-Term Effects of Plastic Mulch in a Sandy Loam Soil Used to Cultivate Blueberry in Southern Portugal. Pollutants 2024, 4, 16-25.
Abstract
Abstract: Agriculture uses plastic products for containers, packaging, tunnels, drip irrigation tub-ing, mulches. Large amounts of plastics are used as mulches on the soil surface for vegetable pro-duction (tomato, cucumber, watermelon, strawberry, vine) to reduce the weed competition, in-crease water and fertilizer use efficiency and enhance crop yield. Portugal uses around 4,500 t/year of polyethylene plastic to cover approximately 23,000 ha of agricultural land and only a small amount is recovered for recycling or secondary uses because of dirt with soil, vegetation, pesticide and fertilizers. Cleaning and decontaminating polyethylene mulch are costly and commercial technology is often not accessible nor economically viable in the current economic Portuguese situation. Most plastic mulch is composed of polyethylene that degrades slowly and produces a large quantity of residues in soil with negative impact in the environment. In the present study, the effects of long-term cultivation of blueberry using green 100% high density polyethylene mulch, in the south Portugal were evaluated for soil chemical and biological changes. High density green plastic mulch did not contaminate the topsoil with di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and heavy metals, buttotal nitrogen and organic carbon concentrations, electric conductivity and microbial activity were reduced in the planting row compared with bare soil, without mulching. Further-more, the presence of plastic mulch did not affect negatively the presence of nematodes, and the Rhabditida (bacterial feeders) increased in the planting and covered row.
Keywords
green high-density polyethylene mulch; microbial activity; nematode community; open-field; soil chemical composition; topsoil; Vaccinium virgatum Aston cv. Centra Blue
Subject
Environmental and Earth Sciences, Soil Science
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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