Articles
ORCHARD CARBON AND NUTRIENT RECYCLING
Article number
1028_56
Pages
347 – 350
Language
English
Abstract
The grinding and incorporating into soil of whole almond trees, during orchard removal, could provide a sustainable practice that could enhance air and soil quality.
Removed orchards are typically either pushed out and burned or ground up and removed.
Stored carbon is lost from the orchard site.
Woody debris incorporated into soils could increase organic matter, enhance carbon sequestration, and improve soil quality and tree yield.
The objective of this project was to compare the grinding up of whole trees with burning as a means of orchard removal.
Twenty-two rows of an experimental orchard were used in a randomized blocked experiment with two main treatments, whole tree grinding and incorporation into the soil versus tree pushing and burning.
The whole tree grinding did not stunt replanted tree growth.
Sampling from plots showed elevated levels of fungal and bacterial feeding nematodes (Tylenchidae) associated woody soil aggregates in the grind treatment.
Fungal mycelium was readily observed colonizing woody aggregates and more basidiomycetes (mushrooms) were observed in the grind plots.
Yields were determined in 2011 and 2012 and there were no differences between the grind and burn treatments.
In 2010, more carbon, organic matter, and a greater cation exchange capacity were initially observed in the burned plots, but by 2012 the grind plots had significantly more calcium, manganese, iron, magnesium, boron, nitrate, copper, electrical conductivity, organic matter, total carbon, and organic carbon.
The soil pH was significantly less in the grind treatment plots.
Removed orchards are typically either pushed out and burned or ground up and removed.
Stored carbon is lost from the orchard site.
Woody debris incorporated into soils could increase organic matter, enhance carbon sequestration, and improve soil quality and tree yield.
The objective of this project was to compare the grinding up of whole trees with burning as a means of orchard removal.
Twenty-two rows of an experimental orchard were used in a randomized blocked experiment with two main treatments, whole tree grinding and incorporation into the soil versus tree pushing and burning.
The whole tree grinding did not stunt replanted tree growth.
Sampling from plots showed elevated levels of fungal and bacterial feeding nematodes (Tylenchidae) associated woody soil aggregates in the grind treatment.
Fungal mycelium was readily observed colonizing woody aggregates and more basidiomycetes (mushrooms) were observed in the grind plots.
Yields were determined in 2011 and 2012 and there were no differences between the grind and burn treatments.
In 2010, more carbon, organic matter, and a greater cation exchange capacity were initially observed in the burned plots, but by 2012 the grind plots had significantly more calcium, manganese, iron, magnesium, boron, nitrate, copper, electrical conductivity, organic matter, total carbon, and organic carbon.
The soil pH was significantly less in the grind treatment plots.
Authors
B.A. Holtz, D.A. Doll, G. Browne
Keywords
carbon sequestration, carbon recycling, plant nutrition
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