Application of eco-friendly practices alternative to soil chemical fumigation: preliminary results on strawberry

Profitable strawberry cultivation on replanting soil is jeopardized by the accumulation of soilborne pathogens and nematodes from previous plantings. In the European strawberry industry, fumigation with a chloropicrin and 1,3-dichloropropene (1,3 D) mixture is widely applied to disinfest the soil pre-planting, although allowed under limited authorizations since these chemicals have been banned in the EU. In view of the definitive banning, it is of outmost importance to offer strawberry growers natural and sustainable alternatives, from the environmental, technical and economical point of view. In the framework of the Friendly Fruit project funded by EIT Climate-KIC (2018-2021), a trial was established in 2018 in Scanzano Jonico (Southern Italy, 40°25’N; 16°42’E), in a commercial farm growing strawberries under tunnel. Two eco-friendly practices, i.e., the anaerobic soil disinfestation (ASD) and the bio-fumigation with biocide plants (BIOFUM), were tested against the chloropicrin + 1,3-D fumigation practice (STANDARD) and the UNTREATED control and their effectiveness evaluated in terms of plant growth, yield ha^‑1 and fruit marketable quality. The cultivar tested was ‘Sabrosa^®’, planted at a density of 7.2 plants m^‑2. Although both eco-friendly practices provided better results as compared to the UNTREATED, the marketable yield losses as compared to the STANDARD ranged 20 to 39%, depending on the treatment. Average fruit weight was highest in the STANDARD and lowest in the UNTREATED, with the ASD and BIOFUM placed in an intermediate position. Based on the preliminary results, ASD practice looks more promising than BIOFUM as alternative to STANDARD fumigation.