VG00048 Brassica Green Manure Update 16

Field trials have shown that biofumigant green manure crops can increase marketable yields of lettuce crops by reducing Tipburn, Bacterial rot, and Sclerotinia disease.

The benefits appear to depend on local soil conditions and the type of green manure crop used.

The following article describes field studies conducted into the successful use of biofumigant green manure crops to control soil borne disease..


Authors

Hoong Pung

Sue Cross

Dennis Patten

VG00048 Brassica Green Manure Update 16
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Biofumigants BQ-Mulch and Fumus significantly reduced the percentage of plants with Sclerotinia wilt .

BQ-Mulch appeared more effective than Fumus in reducing wilted plants. Oats and broad beans had little or no effect.

Fumus reduced the incidence of tipburn and/or bacterial rot in lettuce, improving marketable yield.

Brassica biofumigation products BQMulch
and Fumus appear to have little
effect on the sclerotia viability in the soils but inhibit the mycelial growth of
the pathogen instead.

The noticeable improvement of the poor clay loam soil structure, with reduced crusting
and cracking of soil surface and better water infiltration, especially in the BQ-Mulch plots, may be due to the slow decay of these manure crops.

These trials were conducted as part of a three-year project funded by the vegetable
growers’ levy and Horticulture Australia Ltd.

Plant analysis of isothiocyanates was
conducted by Mark Shackleton at CSIRO Entomology, Perth.


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