Application of Mulching Materials in Horticulture and Orchards

Dear Colleagues,

Sustainable weed control is a worldwide challenge. Herbicide use is a widespread technique in many crops, but few active ingredients are available for minor crops, including many horticultural products. Concern for human health has resulted in herbicide use being queried in horticulture because of the consumption of leaves, stems or fruits, which may be directly exposed to these products.

Herbicides are commonly used in orchards under the tree lines in many parts of the world. Additionally, in these crops, there have been gradual cutbacks in available herbicide active ingredients, especially in Europe, and even less products will be available in future. Moreover, the efficacy of the remaining products is decreasing due to the growing problem of herbicide resistance. Mechanical control in the first few years of plantations under the trees might damage young trees and is labor intensive.

Mulches are a commonly used solution for weed control in some areas, e.g., in processing tomato, but are still under development in other crops. Besides weed control, they may also contribute to saving irrigation water by reducing evaporation and may increase yields by regulating the soil temperature and crop environment.

The most popular materials for mulching have been low-density polyethylene and more recently different biodegradable films intended to reduce plastic waste after harvest, with the same advantages. Organic materials, such as straw, are also used but mostly in small-sized farms. Living mulches are undersown plants with the main crop growing with them; in northern European countries attention has been paid to these mulches, but they have been less studied in other areas.

In this Special Issue, we welcome the submission of original research papers related to any of the different mulching techniques used in vegetable crops and orchards: plastic mulches, biodegradable mulches, organic mulches (bark, straw, etc.), as well as living mulches. Review papers on these topics are also welcome.

Dr. Alicia Cirujeda
Dr. Gabriel Pardo
Prof. Dr. Marta María Moreno
Prof. Lluis Martin Closas
Guest Editors

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• weed control
• soil temperature regulation
• plastic mulches
• biodegradable mulches
• paper mulches
• bark
• straw
• other organic mulches
• living mulches