The pulp and paper industry generates large quantities of bark and wood waste (BWW), most of which is disposed of at bark dumps. There are dozens of such dumpsites in Russia, some of which cause negative environmental impacts due to their proximity t...
Due to the fact that compost is a valuable fertilizer that serves principally as a source of macronutrients, composting is one of the preferred methods of management of organic waste, including municipal sewage sludge. However, due to its high moistu...
31 March 2023
Searching for alternative low-cost biosorbents for the removal of textile dyes from wastewater is currently an important subject of research. In this work, we have investigated how the presence of other contaminants in textile wastewaters can affect...
Rooting substrate and fertilization are key components in the production of containerized seedlings, as they can influence the morphological and physiological characteristics of the plants, which in turn can impact outplanting performance. The object...
Substrate is a factor that significantly influences the quality and production costs of nursery seedlings. The objective of this study was to evaluate combinations of peat moss, composted pine bark, and fresh pine sawdust in order to identify the pro...
The pulp and paper industry leads to the formation of significant amounts of bark and wood waste (BWW), which is mostly dumped, causing negative climate and environmental impacts. This article presents an overview of methods for recycling BWW, as wel...
Managing plant fertilization is a major concern of greenhouse growers to achieve sustainable production with growing media (GM). Organic fertilization is popular but is more difficult to control, since organic compounds need first to be mineralized b...
Utilization of composts as low-cost adsorbents is an important application in the field of environmental remediation, but these materials have not yet been extensively used for dye removal. In this work, we have studied the characteristics of adsorpt...
The composting of sewage sludge (SS) with structure-forming additives is a popular and inexpensive method for the management of biodegradable waste. During this process, a number of transformations of organic matter and nutrients occur. This study pr...
The aim of the current study was to create a high quality growing medium blend that replaces 70 vol% peat with 40 vol% woody green compost and 30 vol% bark compost and organic fertilizers (i.e., blood meal and chitin), all locally sourced. A range of...
Application of organic amendments to soil is commonplace in domestic gardening. However, a vast array of materials could be labelled as ‘compost’ by retailers and suppliers. We investigated six different amendments currently used, or available for us...
The characterization of compost compositions on the basis of sewage sludge and structural materials (straw, sawdust, bark) composting is described. A comparison of the methods most often used for composting and characterization of structural material...
The purpose of this study was to develop substrates with little or no peat by combining coir-based growing media with municipal compost and/or acacia biochar, two locally produced renewable resources, and to assess their effects on lettuce seedling e...
Plant biomass in the form of waste materials and by-products from various industries can be a valuable material for the production of composts and growing media for urban gardening. In this study, pulp and paper mill sludge, fruit-vegetable waste, mu...
Sewage sludge in natura is rich in nutrients, water, and organic matter and is essential for plant development. However, sewage sludge is diluted with water when composted, which could hamper plant growth. Therefore, supplementation with chemical fer...
The use of municipal solid waste compost (MSW) and biochar, two renewable resources with a low carbon footprint as components of substrates, may be an alternative to reducing peat and coir usage. The aim of this study was to assess the suitability of...
Commercial forest plantations in Chile are dominated by pine (Pinus radiata) and eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus). Tree bark is the main by-product of the forestry industry and has low value, but great potential for use as an agricultural substrate....
29 September 2022
For this experiment, pelletized activated biochar made of rice hullsor palm bark with swine manure compost was prepared to demonstrate the significant benefits of applying activated biochar-manure compost pellet fertilizer (ABMCP) inmitigating volati...
A 20-year study of a pine stand on post-agricultural land showed that woody debris in the form of organic matter can be successfully used to restore symbiotic mycorrhizal communities, as is the case with forest soils. Woody substrates restored organi...
Enhancing the sustainability of growing media is an important objective in soilless vegetable cultivation. Here, we evaluated the potential of pine bark to replace perlite in coir-based substrates for lettuce (Lactuca sativa L. cv. ‘Godzilla&rs...
Interspecific hybrids of E. grandis × E. camaldulensis were generated to widen the plantation area. The aim of this study was to assess root capability and development for six different clones of eucalyptus grown in substrates made with three d...
This research aimed to assess the influence of reusing coir-based substrates on growth, nutrient content, and phytonutrients accumulation in lettuce. The experiment included a new coir pith and four coir-based mixes (1) coir, biochar, and perlite; (2...
In this study, a “green composite” material made from 60% tree bark and 40% polylactic acid (PLA) was fabricated and evaluated according to its mechanical properties and biodegradability. Biodegradation tests were performed in compost, si...
Afforestation of former agricultural land poses a real challenge for foresters because soil life is often severely limited by the loss of natural soil fungal diversity. In addition, former agricultural soils have low levels of fungal species typical...
21 August 2019
This study aimed to assess the efficiency of removal of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from process gases from a food industry plant in East Poland, producing high-quality animal (goose, duck, and pig) and vegetable fats, using a two-stage method...
Container-grown nursery crops are commonly exposed to root zone stress due to inadequate moisture and supraoptimal root zone temperature (RZT). Compost substrates can improve water and nutrient retention but plant responses can vary due to physical a...
The aim of the research is to assess changes in odour concentration in the ventilated air of a production hall, using different types of biofilter fillings and different types of membranes. Deodorisation was carried out using a mobile combined biofil...
This study aimed to explore alternative substrates for growing forest species using eucalyptus bark. It evaluated the potential of extracted Eucalyptus globulus fiber bark as a substitute for commercial growing media such as coconut fiber, moss, peat...
Popillia japonica Newman (Japanese beetle) is an invasive, polyphagous pest in North America, as adults feed on plant foliage and larvae on roots. Management in crops relies on foliar and soil applications of insecticides, but entomopathogenic nemato...
The aim of the study was to assess the bioaerosol removal efficiency by a semi-technical scale combined biofilter used to treat waste gas from a food industry plant. Two types of biofilter beds were tested: stumpwood chips and pine bark (CB) and stum...
Traditional methods to deal with thinning shreds (twigs, bark, etc.) include using them as fuelwood (artificially taken out of the forest) and stacking in situ natural decompositions (slow decomposition and nutrient return to the field). These method...
This study assessed the effect of different lignocellulosic amendments and bulking agents on compost stability (based on a 4 day respiration activity test, AT4, and self-heating factor, SHF) and maturity (based on the nitrification index Initr and th...
Three semi-technical scale biofilters were applied to treat waste gases at different industrial sites in Poland: a mechanical–biological treatment plant of municipal solid waste, a wastewater treatment plant and a food industry plant. Two types...
Peat is the major constituent of horticultural growing media. Due to its high climate footprint, its extraction and use are controversial and the need to limit its use is widely recognised. The Peat Use Reduction Strategy of the German government aim...
Endophytic prokaryotes, bacteria, and archaea, are important microorganisms that benefit host plants by promoting plant growth and reducing stress. The objective of this study was to evaluate temporal shifts in the root endophytic prokaryotic communi...
Although known as causes of community-acquired pneumonia and Pontiac fever, the global burden of infection caused by Legionella species other than Legionella pneumophila is under-recognised. Non-L. pneumophila legionellae have a worldwide distributio...
Cadmium is a non-essential element for proper plant growth and development and is highly toxic to humans and animals, in part because it inters with calcium-dependent processes in living organisms. For this reason, a study was conducted to assess the...
Materials used to replace peat in growing media include wood fibre (WF), often used in combination with composted bark (BC), coir (CR), green compost (GC), and anaerobic digestate fibre (AD). The physical and chemical properties of these materials ar...
As the utilization and consumption of lignocellulosic biomass increases, so too will the need for an adequate supply of feedstock. To meet these needs, novel waste feedstock materials will need to be utilized. Exploitation of these novel feedstocks w...
In view of the increasing environmental pollution caused by bisphenol A (BPA), understanding its impact on the microbiological properties of soil, which play a key role in maintaining soil fertility and consequently ecosystem stability, is particular...
There is a need for plant growing media that can support a beneficial microbial root environment to ensure that optimal plant growth properties can be achieved. We investigated the effect of five rhizosphere bacterial community inocula (BCI S1–...
The increased demand for food and the challenge for space for agriculture production in urban centers have made the vertical growth system an interesting trend. Agriculture is no longer only the horizontal, traditional, and soil grown method. Urban a...
As part of the multifaceted strategies developed to shape the common environmental policy, considerable attention is now being paid to assessing the degree of environmental degradation in soil under xenobiotic pressure. Bisphenol A (BPA) has only bee...
Container production of landscape plants requires reliably consistent and affordable substrates with properties suitable for a wide range of species. Native plant production often requires additional considerations when determining ideal substrates f...
Particular attention is paid to biodegradable materials from the environmental point of view and antimicrobial materials that ensure the microbiological safety of packaged products. The aim of the work was to study the properties of the composition,...
Biofilters are an effective air pollution control technology to break down gaseous contaminants and produce innocuous end products. This laboratory study aimed to evaluate a biofilter media, mainly composed by tomato waste, as packing material to red...
Biochar (BC) is a material that has many applications in agricultural and environmental activities. The aim of the study was to define the influence of BC produced in low-temperature pyrolysis from various organic waste materials, including one-month...
The physical properties of growing media are dependent on the morphological characteristics of the particles composing them. Thus, their characteristics can be more precisely altered for specific purposes by a better morphological design of materials...
The application of organic amendments to contaminated agricultural lands can immobilize metals and improve soil conditions. The chemical structures and long-term stability of commercial humic substances and other composted organic amendments (sheep a...
Batik has become more desirable in the current fashion mode within the global market, but the environmental damage induced by this fabric’s synthetic dye practices is a matter of concern. This study aimed to discuss the application of organic m...
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