Used plastic materials as mulches: An alternative to conventional black plastic mulch for small and marginal farmers

Publication date: Available online 7 February 2019Source: Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Parts A/B/CAuthor(s): Jitendra Sinha, Radhika Sahu, R.K. Sahu, G.K. NigamAbstractThe return of ladies finger (okra) to the joint effect of drip irrigation and mulches is very encouraging. The most common types of mulch are the black plastic mulch (BPM), which is commercially produced by industry but does create environmental problems and increased cost of production particularly for small and marginal farmers. On the other hand, food materials and fertilizers etc. are available and sold in plastic bags. Can we make REUSE of these plastic bags in preparing low cost mulching system for small and marginal farmers? With this in view a field experiment was carried out during the year 2017 at Department of Soil and Water Engineering, Swami Vivekanand College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology & Research Station, Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Raipur, Chhattisgarh, India. The research experiment was performed in a split plot design on clay loam soil during summer season (February to May) for growing okra. Levels of irrigation were assigned based on crop evapotranspiration (ETc). The effect of four irrigation levels viz. 60% ETc, 80% ETc, 100% ETc and 120% ETc with drip under black plastic mulch (BPM) and different types used plastic material as mulch viz. used reddish rice bag mulch (RBM), used whitish wheat flour bag mulch (WFBM), used white fertilizer bag mulch (FBM) were s...
Source: Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Parts ABC - Category: Science Source Type: research