Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Loose and Compressed Wood Chip Mulch in Field-Grown Blueberries—A Preliminary Study

Abstract

Blueberry production in the field faces several challenges, including competition from weeds and soil suitability. Different mulch types are widely used in blueberry cultivation to control weeds, conserve moisture, and mitigate soil erosion. However, the comparative effects of loose and compressed wood chips on fruit quality and weed control in blueberry production systems have not been studied. Many farmers use expensive imported peat moss as soil covers, while others apply organic mulches such as chips or chaff, which can be easily washed away by runoff. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of compressed mulching boards (MB) fabricated without the use of chemical adhesives using pressurized steam and compression technologies in blueberry cultivation. During the two growing seasons, the effectiveness of compressed MB on soil moisture retention, fruit quality, and weed biomass was compared to that of wood chip (WC) and control treatments in a blueberry field. Although a significant difference was observed in the fruit fresh weight, no significant differences were observed in the other fruit growth parameters for all the treatments. Generally, the compressed MB significantly improved soil moisture retention capacity compared to WC and control during the two-year study. The compressed MB showed effective weed suppression ability by significantly reducing the weed biomass at all sampling times.

Long-Term Effects of Plastic Mulch in a Sandy Loam Soil Used to Cultivate Blueberry in Southern Portugal

“…This uptake is inversely proportional to particle size. Soil moisture, in particular, and weed competition for water and nutrients may have a tremendous negative effect on blueberry fruit yield [13]; therefore, mulching is a common agricultural practice to reduce these abiotic and biotic plant stresses.…”

Stabilization of shapes and dimensions of compressed wood using chemical and physical methods

“…Nevertheless, there are developments in this direction. They are effectively used to preserve the geometry and dimensional parameters of compressed wood [9][10][11]. In Russia, China and other countries, the processes of applying technologies for saturation of soft hardwood with an aqueous solution of carbamide in combination with pressing and drying [12] are developing dynamically.…”

Evaluation of the yield of highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) cultivars and their economic efficiency on commodity plantations in Poland in the years 2020–2022

“…In research on highbush blueberry cultivation, in addition to economic and market conditions, natural, technological, and cultivation aspects that affect plant yield are widely considered 2 . From a review of Polish and foreign literature [Krzewińska et al 2010, Komosa et al 2017, Tryngiel-Gać and Treder 2017, Masłowska et al 2018, Jiang et al 2019, Piencek and Kukuła 2020, Hera et al 2021, Messig et al 2021, Merca (Laieș) et al 2021, Smrke et al 2021, Lenart et al 2022, Appiah et al 2023, Tartanus et al 2023 show that blueberry yields depend both on the cultivar grown, soil conditions and weather factors prevailing in a given year, as well as on the agrotechnical practices used in cultivation, i.e. irrigation, fertilisation, mulching, pruning or plant protection, among others.…”