Organic substrate for transplant production in organic nurseries. A review

Abstract

A transplant can be defined as a seedling or sprouted vegetative propagation material grown in a substrate or in the field, for transfer to the final cropping site. Nurseries use a range of growing media in the production of transplants, and the quality of a substrate may be defined in terms of its feasibility for the intended use and also according to the climatic condition of the production site. Peat is the worldwide standard substrate, but because of its origin and the increasing environmental and ecological concerns, new alternatives have been proposed for organic production. Here, we reviewed these new alternatives, assuming that the proposed growing media will need to respond in a proper way to specific plant requirements while also taking them into consideration to be environmental friendly, at the same time. Appropriate composting management combined with suitable feedstock material can produce substrates with adequate properties to develop transplants. Potential added-value benefits of particularized compost have been highlighted, and these include suppressiveness or capacity for plant pathogen control, biofertilization, and biostimulation. This added value is an important point in relation to the framework of organic agriculture because the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides is limited. Different permitted fertilizers are proposed by incorporating them by dress fertilization before planting or by foliar fertilization or fertigation during the seedling production phase. In this context, specific beneficial microorganism inoculation demonstrates better and quicker nutrient solubilization. Its inclusion during seedling production not only facilitates plant growth during the germination and seedling stages but also could bring efficient microorganisms or beneficial microorganisms to the field with the transplants. This review will help to bridge the gap between the producers of compost and the seedling plant producers by providing updated literature.

Suitability of biosolids from university sewage ponds as a substrate for crop production

“…Similarly, the increasing trend of water holding capacity of the substrate with increased organic matter indicates the important property of organic matter in water retention for plant use in favour of biosolids application. In line with this study, Pascual et al (2018) reported that easily available water in a substrate should range from 20 to 30%. These results were found to be with the ideal water holding capacity of 40-65% that corresponds with water retention of 25-30% (Abad et al, 2001).…”

Effects of Substrate and Exogenous Auxin on the Adventitious Rooting of Dianthus caryophyllus L.

“…Cocopeat is widely used as a component of nursery substrates (Salvador et al, 2005) because of its relatively high waterholding capacity and good cation exchange capacity. Perlite has very low bulk density and high porosity to supply aeration (Bunt, 1988;Pascual et al, 2018). A mixture of these two compositions is commonly used in soilless culture.…”

Biostimulants research in some horticultural plant species—A review

“…Biostimulants such as Radifarm ® may help tomato roots develop during plantlet growth, especially when growing conditions at this stage are not optimal for young plants (Parađiković, Vinković, Teklić, Guberac, & Milaković, ; Table a). By definition, a transplant is a seedling or sprouted vegetative propagation material grown in a substrate or in a field which is supposed to be transferred to the final cropping site (Pascual et al., ). After this process, the transplants enter a very sensitive growth period—they have to adapt to new environmental conditions, which may slow down their growth and development.…”

“…Nowadays, horticultural production has to cope with the increasing challenges of meeting high productivity with global demands for environment‐friendly crop management practices. In organic agriculture, the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides is limited (Pascual et al., ), so there is a need for different plant amendments suitable for such production. In the face of degraded agricultural areas and uncertainties related to the changing climate, biostimulants use can be an interesting option.…”