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Semi-arid conditions are favorable for the cultivation of late ripening peach cultivars; however, seasonal water scarcity and reduction in soil biological fertility, heightened by improper soil management, are jeopardizing this important sector. In the present two-year study, four soil managements were compared on a late ripening peach orchard: (i) completely tilled (control); (ii) mulched with reusable reflective plastic film; (iii) mulching with a Leguminosae cover-crop flattened after peach fruit set; (iv) completely tilled, supplying the water volumes of the plastic mulched treatment, supposed to be lower than the control. Comparison was performed for soil features, water use, tree functionality, fruit growth, fruit quality, yield and water productivity. Even receiving about 50% of the regular irrigation, reusable reflective mulching reduced water loss and soil carbon over mineralization, not affecting (sometimes increasing) net carbon assimilation, yield, and fruit size and increasing water productivity. The flattening technique should be refined in the last part of the season as in hot and dry areas with clay soils and low organic matter, soil cracking increased water evaporation predisposing the orchard at water stress. The development and implementation of appropriate soil management strategies could be pivotal for making peach production economically and environmentally sustainable.
Pasquale Losciale; Liliana Gaeta; Luigi Manfrini; Luigi Tarricone; Pasquale Campi. Orchard Floor Management Affects Tree Functionality, Productivity and Water Consumption of a Late Ripening Peach Orchard under Semi-Arid Conditions. Applied Sciences 2020, 10, 8135 .
AMA StylePasquale Losciale, Liliana Gaeta, Luigi Manfrini, Luigi Tarricone, Pasquale Campi. Orchard Floor Management Affects Tree Functionality, Productivity and Water Consumption of a Late Ripening Peach Orchard under Semi-Arid Conditions. Applied Sciences. 2020; 10 (22):8135.
Chicago/Turabian StylePasquale Losciale; Liliana Gaeta; Luigi Manfrini; Luigi Tarricone; Pasquale Campi. 2020. "Orchard Floor Management Affects Tree Functionality, Productivity and Water Consumption of a Late Ripening Peach Orchard under Semi-Arid Conditions." Applied Sciences 10, no. 22: 8135.
Microclimatic and soil management studies emphasize that roofing above the canopy or soil mulching contributes to reduce water losses from horticultural cropping systems and, at the same time, to increase water use efficiency. The aim of this 2-year on-farm study, carried out on a late ripening peach (cv. California) orchard, was to investigate the combined effect of water supply (full or deficit irrigation, DI), incoming light (hail or shading net), and soil management (tilling or mulching) on: microclimate; fruit growth; yield; irrigation water use productivity (WPI); and soil water stress coefficient (Ks). Shading hail net reduced air temperature (−1°C), wind speed (−57%), solar radiation (−32%), while increased relative air humidity (+9.5%). Compared to the control treatment (hail net coverage, soil tillage, and full irrigation), the innovative management (DI + shading hail net + mulching) reduced seasonal volumes of irrigation water (−25%) and increased both final yield (+36%) and WPI (+53%). Saving water resources without losing yield is an achievable goal by peach orchards growing under the Mediterranean climate if the DI agro-technique is adopted conjointly with shading hail net and soil mulching.
Pasquale Campi; Liliana Gaeta; Marcello Mastrorilli; Pasquale Losciale. Innovative Soil Management and Micro-Climate Modulation for Saving Water in Peach Orchards. Frontiers in Plant Science 2020, 11, 1052 .
AMA StylePasquale Campi, Liliana Gaeta, Marcello Mastrorilli, Pasquale Losciale. Innovative Soil Management and Micro-Climate Modulation for Saving Water in Peach Orchards. Frontiers in Plant Science. 2020; 11 ():1052.
Chicago/Turabian StylePasquale Campi; Liliana Gaeta; Marcello Mastrorilli; Pasquale Losciale. 2020. "Innovative Soil Management and Micro-Climate Modulation for Saving Water in Peach Orchards." Frontiers in Plant Science 11, no. : 1052.
Liliana Gaeta; A.M. Stellacci; P. Losciale. Comparison between two methods of estimation of chilling and heat requirements for flowering in almond. Acta Horticulturae 2018, 135 -142.
AMA StyleLiliana Gaeta, A.M. Stellacci, P. Losciale. Comparison between two methods of estimation of chilling and heat requirements for flowering in almond. Acta Horticulturae. 2018; (1229):135-142.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLiliana Gaeta; A.M. Stellacci; P. Losciale. 2018. "Comparison between two methods of estimation of chilling and heat requirements for flowering in almond." Acta Horticulturae , no. 1229: 135-142.
Liliana Gaeta; Anna Maria Stellacci; Pasquale Losciale. Evaluation of three modelling approaches for almond blooming in Mediterranean climate conditions. European Journal of Agronomy 2018, 97, 1 -10.
AMA StyleLiliana Gaeta, Anna Maria Stellacci, Pasquale Losciale. Evaluation of three modelling approaches for almond blooming in Mediterranean climate conditions. European Journal of Agronomy. 2018; 97 ():1-10.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLiliana Gaeta; Anna Maria Stellacci; Pasquale Losciale. 2018. "Evaluation of three modelling approaches for almond blooming in Mediterranean climate conditions." European Journal of Agronomy 97, no. : 1-10.
ISHS COST Cherry FA1104 Working Group 2 Cherry Phenology, Modelling and Climate Change Use of phenoclimatic models to estimate the chill and heat requirements of four sweet cherry cultivars in Italy
Francesco Paolo Marra; G. Bassi; Liliana Gaeta; D. Giovannini; M. Palasciano; S. Sirri; T. Caruso. Use of phenoclimatic models to estimate the chill and heat requirements of four sweet cherry cultivars in Italy. Acta Horticulturae 2017, 57 -64.
AMA StyleFrancesco Paolo Marra, G. Bassi, Liliana Gaeta, D. Giovannini, M. Palasciano, S. Sirri, T. Caruso. Use of phenoclimatic models to estimate the chill and heat requirements of four sweet cherry cultivars in Italy. Acta Horticulturae. 2017; (1162):57-64.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Paolo Marra; G. Bassi; Liliana Gaeta; D. Giovannini; M. Palasciano; S. Sirri; T. Caruso. 2017. "Use of phenoclimatic models to estimate the chill and heat requirements of four sweet cherry cultivars in Italy." Acta Horticulturae , no. 1162: 57-64.
M. Palasciano; Liliana Gaeta. Comparison of different models for chilling requirements evaluation of sweet cherry cultivars in a Mediterranean area. Acta Horticulturae 2017, 405 -410.
AMA StyleM. Palasciano, Liliana Gaeta. Comparison of different models for chilling requirements evaluation of sweet cherry cultivars in a Mediterranean area. Acta Horticulturae. 2017; (1161):405-410.
Chicago/Turabian StyleM. Palasciano; Liliana Gaeta. 2017. "Comparison of different models for chilling requirements evaluation of sweet cherry cultivars in a Mediterranean area." Acta Horticulturae , no. 1161: 405-410.
P. Losciale; Liliana Gaeta. The use of local promising almond cultivars as an adaptation strategy against water scarcity. Acta Horticulturae 2017, 341 -348.
AMA StyleP. Losciale, Liliana Gaeta. The use of local promising almond cultivars as an adaptation strategy against water scarcity. Acta Horticulturae. 2017; (1150):341-348.
Chicago/Turabian StyleP. Losciale; Liliana Gaeta. 2017. "The use of local promising almond cultivars as an adaptation strategy against water scarcity." Acta Horticulturae , no. 1150: 341-348.