Like every industry, modern farming relies heavily on plastics. Think plastic mulch lining vegetable beds, PVC pipes draining water from fields, polyethylene covering high tunnels, and plastic seed, fertilizer, and herbicide ...
Environment
Aug 24, 2023
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Researchers have found that the plastic mulch used to support the growth of Californian strawberries sheds large quantities of plastic mulch fragments. These particles have been shown to negatively impact soil qualities, ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 9, 2023
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132
During the growing and harvest seasons, vegetable producers often begin their day before sunrise and finish as the last light is seeping into the horizon. These long days are normal but varied. Challenges such as pests, disease, ...
Ecology
Sep 22, 2022
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5
Plastic film mulching has been applied globally in various agricultural settings and inevitably disintegrates into microplastics (MPs, which are less than 5 mm in size) due to a series of natural and artificial forces. However, ...
Ecology
Jun 7, 2022
0
8
The use of plastic mulch (plastic covering on crop lines) is a widespread technique used in agricultural regions in order to increase the profitability of the crops. According to the European Commission, 100,000 tons of plastic ...
Environment
Dec 9, 2020
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15
When you think of China, do you think of potatoes? Maybe not, but in the Loess Plateau region of northwestern China, potato is the main food crop.
Environment
Nov 28, 2018
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10
Microplastics in the ocean, pieces of plastic less than 5mm in size, have shot to infamy in the last few years. Governments and businesses targeted microbeads in cosmetics, some were banned, and the world felt a little better.
Environment
May 21, 2018
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5
How do you boost soil water content and soil health without irrigating? Best cover it with a layer of straw, a new study concludes.
Environment
Apr 25, 2018
1
37
Nonreflective plastic mulches have been shown to increase early and total yield in tomato, benefits most often attributed to increased soil temperatures that enhance roots' ability to assimilate nutrients such as phosphorus, ...
Ecology
Oct 11, 2016
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0
The Mexican bean beetle (Epilachna varivestis) has flown under the research radar too long, despite the fact that it has been ravaging U.S. crops for almost a century, according to Louis Nottingham, lead author of a newly ...
Ecology
Feb 2, 2016
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