Abstract
Soil degradation caused by water erosion in sloping hop gardens is definitely a serious issue because the space in inter-rows is without plant residues for most of the year in traditional cultivation. Cover crops in inter-rows of hop gardens and their efficiency in soil conservation are assessed in this article. There is only little research available in this area, and our data bring unique information on water erosion in hop gardens. Technologies with different types of cover crops were always compared with the conventional cultivation. The research was conducted within the years 2016–2020. A field rainfall simulator was used to determine the soil conservation effectiveness of selected technologies. The simulated rainfall was performed in two stages of cover crops growth with the main aim to measure the overall soil loss. The outcomes from the measurements confirmed that cover crops in inter-rows of hop gardens protect the soil surface from falling raindrops and significantly (P-value < 0.05) reduce soil loss. It can be concluded that this technology had a soil conservation effect already one month after sowing, and it is a basis for sustainable agricultural management on sloping hop gardens.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.