The end of the growing season in orchards is a time when you need to prepare trees for the winter rest and ensure optimal conditions for the start of the new season. One of the important practices during the period after harvesting and leaf fall is the application of biologicals, such as Ecostern through drip irrigation. This method makes the precise delivery of beneficial microorganisms to the root zone.
Ecostern contains life cells of bacteria Bacillus subtilis, Agrobacterium, Enterococcus and fungi Trichoderma lignorum and Trichoderma viride. The total number of viable cells is 2 2.5x109 CFU/cm3.These microorganisms activate the vital soil processes of effective decomposition of crop residues, enrichment of organic matter and available elements of plant nutrition, and neutralization of allelochemicals.In this article, we will show you the crucial benefits of using Ecostern.
Making fall time such treatments have several important objectives:
1. Decompsition of plant residues:
Microorganisms in Ecostern can accelerate the decomposition of organic matter and this gives a positive result in increasing the percentage of humus in the soil, as well as the rapid development of soil microflora. The presence of a large amount of good microflora has a cumulative effect, which you will see already in the new season.
2. Preparation trees for the winter rest:
The application of biological products helps to prepare trees for the winter period by providing them with substances that are produced by microorganisms in the product. This effect can be achieved by stimulating the production of phytohormones and phytoalexins which increase resistance stresses. When the plant has all nutrients and hormones in the needed quantity, this helps cells get stronger and the immune system works on the prevention of stress factors. So, in wintertime plants are stronger and will not get frozen because of hormones. On the other hand, in springtime, the plant will get juicy quickly. That`s a crucial benefit of Ecostern.
3. Improving physical and chemical properties of the soil
Active ingredients of Ecostern promote structural improvement of the soil, increasing its ability to retain moisture and stimulating the development of beneficial microflora, which plays a key role in soil health and productivity.
4. Increasing bioavailability of nutrients
Phosphate – soluble bacteria dissolve phosphates, making them available to the plants. This is especially important in conditions of limited phosphorus availability, which is one of the key elements for plant growth.
5. Strengthening plant immune system
Biological active substances produced by bacteria can enhance plant resistance to stress factors. This effect can be achieved by stimulating the production of phytohormones and phytoalexins, which increase resistance to stress factors.
BTU Biotech company has a lot of research and feedback from farmers and agricultural companies that have used Ecostern. And here we want to share with you that using Ecostern in drip irrigation at the end of the season has a wide range of positive effects on soil and plants.
The application rate is 2 l/ha. But you need to pay attention to the general volume of water that you used for 1 ha. That means that you need to divide the hectare watering volume into 3 stages:
On 1st stage you`ll water the black stripe in the orchard and in this case, bacteria will start working quicker and will have positive conditions for working.
The 2nd one is applying the preparation with a limited amount of water, making a good concentration of Ecostern.
The 3rd is the latest stage when we wash from pipes the leftovers of preparation and try to wash them into the soil.
In the trial which was held in Serbia, we used a combination of Bio decomposer Ecostern (2 l/ha) + PK Mobilizer Groundfix (3 l/ha) during the season. The impact of Ecostern was significant. We saw an increase of positive microflora in the soil in comparison to the control treatment. After making soil analyses, we saw a high increase of saprotrophic species in the soil and rising of mobile phosphorus and potassium. In comparison to control the increase of microorganisms was 14,9 %
Overall, using Ecostern in drip irrigation is an effective method of ensuring soil and plant health, as well as increasing the yield and quality of apples. This treatment helps maintain biological balance in the soil and improves the ability of plants to adapt to stress conditions.
Author: Serhii Drap, Horticulturist of BTU