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Influence of plant growth-promoting bacteria and green manures on the degreeof weed infestation in Triticum spelta in organic farming
The Use of a Composition of Bacterial Consortia and Living Mulch to Reduce Weeds in Organic Spring Barley Cultivation as an Element of Sustainable Plant Production
Weed infestation of cereal crops in organic farming is becoming a serious problem in agriculture. Sustainable agriculture requires the search for and implementation of crop management techniques that will reduce weeds without negatively impacting the environment. This research refers to the principles of integrated plant protection in sustainable agriculture, allowing the use of chemical plant protection products to be limited to the absolute minimum. Technology for growing spring barley based on the use of bacterial consortia in combination with living mulch (LM) can be an interesting approach to this problem. The aim of this three-year field research was to determine the effects of bacterial consortia and LM on the level of weed infestation in the organic spring barley crop. Two factors were tested in the experiment: bacterial consortia factors: control (without bacterial consortia); 1—Bacillus megaterium var. phosphaticum and Arthrobacter agilis; 2—Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, and Pseudomonas fluorescens; and LM: control (without LM); red clover; red clover + Italian ryegrass; and Italian ryegrass. This research demonstrated that the bacterial consortia tested significantly reduced both the biomass and number of weeds, including the following dominant weeds: Chenopodium album, Sinapis arvensis, Elymus repens, and Tripleurospermum inodorum. The use of LM also significantly reduced the weed infestation of spring barley stands. The lowest biomass and number of weeds, with the exception of Elymus repens, were recorded on objects with LM Italian ryegrass in spring barley in combination with bacterial consortium 2. The introduction of cultivation with LM Italian ryegrass or its mixture with red clover and the use of bacteria should be recommended for the practice of sustainable agriculture, which will reduce weeds through an ecological method.
Effect of plant growth-promoting bacteria and undersown crops on the total protein content of spring barley grain grown in organic agriculture
Combination of cover crops and bacterial consortia reduce weediness in organic spelt wheat in Central Europe
Cultivation technologies based on the use of microbiological preparations or the introduction of cover crops in organic farming are alternatives to chemical plant protection products. To confirm this hypothesis, field studies were conducted in central Poland in 2019–2022 to determine the effect of bacterial consortia and green fertilizers from cover crops on the dry mass, abundance and species composition of dominant weed species occurring in spelt wheat grown in organic farming. Two factors were researched: I. Bacterial consortia: control treatment (no bacteria), bacterial consortium I (Azotobacter chroococcum + Azospirillum lipoferum Br17), bacterial consortium II (Bacillus megaterium var. phosphaticum + Arthrobacter agilis), bacterial consortium III (Azotobacter chroococcum + Azospirillum lipoferum Br17 + Bacillus megaterium var. phosphaticum + Arthrobacter agilis), II. Cover crops: control treatment (no cover crops), red clover, red clover + Italian ryegrass, and Italian ryegrass. Spelt wheat was harvested in late July. Just before harvesting, weeds were sampled to determine their dry matter, number, and species composition. The research clearly demonstrated that the application of bacterial consortia with cover crops significantly reduced the dry matter and number of weeds, including the dominant species. The greatest reduction in weed number was recorded in treatments after the application of bacterial consortium III in combination with plowing cover crops of red clover and a mixture of red clover and Italian ryegrass.