The aim of the study was to determine the population density and group composition of soil mites (Acari), and especially species composition of oribatid mites (Oribatida), in rhizoboxes with apple trees, and to investigate the potential effect of biopreparations on the Acari fauna. The investigations were conducted in 2011-2012, on the basis of a glasshouse experiment established at the Institute of Horticulture in Skierniewice in 2009. The acarological examinations were carried out in rhizoboxes with apple cultivars ‘Topaz' and ‘Ariwa' grafted on M.26 rootstock and growing in the following combinations: C - control (without fertilization), N - mineral fertilization (standard NPK mineral fertilization, in doses of 70/60/120 kg of respective ingredient per hectare), O - fertilization with manure (at 30 t/ha), M - application of the biopreparation Mycosat (20 g/plant + ½ dose of manure, i.e. 2.5 g per rhizobox), H - application of the biopreparation Humus Active 2% + Aktywit PM 1%.The average total number of soil mites in the different experimental combinations was in the range from 10.70 (combination C) to 12.97 thousand indiv. ∙ m-2 (combination N). Within the hierarchy of mites, the predominant group were oribatid mites, which constituted from 73.9 ...
The aim of the research was to determine the population density and group composition of soil mites (Acari), and in particular the species composition of oribatid mites (Oribatida), on strawberry plantations mulched with wood chips. Field studies were conducted in the experimental field of the Institute of Horticulture in Skierniewice in 2011-2012. The plots selected for examination were mulched with wood chips as follows: ZC - chips without additives, ZT - chips with the addition of the biopreparation TSB (unidentified Gram-negative rod bacteria), ZG - addition of the biopreparation 7GII (unidentified Actinobacteria). The control plot was a patch of grass near the experimental plots.On the plots examined, the most abundant were oribatid mites, 16.11-18.84 thousand indiv.∙m-2. They accounted for 64.3% of all the mites in the grass patch, but significantly more of them (86.8-89.5%) were found on the strawberry plantations mulched with wood chips. A total of 17 species of oribatid mites were identified on the strawberry plots, but only 9 in the nearby patch of grass. Punctoribates punctum dominated in the grass-covered soil, while the dominant species in the mulched soil were Ramusella mihelcici or Tectocepheus velatus (depending on the experimental combination) .The high abundance and species diversity of ...
The study was conducted in the experimental field of the Institute of Horticulture in Skierniewice, on strawberry plantations mulched with wood chips and in a nearby patch of grass. Seasonal dynamics (in spring, summer, and autumn) of the occurrence of soil mites (Acari), especially of oribatid mites (Oribatida), were studied on 6 occasions during the seasons in 2011-2012.Already in the first season of the study, high numbers of mites - 26.91 thousand indiv. • m-2, were found in the mulched soil of the strawberry plantations. Among these arachnids, the predominant group were oribatid mites (98.2%). The density of mites, especially of the Oribatida, in the wood chips during the vegetative period was more uniform than in the grass patch. The mulch used in the experiment provided favourable environmental conditions for the development of most Oribatida species.There were 12 species of Oribatida found on the strawberry plantations, and 9 in the nearby grass patch. The number of species in the grass-covered soil ranged from 5 to 8 in the successive seasons. In the wood chips, by comparison, there were 7 taxa at the beginning of the study, and at the end of the cycle the number increased to 11. The differences ...
The effects of bacterial and fungal inocula on the growth, yielding, and nutritional status of apple trees was evaluated in 3-years experiment (2018 - 2020). The experiment included the following treatments: (i) control (unfertilized soil), (ii) no fertilization + soil application of fungi, (iii) no fertilization + soil application of bacteria. The mixture of beneficial fungi contained two species: Aspergillus niger and Purpureocillium lilacinum. The mixture of beneficial bacteria contained three strains of Bacillus (Bacillus sp., Bacillus amyloliquefaciens and Paenibacillus polymyxa). The application of beneficial microorganisms (especially bacterial strains) to the soil (without additional mineral fertilization) enhanced the growth of the apple trees. In the third year of the study (2020), the trees grown in the plots inoculated with bacteria bloomed the most intensively. Plant nutritional status (expressed as concentrations of elements in leaves) was not affected by the application of the bacterial strains or filamentous fungi. The stronger growth of trees in the plots where the bacteria were used was likely related not so much to the nutritional status of the trees, but to the mitigation of the influence of the negative factors that cause the replant disease. ...
The study was conducted in the Pomological Orchard of the Research Institute of Horticulture in Skierniewice on a plantation of blackcurrant cultivar ‘Tiben'. The following variants of the experiment were applied: control - NPK fertilization only, mulching with a peat substrate, shredded pine bark, sawdust of coniferous trees, bovine manure, plant compost, straw of cereals, and application of mycorrhizal inoculant MYKOFLOR. Mulching was performed each year in the spring in an amount of 25 dm3 per plot, and the inoculum was applied in an amount of 10 ml per shrub. Samples for acarological examinations were collected at 4 times, in the spring and autumn of successive seasons in 2012-2013. An increase in the overall density of mites, in comparison with the control surface, was observed after mulching the soil with sawdust of coniferous trees and plant compost. On all the plots, the communities of mites were dominated by mites of the order oribatid mites. For these mites, a statistically significant increase density was recorded after mulching the soil with sawdust of coniferous trees, bovine manure and plant compost. Mulching did not increase significantly the species diversity of oribatid mites. The soil of the blackcurrant plantation was found to be inhabited ...
The study was conducted in 2011-2012 by using litter bags on microplots in a forest soil under a canopy of trees, in optimal environmental conditions for most mites. The aim of the study was to analyze the colonization by mites of wood chips after application of two biopreparations containing cellulose-degrading bacteria. The experiment was conducted in the following variants: WC - control wood chips, WB I - chips after application of bacterial inoculum I (an unidentified G(-) rod-bacterium, Bacillus sp.) and WB II - chips after application of bacterial inoculum II (Streptomyces sp.). To maintain the optimum moisture level, the microplots were irrigated by means of microsprinklers. The highest average population density of mites in the two-year series of tests was found in the control chips: 42.28 individuals per 50 cm3. In the chips treated with the biopreparations, the density of these arthropods was lower, but the differences were not statistically significant. Dominant among the mites were mostly oribatid mites. Altogether, 34 species of oribatid mites were found in all the experimental variants. The most species (30) were found in the control variant, and fewer in the chips treated with the biopreparations - 27-26. Among the oribatid mites, Tectocepheus velatus ...
