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Yesterday we announced the newly-published update of <a href="https://attra.ncat.org/" title="https://attra.ncat.org/">
ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture</a>'s publication <a href="https://attra.ncat.org/product/strawberries-organic-production/" title="https://attra.ncat.org/product/strawberries-organic-production/">
Strawberries: Organic Production</a>. In that publication, author and NCAT Agriculture Specialist Martin Guerena discusses soil solarization, anaerobic soil disinfestation (ASD), and biosolarization techniques for controlling insects, diseases, nematodes, and
weeds in the field. Below is an excerpt briefly describing each method---perhaps one of these techniques could work for your fruit or vegetable production.</div>
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"The technique known as solarization consists of laying clear plastic mulch on moist soil. Heat is trapped under the
<div>plastic, raising the soil’s temperature and killing or debilitating pests. Usually, this soil pasteurization process takes four to six</div>
<div>weeks, but the amount of time depends on many factors, such as rain, wind, day length, soil texture, and the quality of the</div>
<div>polyethylene mulch. Ultraviolet-protected plastic makes it possible to remove and re-use the mulch.</div>
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<div>Anaerobic soil disinfestation (ASD) is a biological process that occurs when saturated soils are tarped with an incorporated</div>
<div>organic-matter source. Microorganisms deplete the oxygen and convert carbon into fumigant-like toxins. The process of ASD</div>
<div>for strawberry production is as follows:</div>
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<div>• Broadcast organic matter (compost, green waste, or pomace) or disk down a cover crop.</div>
<div>• Incorporate the organic matter into the soil.</div>
<div>• Form beds and lay down drip tape.</div>
<div>• Cover the beds with plastic mulch.</div>
<div>• Irrigate using the drip tape until soil is saturated.</div>
<div>• Wait two to six weeks (depends on climate, soil type, and if irrigation needs to be repeated to achieve anaerobic conditions).</div>
<div>• Punch holes in the plastic, let it air out, then plant.</div>
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<div>Biosolarization combines solarization with anaerobic soil disinfestation (ASD), which only takes one week, compared to the four</div>
<div>to eight weeks for solarization and two to six weeks for ASD with black plastic. ASD creates temporary anaerobic conditions</div>
<div>in the soil that encourage anaerobic microorganisms that break down available carbon sources, producing organic acids,</div>
<div>aldehydes, alcohols, ammonia, metal ions, and volatile organic compounds that are toxic or suppressive to soil pests and</div>
<div>diseases (Momma, 2008; Dominguez et al., 2014; Huang et al., 2015; van Agtmaal et al., 2015; Achmon et al., 2017). Research</div>
<div>conducted in Spain and California has demonstrated that solarization has potential as a component in an IPM program for</div>
<div>root diseases in strawberry production (Hartz et al., 1993; Pinkerton et al., 2002; Dominguez et al., 2014)."</div>
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<div>For more details <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">on solarization and biosolarization, check the ATTRA tipsheet
<a href="https://attra.ncat.org/product/solarization-tipsheet/" title="https://attra.ncat.org/product/solarization-tipsheet/">
Soil Solarization and Biosolarization</a></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">. You can contact Martin and other ATTRA agriculture specialists by calling 800-346-9140 or emailing askanag@ncat.org.</span></div>
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<div>You can also send questions to this listerv! Your fellow farmer-veterans and the service providers on this list are great sources of information and insight. Simply email vetsinag@lists.ncat.org.</div>
<div>Have a great week!</div>
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<div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Best regards,</span></div>
<div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Robyn</span></div>
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<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"><b><span style="color:rgb(0,111,201)">Robyn Metzger</span></b></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">Program Specialist/Armed to Farm Coordinator</p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT)</p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"><a href="http://www.ncat.org/armedtofarm" class="OWAAutoLink">www.ncat.org/armedtofarm</a></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;"><a href="http://www.attra.ncat.org" class="OWAAutoLink">www.attra.ncat.org</a></p>
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">479-442-9824<br>
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