Natural volcanic tuff as a soil mulching: effect on plant growth and soil chemistry under water stress

Abstract

Abstract Efficient water management in agricultural sector necessitates the manipulation of all possible options for water supply and demand management methods. The purpose of this study was to determine the usefulness of using natural volcanic tuff as a soil mulching on plant and soil properties under different water levels. The experiments were performed using 1-year-old olive transplants planted in barrels filled with silty clay soil. Half of the barrels were covered with a coarse volcanic tuff, while the other samples were remained without covering and considered as control. The two sets of barrels were irrigated with four levels of water which correspond to 75%, 65%, 55%, and 45% of the field capacity. The treatments were arranged in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Results revealed that plant height, number of branches, trunk diameter, shoots length, shoot diameter, number of leaves, and plant weight for soil covered with volcanic tuff were significantly greater than control plants after the fifth growing season. The leaf water potential and relative water content of plants grown in mulched soil were significantly greater than those of control. An increase in nutrient contents of soil and plant tissues was found as a result of soil amendment with volcanic tuff. In summary, a positive influence of volcanic tuff additions on olive growth, leaves water status, and soil nutrient levels was determined.

Keywords

• Mulching
• Zeolite
• Olive tree
• Water conservation
• Volcanic tuff