Effects of Living Grass Mulch on Soil Properties and Assessment of Soil Quality in Chinese Apple Orchards: A Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Soil degradation has exacerbated the gap between crop yield and increasing food demands, and unreasonable field management is one of the main reasons for soil degradation. As a classic orchard soil management mode, living grass mulch can effectively change the hydrothermal environment and soil physicochemical properties of the ‘soil–vegetation–atmosphere’ microclimate of apple orchards. However, these improvement effects are mainly affected by climatic conditions, mulch methods, vegetation varieties and continuous grass-growing years. To evaluate the different effects of living grass mulch and the main influencing factors on soil physicochemical properties of apple orchards in China, in this study, we conducted a meta-analysis using data from 53 peer-reviewed publications to carry out soil quality assessment. The results showed that compared with clear tillage, continuous living grass mulch in apple orchards could improve soil function and performance by about 56% and increase soil enzyme activities by 10–120%, on average, whereas the soil organic matter under the effect of artificial grass and natural grass significantly increased by 29.6% and 14.6%, respectively. Artificial grass in temperate and warm, temperate, semi-humid climate regions had a greater overall improvement effect on the soil physicochemical environment than natural grass. Clover was found to be the most suitable for planting in apple orchards in temperate, semi-humid climate regions, whereas both clover and ryegrass were the best choices in warm, temperate, semi-humid climate regions. The interaction effects of different soil physicochemical properties in apple orchards in warm, temperate, semi-humid climate regions were greater than those in warm, temperate, arid climates and temperate, semi-humid climate regions. The response sensitivity of soil organic matter, organic carbon, urease, catalase, sucrose and cellulase to the living grass mulch effect of apple orchards was greater than that of other soil properties.

Effects of Different Mulching Practices on Soil Environment and Fruit Quality in Peach Orchards

“…Of note, the HV treatment had a more significant impact on nitrogen-related indicators (TN, AN, DTN, NO 3 − -N, NH 4 + -N). Similarly, Tang et al [ 43 ] reported that white clover mulch significantly increased the soil TN content in apple orchards, while ryegrass had no significant effect. This phenomenon is attributed to the fact that both hairy vetch and white clover are leguminous crops and have strong nitrogen fixation capabilities [ 44 ].…”

Experiment and meta-analysis on the effects of grass cultivation in the orchard on fruit yield and quality

“…(4) Grass cultivation in orchards has the function of adjusting the soil temperature. The large-scale changes in the external ambient temperature can be blocked by the grass, thereby reducing the temperature fluctuation of the soil surface, which is conducive to the growth of fruit tree roots (Hao et al, 2021;Tang et al, 2022b).…”

The Responses of a Grapevine Rhizosphere System to Mulching Using Amplicon Sequencing and Transcriptomic Analysis

“…In addition, soil-enzyme activity responded to mulching treatments, and CAT, sucrose, and cellulase were more sensitive to mulching treatments than to other soil properties [35]. Beta-glucosidase activity is one of the most sensitive and reliable indices for assessing soil quality [36].…”