Olive Processing Waste as a Method of Weed Control for Okra, Faba Bean, and Onion

Abstract

Field experiments were carried out during two growing seasons at Adnan Menderes University, Faculty of Agriculture, in Aydın-Turkey to evaluate the weed control efficacy of olive processing waste (OPW) in okra, faba bean, and onion. OPW was incorporated into the soil prior to seeding at 10, 20, 30, and 40 tons (t)/ha. Non-treated plots and plots treated with trifluralin in okra and pendimethalin in faba bean and onion were used for comparison. OPW suppressed common purslane, redroot pigweed, and junglerice in okra; littleseed canarygrass, annual bluegrass, wild chamomile, and shepherd's-purse in faba bean and onion. OPW was in most cases equally as effective as soil herbicides; however, 10 t/ha provided sometimes lower efficacy than herbicides. OPW had no negative effects on okra and faba bean, while onion was negatively affected by doses over 30 t/ha. Overall, OPW can be applied at 10 to 20 t/ha doses for weed control with adequate crop safety.

The phytotoxicity potential of olive processing waste on selected weeds and crop plants

“…Ghosheh et al (1999) demonstrated that OPW could be used for control of an important parasitic weed species, Orobanche spp., in pot experiments. In a recent study Boz et al (2009) showed that OPW suppresses effectively some important winter and summer weeds, including A. retroflexus, and that OPW showed no harmful effect on V. faba, so that the results recorded here confirm those in the other study.…”

“…Similar recommendations were made also following some other studies. In our earlier work it was observed that OPW reduced the number of P. oleracea significantly Boz et al 2003Boz et al , 2009. In another study, water extracts of olive mill waste reduced the germination of A. retroflexus by more than 90% and the germination of S. nigrum by 48-90%, whereas the germination of C. album and S. halepense was not decreased (Cayuela et al 2008).…”

“…The soil in this study had a pH value of 7.33 and an EC (electrical conductivity) value of 1,290 mS (milliSiemens) cm −1 . The characteristics of the OPW used in the experiment were as follows (Boz et al 2009): total salt content, 0.062% (non-saline); pH=5.07; organic material comprised 28.96%, and nitrogen comprised 22.42%. The OPW also included phosphorus at 261 ppm, potassium at 495 ppm, calcium at 265 ppm, magnesium at 1,185 ppm, sodium at 131 ppm, iron at 1,883 ppm, zinc at 371 ppm, and manganese at 563 ppm.…”

“…Ghosheh et al (1999) demonstrated that olive jift could be used for control of Orobanche in pots. In our previous studies it was observed that OPW reduced the number of Portulaca oleracea under field conditions significantly Boz et al 2003). Similarly Cayuela et al (2008) determined the phytotoxic effect of extracts from OPW and compost on some weeds, such as Amaranthus retroflexus and Solanum nigrum.…”

Annual spreading of olive mill wastewater over consecutive years: Effects on cultivated soils' physical properties

“…It was further suggested that OMW could be considered as a useful, low-cost soil amendment and fertilizer (Chartzoulakis, Psarras, Moutsopoulou, & Stefanoudaki, 2010;Gargouri et al, 2013;Hanifi & El Hadrami, 2008;Laor et al, 2011;Tomati, Galli, Fiorelli, & Pasetti, 1996), although OMW application caused a drastic reduction in soil mineral-N indicating net N immobilization (Karpouzas et al, 2010). OMW showed its potential to serve as environmental friendly bio-herbicide (Boz, Dogan, & Albay, 2003;Boz, Ogüt, Kir, & Dogan, 2009), and finally, in regions having low soil organic matter (SOM) content and consequently low soil fertility, OMW can serve as a readily available organic matter (OM) source.…”