POTENTIAL EXPLOITATION OF Eucalyptus AND Pinus SOILS AS ALTERNATE SOURCES OF NURSERY MEDIA IN TEA - AN EXAMPLE OF SUSTAINABLE NATURALRESOURCE MANAGEMENT.
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31357/fesympo.v0i0.1492Abstract
Tea nurseries require large amounts of soils to cater the plant requirement for newplanting, replanting and infilling. Conventionally, soils from natural forests and Mana(Cymbopogon confertiflorus) lands are being used. At present, land use laws, populationincrease, housing and diversification etc. make these soils scarce in both plantation andsmall holder sectors. Therefore, this study explored the potentials of Eucalyptus, Pinusand old tea soils as alternative nursery soil resources found in the proximity of tea areasand also known to have caused environmental degradation.
Eucalyptus and Pinus soils were significantly deficient in organic matter, Nand C:Nratio compared to that of forest, Mana and old tea soils. All soil sources possessedfavourable soil physical properties and pH levels for tea propagation but no plantpathogenic nematode populations.
Callus formation in Eucalyptus and Pinus soils was similar to forest soils which wassignificantly greater than that of Mana and old tea soils. Interestingly, Pinus soilsexhibited early callusing; forest soils lead longer and greater root biomass of nursery teaplants followed by Eucalyptus and Pinus soils.
Therefore, these results confirmed the potentials of harnessing Eucalyptus and Pinussoils as alternative sources for tea propagation owing to solve the practical limitationswith use of forest and Mana soils as well as possible dissemination of soil bornepathogens with use of old tea soils. The study also opens avenues for maximizingutilization of natural resources of introduced plantation forests in the vicinity of teagrowing areas for agricultural purposes.
Attributes for early callusing and root growth observed with Eucalyptus and Pinus soilsare being investigated at present. Studies on overall nursery performance of tea, costbenefit and environmental impact assessments due to large-scale use of such soils arealso underway for further confirmation.
