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Biochar, a carbon-rich, fine-grained residue obtained from pyrolysis of biomass, is known to improve soil conditions and to suppress infection by soilborne pathogens. However, its use as a soil amendment has received relatively little attention by the horticulture industry. Two 12-week experiments were conducted in a greenhouse to determine the potential of using biochar, produced from mixed conifers during conversion of wood to energy, as a soil amendment for highbush blueberry (Vaccinium hybrid 'Legacy'). Plants in the first experiment were fertilized once a week with a complete fertilizer solution, whereas those the in the second experiment were fertilized once a month with a solution of ammonium sulfate. In both cases, the plants received the same amount of N in total and were grown in pots filled with unamended soil (sandy loam) or soil amended at rates of 10% or 20%, by volume, with biochar or a 4:1 mix of biochar and bokashi (biochar-bokashi). The bokashi was produced from fermented rice (Oryza sativa L.) bran and was added to increase nutrients in the amendment. Half of the plants in each soil treatment were inoculated with Phytophthora cinnamomi Rands, which causes root rot in blueberry. Although pH of the raw biochar was high (8.5), soil pH averaged 4.5 to 5.5 in each treatment. In the absence of P. cinnamomi, plants grown with 20% biochar or 10% or 20% biochar-bokashi had greater leaf area and 30% to 70% more total dry weight than those grown with 10% biochar or in unamended soil. Biochar also improved soil aggregation and increased root colonization by ericoid mycorrhizal fungi. The percentage of roots colonized by mycorrhizal fungi was 54% to 94% in plants grown with the amendments, but was £10% in those grown in unamended soil. Plants inoculated with P. cinnamomi were stunted and showed typical symptoms of root rot. Root infection by the pathogen was unaffected by biochar or biochar-bokashi and negated any growth benefits of the amendments. Overall, amending soil with biochar appears to be a promising means of promoting plant growth and mycorrhizal colonization in blueberry, but it may not suppress phytophthora root rot. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study was conducted in a new field of northern highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L. 'Elliott') to determine the effects of different irrigation methods on growth and water requirements of uncropped plants during the first 2 years after planting. The plants were grown on mulched, raised beds and irrigated by sprinklers, microsprays, or drip at a rate of 50%, 100%, and 150% of the estimated crop evapotranspiration (ETc) requirement. After 2 years, drip irrigation at 100% ETc produced the most growth among the irrigation methods with at least 42% less water than needed for maximum growth with microsprays and 56% less water than needed with sprinklers. Drip irrigation also maintained higher soil water content in the vicinity of the roots than the other methods but reduced growth when plants were over-irrigated at 150% ETc. Only 570 mm of irrigation water, or the equivalent of 1320 L per plant, was required over two seasons to reach maximum total plant dry weight with drip, whereas 980 mm or more water was needed with sprinklers and microsprays. Consequently, irrigation water use efficiency (defined as the difference in plant biomass produced under irrigated and rain-fed conditions divided by the total amount of irrigation water applied) was significantly higher with drip than with the other irrigation methods, averaging 0.41 g of total dry weight per liter of drip irrigation. In terms of both growth and water use, drip irrigation was the best and most efficient method to establish the plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We compared growth patterns and morphology of fine roots of size-controlling and invigorating peach (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch) rootstocks. Peach trees were grafted on five rootstocks: a vigorous control (Nemaguard), three intermediate vigor rootstocks (K119-50, P30-135 and Hiawatha), and a semi-dwarfing rootstock (K146-43). Minirhizotron tubes were installed at the base of trees on each rootstock and root images captured with a minirhizotron digital camera system. Number, visible length, and diameter of new roots were recorded at fixed soil depths from April 19, 2000 to December 19, 2001. Root diameter, specific root length, root tissue density and root length density were also measured periodically for each rootstock on roots collected from in-growth cores. Rootstocks had similar seasonal patterns of new root production. Fine root production was lowest in winter and appeared to decline during the final stages of fruit growth. A rootstock with almond in its genetic background (K119-50) produced the greatest quantity of fine roots and had the greatest number of new roots below 69 cm, whereas there were no differences among the other four rootstocks in the total number of roots produced. Rootstock K146-43 had thicker fine roots than the other rootstocks. Independent of rootstock, fine roots produced during spring had greater specific root length than those produced later in the season. The seasonal pattern of fine root production did not appear to be associated with the previously reported effects of these dwarfing rootstocks on shoot growth and stem water potential early in the growing season. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 2-year trial was established in Oct. 2016 in western Oregon to evaluate the effects of various in-row mulch treatments on the establishment of northern highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L. 'Duke'). The treatments included douglas fir [Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco] sawdust, black weed mat (woven polypropylene groundcover), green weed mat, and sawdust covered with black or green weed mat. Soil temperature was unaffected by the color of the weed mat, but it was often higher during the day in beds with weed mat mulch than in those with sawdust alone or sawdust covered with weed mat. Black or green weed mat also resulted in higher canopy temperatures, particularly when sawdust was underneath the weed mat. Plant growth was mainly unaffected by the color of the weed mat, and the maximum depth of the root system was similar among the mulch treatments. However, plants grown with sawdust mulch, with or without weed mat, had a greater canopy width and volume in year 2, a wider root system in both years, and more dry weight (DW) in the crown in year 1 and in the whips in year 2 than those with weed mat alone. Furthermore, plants with weed mat over sawdust were taller in year 1 and had greater canopy cover and more DW in new wood in year 2 than those with sawdust alone, and they had a larger canopy, more root development, and greaterDWin the crown, new and old wood, fruit, and pruning wood in one or both years than those with weed mat alone. Over the course of the 2 years of the study, the net gain in total plant DW was lowest when the plants were grown with black weed mat and highest when they were grown with black weed mat over sawdust. Although it was more expensive initially, the use of weed mat over sawdust resulted in more plant growth than weed mat alone due to the insulating properties of the sawdust, and it was more effective for weed control than using sawdust alone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One deciduous cultivar of Rhododendron L., Gibraltar (AZ), and two evergreen cultivars, P.J.M. Compact (PJM) and English Roseum (ER), were grown in containers for 1 year to determine the effects of irrigation frequency during container production on plant performance the next spring when the plants were transplanted into the landscape. While in the containers, each cultivar was irrigated once or twice daily, using the same amount of water per day, and fertilized with complete nutrient solutions containing 0,35, 70, or 140 mg-L-1 nitrogen (N). Three months after transplanting into the landscape, nutrient uptake, growth, and flowering were evaluated. In general, the effects of irrigation frequency in containers on performance in the landscape differed between the deciduous cultivar and the evergreen cultivars. In AZ, less frequent irrigation in containers had a pre-conditioning effect that resulted in greater vegetative growth in the landscape but less reproductive growth. In contrast, less frequent irrigation reduced vegetative growth of evergreen cultivars in the landscape and improved flowering. Different growth responses to irrigation frequency between deciduous and evergreen cultivars appeared to be related to differences in timing of nutrient uptake and mobilization. In the deciduous cultivar, less frequent irrigation increased nutrient reserves and improved the ability of the plants to absorb and use nutrients after transplanting, but in the evergreen cultivars, it generally decreased nutrient uptake after transplanting. Less frequent irrigation also altered plant attributes that are important to consumers, including developing a sparser canopy in ER and a fuller canopy in PJM, and producing more but smaller inflorescences in both cultivars. Landscape performance was related to plant nutrition in containers; however, irrigation frequency in containers disrupted relationships between nutrition and performance in all three cultivars. Our results indicate that irrigation frequency during container production of Rhododendron results in a tradeoff between vegetative and reproductive growth the next spring when the plants are in the landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Weed management practices were evaluated in a new field of trailing blackberry (Rubus L. subgenus Rubus Watson) established in western Oregon. The field was planted in May 2010 and certified organic in May 2012. Treatments included two cultivars, Marion and Black Diamond, grown in 1) non-weeded plots, where weeds were cut to the ground just before harvest; 2) hand-weeded plots, hoed two to three times per year; and 3) weed mat plots, covered with black landscape fabric. Each treatment was fertilized with fish emulsion and irrigated by drip. Weeds increased from 2010 through 2012 in both non-weeded and hand-weeded plots and required 38 and 90 h⋅ha-1 of labor to remove the weeds in the latter treatment in 2011 and 2012, respectively. Weeds in weed mat plots, in comparison, were confined primarily to the planting holes in the fabric and required only 1 h⋅ha-1 of labor for weed removal each year. Blackberry growth, in terms of number and dry weight of the primocanes, was similar among treatments during the first year after planting but differed with cultivar and weed management the next season. In 2011, 'Black Diamond' produced shorter but an average of three more primocanes per plant than 'Marion', whereas plants in hand-weeded and weed mat plots produced nearly twice as many primocanes as non-weeded plots. Hence, when fruit were produced on floricanes (the previous year's primocanes) for the first time in 2012, 'Black Diamond' had 15% more yield than 'Marion', and weed control increased yield by 67% with hand-weeding and 100% with weed mat, on average. 'Black Diamond' and weed control also produced larger berries (measured as average individual fruit weight) with a greater water content but a lower soluble solids concentration. So far, of the three practices studied, weed mat was best suited to organic production of blackberries. The initial cost of the weed mat was far less than the cost of hand-weeding during the first 3 years after planting, and after only one season of fruit production, the yield benefit of weed mat provided enough profit to warrant its use over no weeding or hand-weeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of nitrogen (N) fertilizer application on plant growth, N uptake, and biomass and N allocation in highbush blueberry {Vaccinium corymbosum L. 'Bluecrop') were determined during the first 2 years of field establishment. Plants were either grown without N fertilizer after planting (0N) or were fertilized with 50,100, or 150 kgha-1 of N (50N, 100N, 150N, respectively) per year using 15N-depleted ammonium sulfate the first year (2002) and non-labeled ammonium sulfate the second year (2003) and were destructively harvested on 11 dates from Mar. 2002 to Jan. 2004. Application of 50N produced the most growth and yield among the N fertilizer treatments, whereas application of 100N and 150N reduced total plant dry weight (DW) and relative uptake of N fertilizer and resulted in 17% to 55% plant mortality. By the end of the first growing season in Oct. 2002, plants fertilized with 50N, 100N, and 150N recovered 17%, 10%, and 3% of the total N applied, respectively. The top-to-root DW ratio was 1.2,1.6,2.1, and 1.5 for the ON, 50N, 100N, and 150N treatments, respectively. By Feb. 2003, ON plants gained 1.6 g/plant of N from soil and pre-plant N sources, whereas fertilized plants accumulated only 0.9 g/plant of N from these sources and took up an average of 1.4 g/plant of N from the fertilizer. In Year 2, total N and dry matter increased from harvest to dormancy in ON plants but decreased in N-fertilized plants. Plants grown with ON also allocated less biomass to leaves and fruit than fertilized plants and therefore lost less DW and N during leaf abscission, pruning, and fruit harvest. Consequently, by Jan. 2004, there was little difference in DW between ON and 50N treatments; however, as a result of lower N concentrations, ON plants accumulated only 3.6 g/plant (9.6 kgha -1) of N, whereas plants fertilized with 50N accumulated 6.4 g/plant (17.8 kg⋅ha -1), 20% of which came from 15N fertilizer applied in 2002. Although fertilizer N applied in 2002 was diluted by non-labeled N applications the next year, total N derived from the fertilizer (NDFF) almost doubled during the second season, before post-harvest losses brought it back to the starting point. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]