Abstract
Organic farming has been regarded as an alternative solution for both agricultural sustainability and human health maintenance. Few researches have concentrated on the differences of biodiversity and eco-economic benefits between organic and conventional orchards. Organic management (OM) of orchards mainly includes taking advantage of natural enemies and beneficial weeds as well as soil organisms and controlling harmful pests. Here we conducted a three-year experiment on the effects of managing biodiversity in an organic apple orchard, using cattle manure to enrich soil biota, propagating native plant to suppress weeds and applying ecological pest management to control pests. The effect was assessed against the conventional management (CM) model. We found that OM enhanced soil organic carbon, total nitrogen, microbial biomass carbon and nitrogen. The 16S rDNA high-throughput sequencing results indicated that the dominant bacterial phyla of the top soil were Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria, and OM had richer bacteria diversity with a 7% higher Shannon's index than the CM. In particular, the relative abundance of rhizobium in the OM was higher than that of the CM. For OM, Duchesnea indica was an ideal ground-cover plant to control weeds through winning the niche competition and thus decreased weeds' Simpson, Shannon-Wiener and Pielou index by 38.2%, 53.8% and 16.9% separately. The phototactic pests' weight and scarab beetle's population were effectively decreased by 35% and 86% respectively through long time control and prevention. OM had an average of 20 times more earthworms than CM, and the maximum density had reached 369 m(-2) (0-20 cm soil). The dominant earthworm species of the OM were detritivores which preferring soil with high organic matter content. Due to no synthetic chemicals being used, the OM produced much safer apple fruits which were sold at high prices. Economically, up to a 103% increase of output-input ratio had been achieved in the OM. Our study clearly demonstrated that biodiversity management without chemical pollution increased the biodiversity of beneficial organisms, reduced antagonists of the fruit tree, and enhanced economic benefits of the apple orchard.
Abstract from the paper’s OpenAlex record; open copy licensed cc-by. Read at the source ↗
The text the model read, with the source record’s inline markup (italics, sub- and superscripts) rendered and its character entities decoded; quote offsets refer to the raw text.
Claims 15
Claim · model-written summary
Organic management increased soil organic carbon and total nitrogen in the apple orchard.
- Taxon
- apple
Malus domesticae1 - Treatment
- OMe0
- Outcome
- soil organic carbon, total nitrogene0
- Direction
- enhancede0
- Comparator
- conventional management (CM) modele2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“We found that OM enhanced soil organic carbon, total nitrogen, microbial biomass carbon and nitrogen.”
e1“organic apple orchard”
e2“conventional management (CM) model”
Claim · model-written summary
Organic management increased soil microbial biomass carbon and nitrogen.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae1
- Treatment
- OMe0
- Outcome
- microbial biomass carbon and nitrogene0
- Direction
- enhancede0
- Comparator
- conventional management (CM) modele2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“We found that OM enhanced soil organic carbon, total nitrogen, microbial biomass carbon and nitrogen.”
e1“organic apple orchard”
e2“conventional management (CM) model”
Claim · model-written summary
Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria dominated orchard topsoil bacteria.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae1
- Interactor
- ProteobacteriaPseudomonadotae0other
- Second interactor
- ActinobacteriaActinomycetotae0other
- Outcome
- dominant bacterial phyla of the top soile0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the dominant bacterial phyla of the top soil were Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria”
e1“organic apple orchard”
Claim · model-written summary
Organic management produced 7% higher soil bacterial Shannon diversity than conventional management.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae1
- Treatment
- OMe0
- Outcome
- Shannon's indexe0
- Direction
- highere0
- Value
- 7%e0
- Comparator
- CMe0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“OM had richer bacteria diversity with a 7% higher Shannon's index than the CM.”
e1“organic apple orchard”
Claim · model-written summary
Rhizobium relative abundance was higher under organic management.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae1
- Treatment
- OMe0
- Outcome
- relative abundance of rhizobiume0
- Direction
- highere0
- Comparator
- CMe0
RhizobiumOrganisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the relative abundance of rhizobium in the OM was higher than that of the CM.”
e1“organic apple orchard”
Claim · model-written summary
Duchesnea indica ground cover reduced weed Simpson index by 38.2%.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae1
- Treatment
- Duchesnea indicae0
- Interactor
- weedse0weed
- Second interactor
- Duchesnea indica
Potentilla indicae0other - Outcome
- weeds' Simpsone0
- Direction
- decreasede0
- Value
- 38.2%e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Duchesnea indica was an ideal ground-cover plant to control weeds through winning the niche competition and thus decreased weeds' Simpson, Shannon-Wiener and Pielou index by 38.2%, 53.8% and 16.9% separately.”
e1“organic apple orchard”
Claim · model-written summary
Duchesnea indica ground cover reduced weed Shannon-Wiener index by 53.8%.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae1
- Treatment
- Duchesnea indicae0
- Interactor
- weedse0weed
- Second interactor
- Duchesnea indicaPotentilla indicae0other
- Outcome
- Shannon-Wienere0
- Direction
- decreasede0
- Value
- 53.8%e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Duchesnea indica was an ideal ground-cover plant to control weeds through winning the niche competition and thus decreased weeds' Simpson, Shannon-Wiener and Pielou index by 38.2%, 53.8% and 16.9% separately.”
e1“organic apple orchard”
Claim · model-written summary
Duchesnea indica ground cover reduced weed Pielou index by 16.9%.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae1
- Treatment
- Duchesnea indicae0
- Interactor
- weedse0weed
- Second interactor
- Duchesnea indicaPotentilla indicae0other
- Outcome
- Pielou indexe0
- Direction
- decreasede0
- Value
- 16.9%e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Duchesnea indica was an ideal ground-cover plant to control weeds through winning the niche competition and thus decreased weeds' Simpson, Shannon-Wiener and Pielou index by 38.2%, 53.8% and 16.9% separately.”
e1“organic apple orchard”
Claim · model-written summary
Ecological pest control reduced phototactic pest weight by 35%.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae1
- Treatment
- ecological pest managemente2
- Interactor
- phototactic pestse0pest
- Outcome
- phototactic pests' weighte0
- Direction
- decreasede0
- Value
- 35%e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The phototactic pests' weight and scarab beetle's population were effectively decreased by 35% and 86% respectively through long time control and prevention.”
e1“organic apple orchard”
e2“applying ecological pest management to control pests”
Claim · model-written summary
Ecological pest control reduced scarab beetle population by 86%.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae1
- Treatment
- ecological pest managemente2
- Interactor
- scarab beetlee0pest
- Outcome
- scarab beetle's populatione0
- Direction
- decreasede0
- Value
- 86%e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The phototactic pests' weight and scarab beetle's population were effectively decreased by 35% and 86% respectively through long time control and prevention.”
e1“organic apple orchard”
e2“applying ecological pest management to control pests”
Claim · model-written summary
Organic management had twenty times as many earthworms as conventional management.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae1
- Treatment
- OMe0
- Interactor
- earthwormsCrassiclitellatae0other
- Outcome
- earthwormse0
- Direction
- moree0
- Value
- 20 timese0
- Comparator
- CMe0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“OM had an average of 20 times more earthworms than CM, and the maximum density had reached 369 m(-2) (0-20 cm soil).”
e1“organic apple orchard”
Claim · model-written summary
Maximum earthworm density under organic management reached 369 m(-2).
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae2
- Interactor
- earthwormsCrassiclitellatae1other
- Outcome
- maximum densitye0
- Value
- 369 m(-2)e0
- Qualifier
- 0-20 cm soile0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the maximum density had reached 369 m(-2) (0-20 cm soil).”
e1“OM had an average of 20 times more earthworms than CM”
e2“organic apple orchard”
Claim · model-written summary
Detritivores dominated earthworms under organic management.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae1
- Interactor
- earthwormCrassiclitellatae0other
- Outcome
- dominant earthworm species of the OM were detritivorese0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The dominant earthworm species of the OM were detritivores which preferring soil with high organic matter content.”
e1“organic apple orchard”
Claim · model-written summary
Organic management produced safer apple fruits that sold at high prices.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae0
- Treatment
- OMe0
- Outcome
- safer apple fruitse0
- Direction
- safere0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Due to no synthetic chemicals being used, the OM produced much safer apple fruits which were sold at high prices.”
Claim · model-written summary
Organic management increased orchard output-input ratio by up to 103%.
- Taxon
- appleMalus domesticae1
- Treatment
- OMe0
- Outcome
- output-input ratioe0
- Direction
- increasee0
- Value
- 103%e0
- Comparator
- conventional management (CM) modele2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Economically, up to a 103% increase of output-input ratio had been achieved in the OM.”
e1“organic apple orchard”
e2“conventional management (CM) model”
The same questions in other papers
cultivation system · ecology: diversity · Malus domestica (apple)Positive and negative results
1 paper in the same direction as this paper · 1 reporting no difference from an alternative
- no effect
- positive
cultivation system · nutrient: content · Malus domestica (apple)Positive and negative results
1 paper in the same direction as this paper · 2 in the opposite direction
- negative
- negative
- positive
cultivation system · yield · Malus domestica (apple)Positive and negative results
6 papers in the same direction as this paper · 6 in the opposite direction
- no effect
- negative
- negative
9 papers more in this group
See all 13 papers →cultivation system · soil: biology · Malus domestica (apple)Results agree
1 paper in the same direction as this paper
- positive
Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.