Demonstration of the effectiveness of basic substances used in plant protection in organic orchards in different regions of Latvia Project leader Regīna Rancāne Team of project Edīte Jākobsone Inta Jakobija Viktorija Zagorska Duration 2019 - 2021 Research focus 4. Development and adaptation of technologies for obtaining high-value agricultural and forest products, as well as in veterinary medicine Source of funding Knowledge transfer Project partners Latvian Organic Farming Association (LBLA) Description of project The aim of research To demonstrate in practice that basic substances can be used effectively in plant protection. The tasks of project: To set up two demonstration plotsTo evaluate the effectiveness of the basic substances applied for the disease controlTo keep records of the labour input for monitoring of the diseases and applying control methods in order to assess the economic performance of the methods Results In two apple orchards in different regions of Latvia from 2018-2020 a demonstration trial for controlling diseases with basic substances and other preparations used in organic agriculture was implemented, the results were presented every year at field days. When evaluating the expenses and revenues of the demonstration plots, a positive result was obtained in five cases, when the difference between the potential revenues in the demonstration and control plots exceeded the difference between the disease control expenditures in the demonstration and control plots. Observations made in the storage of both farms show that the sprays applied in the demonstration trial reduced the development of rot on apples during storage, thereby maintaining higher fruit quality. In both farms, disease control has been successfully mastered by using preparations allowed in organic farming and spraying in accordance with the operating principles of the decision support system.
