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- Advanced Matted Row
Techniques for Strawberries
- System combats chemical loss,
environmental concerns
- By Brent Black, John Enns and Stan Hokanson
USDA-ARS
- The loss of methyl bromide and other chemicals, the high up-front costs of plasticulture, and growing concern over the possible environmental impacts of plastic manufacturing and disposal, are going to change the way strawberries are produced in the U.S.
In response to these changes, the USDA small fruit research program at Beltsville has been working to develop a new system for growing strawberries in the mid-Atlantic region. This “advance matted row” system is an effort to combine positive attributes of the annual hill and matted row production systems.
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The cover crop is sprayed with a broad-spectrum herbicide, and then cut down two weeks after spraying. It is then left for an additional two weeks before dormant strawberry plants are no-till planted in 12 inch-spaced single rows.
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Advance matted row
In the late summer, raised beds are prepared, and subsurface drip irrigation is placed in the center of each bed at a depth of about three inches. A winter cover crop is seeded over the raised beds about the third week of August. The winter cover crop we are currently using is a mixture of hairy vetch (seeding rate of 40 lbs/acre), cereal rye (70 lbs/acres), and crimson clover (30 lbs/acre). To maximize biomass production overhead irrigation is used, when necessary, to establish the cover crop.
The following spring (mid-April), the cover crop is sprayed with a broad-spectrum herbicide, and then cut down two weeks after spraying. The cut cover crop is then left for an additional two weeks before dormant strawberry plants are no-till planted in 12 inch-spaced single rows down the center of the raised beds. The plants are allowed to runner and fill in the beds, similar to the traditional matted row. The cover crop residue provides some weed suppression, an additional weed control is achieved by some hand weeding and spot applications of herbicide.
The characteristic differences between advanced and traditional matted row include the use of raised beds, subsurface drip irrigation, cover crop residue mulch, and no-till planting. The combination of raised beds and drip irrigation improves soil aeration and drainage, and reduces moisture in the plant canopy.
Matted row and plasticulture
During the years 1997-2000, the strawberry-breeding program at Beltsville has conducted replicated yield trials of varieties and advanced selections for both annual hill and advanced matted row systems. There were no fungicides, insecticides, or methyl bromide fumigation used in either cropping system during these years.
In general, the advanced matted row plants produced three to seven days later than plants in the plasticulture system. However, there was no difference in number of pickings between the two systems.
Yield differences between the two systems depend on the variety. In the case of Allstar, Northeaster, and B440, yields were 20 to 40% higher in plastic than in advanced matted row. However for B24, B244 and B443, advanced matted row yields were 10 to 25% higher than plastic.
Averaging yields over all varieties and clones, there was no statistical difference between plastic and advanced matted row. Subjective ratings for overall fruit appearance and marketability gave slightly higher scores for plasticulture than advanced matted row, but there were no statistical differences in average fruit size.
Best management practices
Does the advanced matted row production system represent an economically viable alternative for the mid-Atlantic strawberry producer? Due to the nature of the research at Beltsville, we have not had experience carrying these plantings over for second and third production years, and have not yet carried out an economic analysis of this system.
Certainly the use of drip irrigation and the management of cover crops on raised beds present establishment costs and management challenges which are different from traditional matted row culture. However, the establishment costs for advanced matted row are certainly less than for plasticulture.
The continued loss of chemicals from the market, increasing consumer concerns over pesticide residues on food products, and increased interest in environmental protection, all point to a need for new pest management alternatives.
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