Organic agriculture: Improvement of production by use of fertilizers, biopreparates and biological measures

The aim of the project is the enhancement of organic production by optimizing the key factors in the system soil – crop / weed – pathogens / entomofauna: by increasing the fertility and biological activity of soil using available organic fertilizers / materials, while observing their effect on the occurrence / intensity of weeds, pathogens, useful and harmful insects, and optimization of other agrotechnical and, if necessary, biological measures. The research will be conducted in production conditions on certified organic farms, in field trials and under laboratory conditions. The monitoring will include crop rotation and sowing structure, soil fertility parameters, weeds, parasites, and insects. The problems which arise will be examined in multifactorial field experiments with different crops. Special attention will be given to the interactions of: crop rotation, tillage of soil / use of mulch and nets, fertility of soil /use of fertilizers, occurrence of weeds, pathogens and insects, meteorological conditions and their joint effect on the yield and quality of plants / products. Thereafter, a database of organic fertilizers / materials will be created and a model for evaluation of their quality will be proposed. The effectiveness of biopreparates based on microorganisms and plant extracts in the fight against parasites will be examined in laboratory / field experiments. The results of the project will be published in a handbook / monograph.