The Ecological And Economic Benefits Of Living Mulch Within The Apple Orchard In The Loess Plateau Of East Gansu Province

Living mulch in orchard is a kind efficient management technology for protecting the ecological environment with remarkable economic benefits.Farmers are direct producers or managers of orchards,who is key to determine to adopt this management technique and assessing the economic and ecological benefit of growing mulch in orchard.To explore the ecological and economic benefit of living mulch in apple orchard in the long-term,332 farmers producing apple in Qingyang city of the Loess Plateau were interviewed using questionnaires and field visits.Econometric model,comparative analysis,and the theory of investment benefits were used.The main results were as follows:1.The application rate of inorganic and organic fertilizer reduced by 442.94 and 915.56kg/hm² for self-sown grass in the apple orchard,while N and P₂O₅ inputs reduced by 84.95 and143.66 kg/hm² respectively.The quantity of K₂O fertilizer applied in the apple orchard increased by 136.57 kg/hm² and spraying of pesticides increased by 0.35 times as much as the initial quantity sprayed.Compared with the traditional model,the material input of the farmers'apple orchard increased by 1,500 RMB/hm² due to increase in inputs such as pesticides,reflective films,fruit bags,mowing machinery.Self-sown grass significantly reduced the cost of labor weeding in orchards by 3,000 RMB/hm².Total investment in labor inputs was reduced by 5,100RMB/hm² and net income increased by 23,900 RMB/hm².2.There was a significant difference in the input and output of living mulch in different production scales across the management methods.However,higher efficiency was recorded in apple orchards planted with grasses.Significant reduction in the use of chemical fertilizers by56.9%,pesticides by twice as much as initial quantity,material and manual inputs by 30.12%and41.37%,as well as increased use of organic fertilizers by 18.38%,and increased investment in orchard machinery by RMB 62,600.Due to fruit yield increased and quality improved,the overall ecological and economic benefit was higher than that for the self-sown grass orchard farmers.3.The total investment in the management of the establishment of sapling apple orchard and sapling management was higher than that for the ordinary orchard by 22.11%and 5.74%,which was mainly reflected in the increase in fertilizer,organic fertilizer input,irrigation,mechanical service fees,and labor input.Compared with the clean tillage orchards,the material service costs and labor input for the improved management technique decreased by 14.1%and 12.3%respectively.Life cycle cumulative investment decreased by 5.97%in orchard with living mulch than for clean tillage orchards.Cumulative output increased by 6.29%,net present value of cumulative income and cumulative income were 2.16 and 4.24 more than the value for ordinary orchard.There is considerable benefit in farmers'orchard investment.In conclusion,living mulch within the apple orchard in the Loess Plateau of East Gansu province has ecological and economic benefits.It is recommended that farmers should use living mulch in the apple orchard and adopt reasonable sward management techniques to promote the benefits of apple orchards.