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Plastic Mulch as a Sustainable Solution to Heat-Induced Citrus Decline: Thermal Dynamics and Field Validation
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This study found that covering soil with plastic mulch helped protect lemon trees from heat stress in hot, dry climates by keeping soil temperatures cooler and improving water use, leading to healthier trees and better yields. While this could help farmers grow more resilient citrus crops as the climate warms, it's worth noting that plastic mulch can break down into microplastics over time, which may end up in soil, water, and eventually the food we eat, so the environmental and health tradeoffs of relying on plastic solutions deserve more research.
Citrus decline has become a serious problem in arid and semi-arid regions, particularly in Citrus limon cv. ‘Lisbon’, where high soil temperature, limited water availability, and elevated SAR contribute to tree stress and yield reduction. This study aimed to evaluate the e...
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Mulching Influence on Agricultural Productivity and Climate Change Mitigation: A Review
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This review pulls together existing research on "mulching", covering soil with materials like straw or plastic film to help crops grow better and use less water, especially in dry regions. While plastic mulches work well short-term, they contribute to plastic pollution that can break down into microplastics in soil, which is a growing concern for food safety and human health; organic and newer biodegradable alternatives may offer similar farming benefits with less environmental risk. The bigger takeaway: smarter farming practices like this can help grow more food with less water while also fighting climate change, but choosing eco-friendly materials matters for protecting both the environment and the food we eat.
Alleviating Heat Stress and Water Scarcity in Cultivation with Biodegradable Radiative Cooling Mulch
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Researchers developed a biodegradable ethyl-cellulose mulch film that uses radiative cooling to reduce soil temperatures and cut moisture evaporation by 60% in field tests. Unlike conventional plastic mulches — which persist in soil and fragment into microplastics — this material is fully biodegradable and eliminates the microplastic contamination that traditional agricultural films leave behind. The study shows that sustainable cooling mulches could solve both the heat-water stress crisis in agriculture and the growing problem of microplastic soil pollution.
Exploring Plastic Mulching as a Strategy for Mitigating Drought Stress and Boosting Maize Yield in the Ecuadorian Andes
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A two-year field experiment in the Ecuadorian Andes found that plastic mulching increased soil water content by 8-14%, raised soil temperature by 1.26 degrees Celsius, and boosted fresh corn yield by up to 162% compared to conventional plots. While demonstrating agricultural benefits of plastic use, the study highlights a tension between food security and the potential for plastic mulch to become a source of microplastic soil contamination.
Mulching Practices for Sustainable Agriculture: Enhancing Yield, Soil Moisture, and Environmental Benefits in Field and Fruit Crops
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A review of mulching practices in sustainable agriculture finds that organic mulches improve soil fertility, moisture retention, and weed suppression while emerging biodegradable alternatives show promise in reducing plastic mulch pollution. Reducing reliance on conventional plastic film mulch is a meaningful lever for cutting agricultural microplastic contamination of soils and water systems.
Plastic mulch productivity-sustainability tradeoffs and pathways toward an eco-friendly framework: insights from a global meta-analysis
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This meta-analysis pools data from global studies on plastic mulch used in farming, finding that it boosts crop yields by nearly 29% but leaves persistent plastic residue in soil. The plastic fragments that remain in farmland soil eventually break down into microplastics, which can contaminate crops and enter the food supply. The study calls for biodegradable alternatives to balance food production needs with the growing problem of agricultural microplastic pollution.
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