Oribatid mites (acari, oribatida) on plantations of chokeberry and blackcurrant under microir-rigation

The aim of the present research was to compare the communities of oribatid mites (Oribatida) on the plantations of chokeberry (Aronia melanocarpa (Michx.) Elliott) and blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum L.) as well as to define the effect of mi-croirrigation on those Acari. The experiment was performed in degraded Phaeozems formed from sand, on shallow-deposited sand in Kruszyn Krajeński in the vicinity of Bydgoszcz. The soil reaction was slightly acid or acid and the differences in the acidity between chokeberry and blackcurrant were inconsiderable. The abundance of oribatid mites on chokeberry and blackcurrant plantations ranged from 3110 to 5290 individuals • m-2 and it was much higher, as compared with the neighbouring set-aside. The density of Oribatida on blackcurrant plantation was clearly higher than in chokeberry; however there was recorded no significant effect of the type of irrigation on the density. In total on both plantations there were reported 31 species of oribatid mites; mean species number s in blackcurrant was higher than in chokeberry. The dominance structure of oribatid mites on the chokeberry plantation was more even than in blackcurrant and in Tectocepheus velatus communities dominated mostly. The species preferred the blackcurrant plantation and irrigation stimulated its abundance. Chamobates schutzii, an ...

Colonization by mites (Acari) of wood chips for use in mulching organic fruit crops

The study was conducted in 2011-2012 by using litter bags on microplots in a forest soil under a canopy of trees, in optimal environmental conditions for most mites. The aim of the study was to analyze the colonization by mites of wood chips after application of two biopreparations containing cellulose-degrading bacteria. The experiment was conducted in the following variants: WC - control wood chips, WB I - chips after application of bacterial inoculum I (an unidentified G(-) rod-bacterium, Bacillus sp.) and WB II - chips after application of bacterial inoculum II (Streptomyces sp.). To maintain the optimum moisture level, the microplots were irrigated by means of microsprinklers. The highest average population density of mites in the two-year series of tests was found in the control chips: 42.28 individuals per 50 cm3. In the chips treated with the biopreparations, the density of these arthropods was lower, but the differences were not statistically significant. Dominant among the mites were mostly oribatid mites. Altogether, 34 species of oribatid mites were found in all the experimental variants. The most species (30) were found in the control variant, and fewer in the chips treated with the biopreparations - 27-26. Among the oribatid mites, Tectocepheus velatus ...

OCCURRENCE OF MITES (ACARI) IN THE SOIL OF A BLACKCURRANT PLANTATION AFTER APPLICATIONS OF ORGANIC MULCHES AND MYCORRHIZAL INOCULUM

The study was conducted in the Pomological Orchard of the Research Institute of Horticulture in Skierniewice on a plantation of blackcurrant cultivar ‘Tiben'. The following variants of the experiment were applied: control - NPK fertilization only, mulching with a peat substrate, shredded pine bark, sawdust of coniferous trees, bovine manure, plant compost, straw of cereals, and application of mycorrhizal inoculant MYKOFLOR. Mulching was performed each year in the spring in an amount of 25 dm3 per plot, and the inoculum was applied in an amount of 10 ml per shrub. Samples for acarological examinations were collected at 4 times, in the spring and autumn of successive seasons in 2012-2013. An increase in the overall density of mites, in comparison with the control surface, was observed after mulching the soil with sawdust of coniferous trees and plant compost. On all the plots, the communities of mites were dominated by mites of the order oribatid mites. For these mites, a statistically significant increase density was recorded after mulching the soil with sawdust of coniferous trees, bovine manure and plant compost. Mulching did not increase significantly the species diversity of oribatid mites. The soil of the blackcurrant plantation was found to be inhabited ...

OCCURRENCE OF ORIBATID MITES (ACARI: ORIBATIDA) ON THE SITES OF A NEW SPECIES HIEROCHLOË REPENS (HOST) P.B. IN BYDGOSZCZ AREA

The study was conducted within the Bydgoszcz limits and in the vicinity of city Bydgoszcz at seven different habitats of Hierochloë repens presence: city district Fordon - (1), (2), (3) and (4); city district Kapuściska - (5), and Białe Błota near Bydgoszcz - (6) and (7). Samples for acarological analyses were collected from the plots covered with Hierochloë repens in spring (27 May) and autumn (28 October) 2014.The density of oribatid mites on the sites with Hierochloë repens was highly variable. High density of these microarthropods was characteristic of plots (2) with Convolvulo-Brometum inermis, (5) with Arrhenatheretum elatioris and (7) covered with grassy herbaceous plants growing on fertile soils. Particularly low density of oribatid mites was observed for plot (3) with Koelerio-Corynephoretea and Festuco-Brometea communities and the lowest content of carbon and nitrogen in the soil. Depending on the site and sample collection time, four to 22 species of oribatid mites were identified. Statistical analysis (Mann-Whitney U test) of mean number of species per sample s identified two groups of plots for both sample collection terms characterized by either low (1.00-3.10) or high values (3.30-7.40) of this parameter. The first group included plots (1), (3) and (6), and the second ...

MITE (ACARI) OCCURRENCE IN SELECTED SUBSTRATES USED FOR A RESTORATION OF DEGRADED SOILS

The number and groups of mites (Acari) and species composition of oribatid mites (Oribatida) were analysed in three different substrates used for the restoration of degraded soils: (1) pine forest litter, (2) apple orchard litter, and (3) pine chips. The study was conducted in the years 2011-2012, on microplots of the area of 1m2, established in a belt of trees of a nursery in Białe Błota (Bydgoszcz Forest District). Average biannual mite density per 50 cm3 of the investigated substrates ranged from 14.6 to 54.43 individuals. The highest numbers of mites were found in shredded forest litter and the lowest in pine chips. The most abundant mites in the studied material were oribatid mites, accounting for 57.3 % of these arthropods. The highest number of oribatid mites was found in the forest litter (28), and the lowest (20) in pine chips. The number of species in both types of litter was similar in the first and second year of the study, but it rose three times in the pine chips substrate over the study period. Oribatid species in the litter substrates were dominated by the eurytopic Tectocepheus velatus, and the most abundant species in the pine chips substrate was Oribatula ...