Legumes in soil surface maintenance system in mountain and biological fruit growing

Abstract

The new methods of soil surface maintenance of the artificial grass establishment or growing of green manure crops applied in modern fruit-growing have been the subject of research in various Agra-ecological areas in Bulgaria but they are not yet implemented in the fruit-growing technology. Legumes are a basic element of these methods because of their nitrogen-fixing system. The present article summarizes our own and foreign results about the suitability of the different types of legumes in this trend. Bulgarian studies confirm the role of legumes in optimizing the nutritional and water regime of fruit crops in the conditions of mountain or biological fruit growing. In view of the fact that there are a wide variety of morphological and biological types of legumes in Bulgaria, it is reasonable to have a special selection of varieties for soil surface maintenance in orchards.