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Soil solarization: the idea, the research and its development

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Background

One effective method for the management of soilborne pathogens is soil disinfestation. The basic idea is to treat the soil by drastic means, before planting, in order to eliminate the pathogens surviving there, thereby ensuring the health of the subsequent crop. There are two basic approaches to soil disinfestation: chemical, using fumigants, and physical, by heating the soil (mainly by steam). These approaches were developed in 1870, in the early days of plant pathology, and the chemical approach has dominated ever since.

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Acknowledgments

I would like to thank all those who contributed their joint efforts to the research and development of soil solarization: colleagues, former graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, technicians, extension personnel, workers from commercial companies, farmers, and many others. Special thanks go to national and international funds that have supported this research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot, 76100, Israel

    Jaacov Katan

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  1. Jaacov Katan
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Correspondence to Jaacov Katan.

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A lecture delivered on 19 March 2014 at the Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, Rehovot, Israel, on the occasion of receiving the 2014 Israel Prize in Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, bestowed on the author by the President of Israel. The lecture was dedicated to the memories of Dr. Avi Grinstein and Eli Oren, both graduates of the Faculty of Agriculture.

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Katan, J. Soil solarization: the idea, the research and its development. Phytoparasitica 43, 1–4 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12600-014-0419-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12600-014-0419-0

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