October 15-19, 2023: Cooperation in soil health research with the Institute of Horticulture – National Research Institute, Skierniewice, Poland

On October 15-19, 2023 NDP prof.Valentina Pidlisnyuk,UJEP  and Co-Director assoc.prof. Tatyana Stefanovska, NULES visited the Institute of Horticulture – National Research Institute,  Skierniewice, Poland.

The main goal of the visit was to discuss the research on monitoring the soil health state at the Miscanthus plantations in Chomutov, the Czech Republic and Vorzel, Ukraine. The soil at the fields were treated by different soil amendments including biochar.  The approach on evaluation the soil health by means of measuring the nematodes communities in combination with the microbial communities’ parameters was discussed with the Polish colleagues: prof. Andrej Skwiercz and prof. Magdalena Szczech. The data of 2023 year received at the plantation in Chomutov was overviewed within the framework of the preparing manuscript.

During the visit Nematology Lab at the Department of Plant protection and Department of Microbiology and Rhizosphere prof. Pidlisnyuk and Assoc.prof. Stefanovska shared with the Polish colleagues the research directions of the project. The method for using biocontrol agents for plant pathogens management and improving the vegetation of different crops was introduced by prof. Teresa Orlikowska and Dr. Aleksandra Trzewik, Department of the Applied Biology.

NDP prof. Pidlisnyuk had discussions with Co-Director assoc.prof. Stefanovska, related NULES part of the research at the project, i.e: WP2, WP4 and WP5. The current state of the field established at the military location in Vorzel, Ukraine on May, 2023 was overviewed. The planned for 2024 extension of this plantation with intercropping and application of biochar produced from miscanthus waste/wood received from the contaminated/marginal military land was critically evaluated. The possibility to produce the biochars/ash in Ukraine was discussed. The waste precursors are available there in the volume requested for the commercial scale production. The options to follow this way in order to ensure the progress of research will be introduced to the partners during the planned team’s meeting. The possibility to monitor nutrients and carbon sequestration in Miscanthus fields located in Ukraine (Vorzel, Dolyna) were under the discussion as well.