PHYTOPATHOGENESIS AND GROWTH SUBSTRATE PROBLEMS OF THE CUCUMBER AND CHERKIN CULTURE

The research for the use of alternative substrates as fermented municipal refuse compost submitted herewith may be situated in this context.

First of all, the eventual application of municipal refuse compost in cucumber growing is studied. Fully ripened as well as freshly fermented municipal refuse compost, were tested mixed at different ratios with sand loam soil. The moment of flowering, production and plant analysis for these cucumber plants are compared to plants grown in pure sand loam soil and in leafy soil.

A negative influence by heavy metals and by anions (especially chloride ions) could be expected from earlier experiments and moreover from the chemical composition of the compost. A cation and an anion exchanger were tested for this purpose.

There is no influence of the compost substrate on the moment of flowering. An admixture exceeding 25 % seemed to lower the yield by the plants. The heavy metal and anion contents were virtually not higher in the compost substrates. The effects of municipal refuse compost used in different concentrations on the most important pathogens of gherkin seedlings were studied too. The following fungi were used : Rhizoctonia solani, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, Phomopsis sclerotioides and a mixture of Trichoderma species.

Analogous to earlier results with beans, peas and tomatoes, an inhibition of the pathogenic fungi was also stated in this experiment.

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