We manufacture agricultural mulch films using new multi-layer co-extrusion technology in Sri Lanka. This enables us to process raw materials that guarantee the highest level of mechanical strength and flexibility, and compatibility with all mechanical testing standards.
Black Mulches
The black plastic film does not allow sunlight to pass through onto the soil. Thus, photosynthesis does not take place in soil in absence of sunlight below the black film. Hence, it arrests weed growth completely. The black plastic mulch is helpful in conserving moisture and controlling weed growth. However, it may increase the soil temperature. This means that plants can be set out earlier than on bare soil, and may result in earlier maturing fruit.
Clear or Transparent Mulches
The transparent film will allow sunlight to pass through and the weeds will grow. The transparent film is quite successful as soil solarization film for disinfecting the soil in order to reduce soil borne diseases and some weeds. This application is quite successful in nursery raising by solarizing the beds before sowing seeds for nursery raising, which gives near 100% seed germination & disease free nursery.
White Mulches
White plastic may be of less interest to us cool-weather. The benefits of white plastic in keeping weeds at bay, retaining soil moisture, and keeping the soil cool around the roots of crops such as peas, broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower.
Reflective And Wavelength-Selective Plastic Mulches
These films enable growers to control different plant properties such as
- leaf & fruit size , color,
- root development, encourage fruit to grow lower down on plants,
- branching, plant height,
- growth, inter node length, time of flowering,
- bloom size, strengthen plant stems,
- disease control by keeping insects away yield,
Red/black –
Partially translucent allowing radiation to pass through & warm soil but also reflects radiation back into plant canopy changing ratio of R:FR light, which results in changes in plant vegetative, flower development & metabolism to early fruiting & increased yields in tomatoes and strawberries.
Red mulch has been found to increase production from 12 to 20 percent due to the reflection of fruit-enhancing red light.
Crops that are suited for SRM Red:
Vegetables – Tomatoes, peppers, melons
- Small fruits – Strawberries
- Cut flowers (Because of variation among species of flowers, on-farm trials should be made.)
Silver/black –
1). Promote photosynthesis of the roots of crops, and the silver surface has a strong reflective function, which can increase the coloring of the backlight part of the fruit;
2). The strong reflective effect of the silver surface can effectively reduce the ground temperature during the day, while the black surface can block the heat radiation from the ground at night and effectively maintain heat;
3). The silver surface has a strong UV-reflecting function, which can effectively ward off winged aphids, thrips and other pests, and reduce the harm of pests and diseases;
4). Reflective silver mulch is useful as a deterrent to aphids (and the viral diseases they carry) and whiteflies. It has also been shown to reduce the number of cucumber beetles present on cucumber and squash plants.
Silver and black suitable for crops:
Fruits: watermelon, melon, banana, strawberry, etc.
vegetables: tomatoes, Egg Plant, peppers, cabbage, Onions leafy vegetables, etc
flowers and plants: chrysanthemums, carnations, etc.
Yellow/black –
Yellow Mulch Film works on a simple phenomenon of absorbing light in the visible ultra violet and IR spectrum. It prevents the photosynthesis process, thus, preventing the growth of weed. The film has excellent property of affecting light, moisture and temperature for faster growth and development of crops.
Insects are attracted to the color yellow. Yellow mulch film diverts insects from the plants themselves, protecting crops from the viruses they may carry, in particular in open field crop production.
It is used in the area where you have a lot of infestation of whitefly. Yellow colour attracts whitefly so when whitefly come into contact with mulch due to sun heat they killed.
Crops that are suited :
Vegetables – Tomatoes, peppers, melons
- Small fruits – Strawberries
- Cut flowers (Because of variation among species of flowers, on-farm trials should be made.)
White /black –
White-black mulch transferred more than 60% of the photoactive radiation back to the plant hence enhancing the plant growth, and the plant becomes thickest and stronger leave with lesser insect and pest attack and disease.
Therefore, you get higher production. In summer, it performs better.
Crops that are suited :
Vegetables – Tomatoes, peppers, melons
- Small fruits – Strawberries
- Cut flowers (Because of variation among species of flowers, on-farm trials should be made.)
Biodegradable plastic mulches (BDMs) offer an environmentally sustainable alternative to conventional polyethylene (PE) mulch. Unlike PE films, which need to be removed after use, BDMs are tilled into soil where they will completely biodegrade and compost.
Biodegradable plastic mulches (BDMs) have been developed as substitutes to PE mulch films and are designed to be tilled into soil after use where resident microorganisms degrade the plastic. BDMs can be prepared from bio based polymers derived from microbes or plants, or fossil-sourced materials.
- Biodegradable in soil
- Customized life span, tailored for different crops
- No removal necessary
- No disposal costs
- No residues like traditional plastic in the field
- Faster access to the field
- An efficient alternative, in both agronomic and environmental terms to traditional plastic film
- Saves time and therefore costs required to remove and dispose of traditional plastic film
Applications with excellent test results
- Onion
- Melon
- Cabbage
- Strawberry
- Squash
- Lettuce
- Rice
- Flowers and plants
Specifications
- Thickness range: 10 microns to 300 microns for excellent vapor barrier properties
- Width: 600 mm – 4000 mm (Standard is 1200 mm)
- Length: 400 m – 2000 m (standard 400 m)
- Colors: Black, White, Silver, Red, Yellow, Brown, Transparent and combination of two colors
- Reflective and wavelength-selective plastic mulches (colored mulches), such as silver reflective and IRT-100 (infrared-transmitting; green) or SRM-red (selective reflective mulch-red) mulches
- UV protection 9 months to 3 years
Technical Data Sheet (TDS)
Mulching is a technique of adding a layer to the surface of the soil around the plant with plastic film to conserve the soil moisture that suppress weeds growth, regulate soil temperature and prevent water loss through evaporation.
Mulching Film is made of High Strength LLDPE and LDPE Material. Presently different Color Plastic Film used as Mulches such as black-black, Silver – Black, Red -black, Yellow – Black & White –black.
Areas of application
Mulching is mainly employed for
- Moisture conservation in rainfed areas
- Reduction of irrigation frequency and water saving in irrigated areas
- Soil temperature moderation in greenhouse cultivation
- Soil solorisation for control of soil borne diseases
- Reduce the rain impact, prevent soil erosion and maintain soil structure
- In places where high value crops only to be cultivated
Advantages of plastic mulching
- It is completely impermeable to water.
- It prevents the direct evaporation of moisture form the soil
- By evaporation suppression, it prevents the rise of water containing salts.
- Mulch can facilitate fertilizer placement and reduce the loss of plant nutrient through leaching.
- Mulches can also provide a barrier to soil pathogens
- Opaque mulches prevent germination of annual weeds from receiving light
- Reflective mulches will repel certain insects
- Mulches maintain a warm temperature even during night time which enables seeds to germinate quickly and for young plants to rapidly establish a strong root growth system.
- Synthetic mulches play a major role in soil solarisation process.
- Mulches develop a microclimatic underside of the sheet, which is higher in carbon- di-oxide due to the higher level of microbial activity.
- Under mulch, the soil structure is maintained during cropping period
- Early germination almost 2-3 days.
- Water erosion is completely averted since soil is completely covered form bearing action of rain drops.
Moisture conservation
- Plastic film with its moisture barrier properties does not allow the soil moisture to escape Water that evaporates from the soil surface under mulch film, condenses on the lower surface of the film and falls back as droplets.
- Thus, moisture is preserved for several days and increases the period between two irrigations.
Weed control
- Black plastic film does not allow the sunlight to pass through on to the soil
- Photosynthesis does not take place in the absence of sunlight below black film hence, it arrests weed growth
Basically, there are two types of mulches depending upon the material used as mulching. They are as under:
Non-Degradable Plastic Mulches – PE Mulch
The Plastic materials such as LDPE, LLDPE, PVC, when used for mulching, are known non-degradable mulches. Plastic mulches can be made available in different colours & thickness to obtain the desired results.
Degradable Mulch – PLA Mulch
Biodegradable plastic mulches (BDMs) offer an environmentally sustainable alternative to conventional polyethylene (PE) mulch. Unlike PE films, which need to be removed after use, BDMs are tilled into soil where they are expected to biodegrade. Bio-degradable Mulch is made from compostable plastic resins such as PLA and PBAT and gets disintegrated under natural environmental conditions after a certain duration of time.
The Mulch that is selected for the farm should have certain properties for delivering maximum benefits. Various ecological factors may need different Mulch materials to function properly. The important aspects of Mulch material are:
Thickness – generally the thickness of the material has little or no effect on Mulching except for the solarisation technique. The thickness of the artificial Mulch film should be around 15-30 microns for vegetable crops, 100-150 microns for orchids, and 25 microns for small duration crops.
Width – the film should be selected such that it matches the inter-row spacing. The average width of the film is around 1 or 11⁄2 m under general growing conditions.
Perforation – unperforated Mulch film should be selected for efficient water and fertilizer distribution. To prevent water stagnation around the plants, the perforated film is needed, but this may facilitate weed growth.
Color – Mulches are wavelength selective and are designed to absorb certain wavelengths from the sun’s radiation. These changes in the light can be effective on plant growth and development. It is considered that these films help in controlling different plant properties like fruit size, color, root development, height, etc. the colored Mulches re-emit less heat, therefore, maintains lower leaf temperatures.
Testing the Mulch film before using it on the farm is highly important because if the film transmits light, then it is no good for the plants. The material should be durable, airproof, and thermal- proof. It should always be remembered that the Mulch material should be purchased from a reliable source
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