Efficacy of mulching for sustainable weed management in persimmon (Diospyros kaki) cv Hachiya

This study investigated the impact of various mulching materials on weed suppression, yield and fruit quality of six-year-old Hachiya persimmon trees (Diospyros kaki) from April to October. The experiment was conducted in a randomized block design with three replications, testing grass mulch, black polyethylene, silver polyethylene, red polyethylene, nylon mulch, coir mulch and a no-mulch control. Mulching significantly influenced fruit set, fruit drop and fruit yield. Significantly higher fruit set (83.55 and 82.63% respectively) was recorded with black and silver polytethlene mulch. Fruit drop was lowest under black polyethylene mulch (47.50%) and nylon mulch mat (48.31%). Fruit yield was maximized under black polyethylene (14.48 kg/tree) and nylon mulch mat (14.31 kg/tree). Black polyethylene mulch and nylon mulch mat also resulted in the longest (84.31 and 84.19 mm) and heaviest fruits (265.56 and 265.44 g/fruit). Fruit quality was enhanced, with red and black polyethylene mulches showing highest TSS (14.53 and 14.37 °Brix) and reducing sugars. Significant weed suppression was observed with mulching. Black polyethylene mulch exhibited the highest weed control efficiency (99.75%), followed by nylon (99.06%), silver (98.72%) and red polyethylene mulch (98.69%). No weed growth was observed at later stages under black and nylon mulches. The observed improvements in yield and quality are attributed to enhanced soil moisture conservation, weed suppression, favourable microclimatic conditions and altered light environments created by the mulches. These findings support the use of mulching as a sustainable and effective orchard management technique for Hachiya persimmon.