Research

The seeds of the Styrian oil pumpkin (Curcurbita pepo var. styriaca) are used for the production of pumpkin seed oil. The seed reacts very sensitively to rainfall and excessively cool soil temperatures during the emergence phase. In addition, the hull-less seed provides a good attack surface for soil-borne diseases such as Pythium, Rhizoctonia, Fusarium and other plant pathogens. It is not fully known which soil-borne diseases have severely impaired seed germination in recent years. A research project therefore aims to investigate various ways of ensuring the emergence and juvenile development of oil pumpkin seedlings in order to help stabilise yields. As part of a research project led by the Steirisches Kürbiskernöl g.g.A. association, the Institute of Plant Protection at BOKU will analyse soil and plant samples to determine which pathogens are responsible for poor emergence in oil pumpkin cultivation.

Secondary plant metabolites (SPM) are contained in vegetables, fruit, pulses, nuts and wholegrain products and give fruit and vegetables and products made from them many health-promoting properties. The DGE recommends a high intake of vegetables and fruit, including pulses and nuts, as well as wholegrain products to ensure a good supply of phytochemicals to support wellbeing. The content of SPS in plant-based raw materials and products depends on numerous factors, such as plant species, variety, growing conditions, storage and, of course, processing and preservation, which are the focus of research. The effects of processing on the various secondary plant metabolites can vary greatly, depending on the process, the content is reduced or may even be more available. While processing is beneficial in terms of availability, heat, oxygen and mechanical processing have a reducing effect on other substances. There is therefore a need for further research on specific products in order to determine actual changes and counteract the losses. The aim of the research is therefore to quantify the losses along the processing chain of sprouts, from the raw material to the finished product, based on the antioxidant potential.

The aim of this project is to evaluate whether conservation agriculture can increase soil health compared to conventional agriculture while maintaining the same yield level and stability, or whether there are trade-offs between these effect sizes. A field experiment established at UFT Tulln in 2015 is used for this purpose. The following two systems are compared: (i) a system with local conventional crop rotation (sugar beet-winter wheat-maize-winter wheat) and turning tillage and (ii) a conservation system with an eight-crop rotation (sugar beet-winter wheat-maize-soybean-winter wheat-sunflower-winter legume-winter wheat), reduced tillage and extended intercropping. The trial will be in its ninth harvest year in 2023; system effects can therefore be expected in the meantime. The following soil health parameters will be evaluated at two soil depths: (i) total soil carbon and nitrogen pools, (ii) microbial biomass, (iii) available organic carbon and nitrogen, (iv) nitrogen mineralization potential, (v) potential enzyme activity and (vi) aggregate stability. In addition, the two systems are evaluated with regard to their humus balance and nitrogen use efficiency. Furthermore, yield data for all crops over the entire trial period can be used; this allows a pairwise comparison of the yields of sugar beet, winter wheat and maize, which are grown in both systems after the same previous crops.