With increasingly frequent heat waves and the absence of rain in a large part of our country, solutions that help protect the olive grove from inevitable water stress are of interest.
A testimony comes from Tuscia, In 'Upper Lazio. We are a Farnese (Vt) at the 'Mezzabarba Agricultural Company where Stefania – third generation of olive growers and oil millers – manages together with her husband over two thousand plants, largely secular, distributed in 15 hectaresi and a extraction plant with Pieralis technologyfor a high quality oil both conventionally and organically. Caninese the prevailing truth (also called Canino) to which are added the typical cultivars of the territory between Leccino, Frantoio, Pendolino, Maurino and Moraiolo.
“I took over the reins of the company in 2017 – confides Stefania Mezzabarba – and right from the start I posed the problem of how to manage dry seasons, taking into account among other things that our soil is tufaceous and does not easily retain water. Among the various solutions examined as an alternative to irrigation, kaolin seemed to me to be the most effective. After some tests on plots, I found a positive response in all the olive groves owned: reduced summer drop, thermoregulation of the plant, greater humidity inside the olives which appear with a larger size".
As rock dust, kaolin could create problems for atomizers, particularly nozzles, is the objection that some raise. “I perform two or three treatments a year – confides Stefania – and I have always used the same atomizer, without ever having encountered problems with the pumps, nozzles or membranes. The secret? The quality of the kaolin, obviously, especially its purity.” For her company Stefania Mezzabarba chose branded kaolin AgriBioClay.
“Usually, I complete the summer covering with kaolin in the first ten days of July – adds the dynamic entrepreneur – to carry out further treatment around mid-August".
On the effectiveness also in fly fighting, Mezzabarba clarifies: “Kaolin is a good starting point which must however be supported with other tools, such as insecticidal baits”. The results obtained are extremely gratifying, allowing processing in the oil mill for an artisanal production of extra virgin olive oil which this year quickly sold out.
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