Project: Targeted bio-control and pollination enhancement
The BICOPOLL project aims The researchers behind this BICOPOLL project will improve the quality and marketable yield of strawberry crops by developing simple, effective, targeted biological control of the most important berry disease - the grey mould - and by improving crop pollination by bees. [Berry-grower demonstration] Grey mold - the most important berry disease Grey mould destroys 10-20 percent of conventional strawberry crop despite heavy spraying of fungicides - organic growers have no means of protection, and can lose up to 100 percent of the crop. Bees can be used to improve crop pollination, and to disseminate effective biocontrol organisms onto it, everywhere in Europe, and elsewhere. Strawberry has a great market potential Strawberry is an extremely important crop in Europe, with a very good market potential. It suffers heavily from the grey mould disease, against which organic growers have no means of protection. Biological control of the disease can be achieved by bees, which are used to carry effective - already existing - biological control agents directly onto strawberry flowers. Spraying the biocontrol agents will not protect the berries effectively, because it does not provide continuous protection (unlike bees, which visit the flowers several times every day). Expected benefits of the project - Improved yield quantity and stability: 25% to 100% increases have been obtained as the combined effect of disease biocontrol and improved pollination - Improved quality of products: heavier, more full berries as a result of improved pollination - Improved shelf-life for products - Improved farm economy: higher yield and earlier ripening as a result from the dual function of effective biocontrol of the disease and more complete pollination - Improved ecological and economic sustainability of organic berry and fruit production.
| Acronym | BICOPOLL |
| Duration | 01/12/2011 - 30/11/2014 |
| Website | visit project website |
| Network | CORE Organic II |
| Call | First call of CORE Organic II |
Project partner
| Number | Name | Role | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Helsinki - Department of Agricultural Sciences | Coordinator | Finland |
| 2 | Lower Saxony State Institute for Consumer Protection and Food Safety | Partner | Germany |
| 3 | Estonian University of Life Sciences | Partner | Estonia |
| 4 | Ghent University | Partner | Belgium |
| 5 | National Institute Of Biology | Partner | Slovenia |
| 6 | Centro Agricoltura Ambiente "G. Nicoli" | Partner | Italy |
| 7 | Süleyman Demirel University | Partner | Türkiye |