About mulch mats:

Mulching is defined as cover up of soil around the plants to preserve soil wetness, reducing nutrient loss by leaching and weeds control where chemical fertilizers are used and to modify soil temperature.

How mulch is beneficiary for agriculture:

• Mulching reduces overflow, increase penetration of rainwater, controls erosion, and corrects the chemical stability of the soil and decrease damage done by pests and bug.
• There are some secondary special effects, mulching produces, apart from the above major results; such as upgrading of soil structure, boost in micro-activity, earthworm populations.
• Black film put a stop to the germination and expansion of wild plant seeds in contrast to clear film. It sucks up more sun energy and keeps hold of higher heat beneath the film.
• In India, straw, silage, sawdust, asphalt paper, etc is conventionally used for mulching. Exercise of technical textiles for mulching is yet to gain momentum.
• Currently, mulch mats are being used largely in vegetable (which are small duration harvest) and few fruit crops.
• Mulch mats are used to keep ripening of fruits, off the soil. The reduced get in touch with the soil decline fruit deterioration as well as remain the fruit and vegetables clean. This is advantageous for the production of numerous fruits including strawberries.
  
  Process of using mulch:
  
  
• Ahead of plantation of the seedlings, the beds of the field are roofed with the mulch layer (generally a black opaque film) and the holes are made at the desired spots where in the seeds are planted.
• The use of mulch mats along with the use of drip irrigation can lead to significant increase in productivity. But, the non-biodegradable mulches must be removed from the field and disposed off properly.
  
  Product characteristics:
  
  
• Mulch mats can be classified as:-
• Woven
• Non-woven
• Mulch-films
• Mulch mats prepared by eco-friendly material are incorporated into the soil as fertilizer for the next crop.
• Wool mulch mats permit water to enter in to the soil and act as a blockade to put a stop to too much soil desiccation throughout dry period. It also offer better insulation and prevents damage from ground coolness.
• On the other hand, HDPE/LLDPE mulch films are cheaper and last for one to four years. Mulch films made of LLDPE are most commonly used for mulching in India.
• The process of extrusion manufactures the films of different thicknesses. The thickness of the films is based on the harvest requirement and the time-period for which the mulch films are planned to be used.
• For instance, some manufacturers recommend 7 microns film for crops like groundnut.
• Mulch films of thickness 100 microns are used for mango trees, which are used over many years.
• The most common thicknesses of films are 25, 50 and 100 microns.
• The coverage of mulch films is dependent on the thickness. UV master-batch is added to ensure UV stabilization.
• Availability of mulch films in the market are in the roll forms. The most frequently offered films have a width of 1-1.15 meters. The films are usually black in color; the purpose of black color is to retain higher soil temperature.
  
  Raw materials:
  

• Natural fibre such as wool and jute and manmade fibres such as LLDPE, HDPE, polypropylene, polyester, are used to prepare mulch mats.
• Wool fibre is used for designing Non-woven Mulch mat,
• LLDPE polymer is used for Mulch films (Extruded sheets in various thicknesses, microns) and
• Fibres like jute and cotton are used for Woven mulch mats.
  
  Technology used:
  
  
• Projectile.
• Circular weaving machine.
• Film Extruding machine.