Soil solarization, an alternative to soil fumigation, is accomplished by using solar radiation to passively heat moist soil covered with clear plastic sheeting, with the goal of increasing soil temperatures to the point where they are lethal to soilborne organisms. The authors of a study published in HortScience demonstrated that in Arizona, June is the optimal time for high-tunnel growers to use solarization.
In their experiments, clear polyethylene mulch was used on the growing beds in conjunction with the glazing on the tunnels. With this configuration, soil temperatures to 15-cm depth increased such that disinfestation for many undesirable organisms would be completed in less than one week.
