PRIMARY TILLAGE FOR WINTER DURUM WHEAT

Abstract

The primary tillage in crop cultivation determines the conditions for their growth and development. This is especially important for winter durum wheat, which has an underdeveloped root system and it requires a better approach to creating favorable conditions through tillage. There have been studied three methods of tillage: moldboard plowing on 22–25 cm (PN is 5-35); beardless plowing on 22–25 cm (PCh is2.5); disk plowing on 0–12 cm (AG is 2.4). The study was carried out in the southern area of the Rostov region in the Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution FSBSI “Agricultural Research Center “Donskoy” (2011–2015). The trial was carried out by generally accepted methods, which made it possible to establish the advantages of the moldboard and beardless plowing of black fallow on 22–25 cm compared to disk plowing on 10-12 cm when cultivating winter durum wheat. Tillage contributed to a lower density in the arable horizon (1.08 and 1.09 g/cm3 ), to a greater microbiological soil activity (up to 37%), and to better moisture supply during the growing season. Moldboard plowing contributed to an availability increase of such nutrients as potassium and nitrogen, and disk plowing contributed to accumulation of available phosphorus. The improved physical soil properties contributed to greater productivity. At disk plowing, winter durum wheat productivity was on average 4.93 t/ha through the years of study. At boardless and moldboard plowing wheat productivity was 5.38 and 5.55 t/ha for non-plow and dump plowing, respectively. Soil treatment did not affect the quality indicators.