The article gives the assessment and evaluation of ten winter durum wheat varieties according to the trait ‘1000-seed weight’. There has been shown the stability and adaptability of the varieties to the conditions of the Rostov region, whose soil-climatic conditions are favourable for winter durum wheat cultivation. The variety ‘Donskoy yantar’ turned to be less varying in the trait ‘1000-seed weight’ (V = 2.7 %) and it was less adaptive to the environment among the rest of the varieties (bi = 4.68). The maximum weight of 1000-seed during the years of study showed the variety ‘Lazurit’ (48.0g). The most adaptable varieties with a good response to the change of the environment are the varieties ‘Oniks’ (b_i = 6.16), ‘Agat donskoy’ (b_i = 6.23) and ‘Lazurit’ (b_i =6.63). The best varieties with the highest value of the trait ‘1000-seed weight’ under various growing conditions are the varieties ‘Lazurit’ and ‘Amazonka’.

Barley is one of the most important forage crops. The main barley producers are the European Union, Russia, Ukraine, Canada, Australia, Turkey and the USA. The share of the European Union is 42.3% of the total barley production in the world. The leading countries are France and Germany. In spite of decrease of the need of forage in husbandry, the Russian Federation is the first in the world in the acreage of barley. Saudi Arabia was the principal country of barley marketing for Russia in 2015 (57.3% of the total amount). The largest amounts of barley are sent from RF to Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya and Tunisia. The Prevolzhsky and Central Federal Districts are the principal producers in Russia and the Voronezh region is the largest productive area in Russia. The Orenburg region is the first in Russia in the amount of acreage. The share of the Southern federal District is about 15% of the total barley production Russia. There is an increase of winter barley acreage and decrease of spring barley acreage in the Rostov region. The countries of EU are characterized with the largest productivity of barley in the world. On average in Russia winter barley productivity is 35.9 hwt/ha and spring barley productivity is 21.8 hwt/ha. In 2015 the Veselovsky, Myasnikovsky, Kagalnitsky and Zernogradsky districts obtained the largest yields of barley in the Rostov region (more than 5.0 t/ha). The Semikorokorsky, Myasnikovsky, Kagalnitsky and Zernogradsky districts harvested more than 3.0 t/ha of spring barley. One of the most important directions of stable production of barley is the introduction of new varieties. The varieties of FSBSI ARRIGC after I.G. Kalinenko due to their good adaptability to the local environment realize their productive potential well. Their use in production will play a definite part in increase of barley productivity, crop stability and a complete supply with valuable forage.

The article deals with the review of the breeding work in the development of upland rice varieties in the Rostov region during the years of 2002-2015. Because of the deficit of water the problem is of great importance the last years. The staff of the laboratory of rice of I.G. Kalinenko ARRIGC has studied the collection of ARIR from which they have taken such varieties tolerant to water deficit as ‘Chan-Chun-Man’, ‘Din Syan’, ‘Sukhodolny’, ‘Bely SKOMS’, etc. They are of low height, with a thin stalk, a small panicle and average heads; they are resistant to fall and to lodging and they are early maturing varieties. The hybrids on 28 combinations and the lines of rice for growing under periodic irrigation have been obtained from the crossing of upland rice samples with such varieties of Don breeding as ‘Razdolny’, ‘Boyarin’ and ‘Komandor’. After multiple choices of recombinant forms the best lines have been assessed in the control farm. Their productivity, as a rule, was the same as of the standard varieties. The sample ‘9497’ (‘Chan-Chun-Man’x‘Boyarin’) produced 7.57 t/ha for six years, that exceeded the productivity of the standard variety ‘Boyarin’ on 0.57 t/ha. In 2015 the sample ‘5782’ (‘Komandor’x‘Chan-Chun-Man’) produced 8.52 t/ha (on 0.86t/ha more than the standard). We cooperate with ARRI of irrigated agriculture (Volgograd) and annually carry out the testing of the best lines. We also work in cooperation with the Institute of Rice (Ukraine, Skadovsk), with ARRIGM’s affiliate in Kalmykiya, where we carried out the agroecological testing of promising lines of rice under rain irrigation. In 2016 there was laid down an experimental plot with periodic irrigation for the testing of upland samples of rice developed in ARRIGC, ARRIOA and ARRIR and for selection of the most stable and productive forms.

The work presents the assessment of productivity of such alfalfa varieties as ‘Rostovskaya 60’, ‘Rostovskaya 90’, ‘Lyutsiya’ and ‘Manycheskaya’ (of haymaking use) and ‘Kubanskaya zheltaya’ (of haymaking and grazing use). The varieties of haymaking use had a shorter period from the beginning of spring sprouting to the first mowing and seed ripening. In the first year the density of the alfalfa varieties was 300-340 plants per 1m². At the end of the second year the density was 226-331 plants per 1m² or 66.2% of the sown germinated seeds. At the end of the third year it was 171-248 plants per 1m² or 38.0-49.6% of the sown germinated seeds. In the first year of use the density of the stand was significantly lower (912-1038 plants per 1m²) than in the second year (1116-1375 plants per 1m²). The density of the stand of the variety ‘Kubanskaya zheltaya’ was larger than that of the blue-hybrid varieties of alfalfa. During the second mowing the density of the stand was 221-331 plants per 1m² and there was not any definite regularity in the amount of the stand of the blue-hybrid varieties of alfalfa. The density of the stand was determined by the productivity of green chop and dry matter. During the first mowing the productivity of the varieties was larger than during the second one. The alfalfa varieties showed high productivity during the second year of growing as well. The more productive blue-hybrid variety ‘Lyutsiya’ gave 24.1-27.4 t/ha of green chop and 5.2-8.4 t/ha of dry matter during the first mowing in the first year. During the second year its green chop productivity was 25.9-34.1 t/ha and its dry matter productivity was 6.4-8.6 t/ha. During all years the variety ‘Lyutsiya’ produced 28.5 t/ha of green chop and 7.4 t/ha of dry matter on average. It surpassed the variety ‘Rostovskaya 90’ on 0.8 t/ha of green chop and on 0.2 t/ha of dry matter, the variety ‘Rostovskaya 60’ on 1.5 t/ha of green chop and on 0.5 t/ha of dry matter, the variety ‘Manycheskaya’ on 3.1 t/ha of green chop and on 0.8 t/ha of dry matter. The variety ‘Kubanskaya zheltaya’ gave a larger yield (29.7 t/ha of green chop and 7.6 t/ha of dry matter) than the blue-hybrid varieties in one mowing. In sum, two mowings of the haymaking varieties gave a larger yield of green chop (41.8-45.7 t/ha) and dry matter (11.1-12.1 t/ha) than the variety ‘Kubanskaya zheltaya

One of the reasons of peas sowings decrease are the shortcomings of its cultivation, especially its wrong harvesting that together with its biologic peculiarities makes its cultivation rather difficult. Wrong technologies of cultivation result in peas fall and its severe lodging that largely reduces its yield and in climatic unfavourable years leads to the loss of it. The varieties of leafless peas which form a hard stand and do not lodge play a significant part in the solution of the problem. The article gives the results of the effect of the elements of structure on productivity of leafless peas. Nine peas lines of the competitive variety testing have been studied. The characteristics according to the main economic-valuable traits, i.e. productivity, a number of beans per plant, a number of seeds per bean, a number of nods and 1000-seed weight, has been given. The line ‘SarmatxAksaysky Usaty10’ with the maximum productivity of 2.3 t/ha is of greatest interest. The line ‘Aksaysky Usaty10xSarmat’ possesses the largest 1000-seed weight (177.4g). The line ‘Aksaysky Usaty7xSarmat’ possesses the largest number of bean per plant (4.1 pieces). The lines ‘Flagman 7xZernogradsky9’, ‘PriazovskyxSarmat’ and ‘SarmatxAksaysky Usaty55’ possess the largest number of seeds per bean (4.5; 4.2; 4.2 pieces respectively).

The work deals with the study of DNA-markers for obtaining salinity tolerant rice on the basis of varieties of Russian breeding. In order to validate the informational value of the developed marker system and to obtain new salinity tolerant forms there has been carried out a hybridization of salt sensitive domestic variety ‘Novator’ with the lines ‘IR 52713-2B-8-2B-1-2’, ‘IR 74099-3R-3-3’, ‘IR 61920-3B-22-2-1 (NSIC Rc 106)’ as the donors of the locus of salinity tolerance SalTol QTL. The samples salinity response was assessed with 1.0% of NaCl concentrate. The plants were grown in the climatic chamber with the temperature of 26ºС, 70% of humidity and light cycle of 14/10 hours. In 14 days the length of the roots and sprouts and the per cent of seed germination were calculated. The markers ‘RM 140’, ‘RM 237’, ‘RM 8094’, ‘RM 8095’, ‘RM 3412’, ‘RM 7075’, ‘RM 8046’, ‘AUT 10777’, ‘RM 3412 b’, ‘RM 10746’, ‘RM 10782’, ‘RM 493’, ‘RM 10776’, ‘RM 10793’ with the locus of salinity tolerance SalTol were used in the SSR-analysis. It has been shown that the co-dominant markers ‘RM 493’ and ‘RM 7075’ possess high efficiency during the introduction of the locus SalTol QTL into the domestic varieties of rice. 90 samples have been selected from the plants of the second generation, which were analyzed on the presence of the introduced alleles SalTol with the PCR-method. The DNA-analysis of the hybrids F₂, obtained from the hybridization of the highly productive early-maturing variety ‘Novator’ and the lines-donors of SalTol ‘IR 52713-2B-8-2B-1-2’, ‘IR 74099-3R-3-3’, ‘IR 61920-3B-22-2-1 (NSIC Rc 106)’ determined that 17 samples were salinity tolerant in homozygous state, 29 samples had the allele SalTol in heterozygous state and the rest of the studied plants had only the alleles inherited from the variety ‘Novator’.

In the Rostov region there is an increase of the amount of winter wheat varieties used in the production. Out of 110 varieties used in the production in 2015, 28 varieties (or 13.3%) were new. In the sowings of winter wheat in 2015, the varieties being in the production for 6-10 years were mostly spread, including the varieties which have always been the leaders in the winter wheat sowings. Incomplete use of new varieties in the Rostov region is a reason of low grain yields. In 2015 the winter wheat yield was less on 950 thousand ton. The analysis of varietal structure of winter wheat and variety change dynamics is aimed for the development of organizational events to improve the regulation of seed market in the region on the basis of planning, forecasting and management. The increase of economic efficiency of grain production is connected with a rapid introduction of new varieties on the basis of a scientifically substantiated variety change taking into account agro ecological placement in nature-climatic zones that is impossible without well-organized seed-growing.

Here has been carried out the study of ten parental forms of maize hybrids in moisture supplied conditions (All-Russian RI of maize, Pyatigorsk) and in dry conditions (All-Russian RI of Grain crops, Zernograd) according to the main economic-valuable traits, i.e. grain productivity, harvesting moisture of grain, a length of the period ‘sprouts-flowering’, lodging, infection with blister smut, infertility, a plant height and a height of cob attachment. The moisture supply differed in 2014 and 2016 that resulted in significant decrease of average productivity of the studied form in a dry trial. In 2015 the same moisture conditions in both trials resulted in the same amount of productivity of the studied forms. There have been determined such parental forms with high indexes of drought tolerance as ‘Istok S’(36.0%), ‘Mirt M’(44.9%), ‘Malvina S’(39.3%), ‘Verbena SD’(39.2%) and ‘Maya M’(39.7%). They are characterized with high indexes of main economic-valuable traits in dry conditions: grain productivity of 3.16-4.41 t/ha, harvesting moisture of grain of 11.3-14.9%, a height of cob attachment of 78.0-87.0cm, infection with blister smut 0-2.2%, lodging of 0.3-3.7%. The obtained parental forms are the promising ones for maize hybridization in the Rostov region characterized with unstable humidity. The correlation between an index of drought tolerance and plant infertility has been established. It has been recommended to use the data received in the years with contrast moisture supply for calculation of the index of drought tolerance.

The article gives the results of growing the generations of two hybrids F₁ and F₂ under the scheme combining the regulated and natural conditions, which are characteristic to the center of Non-Black Earth area. The scheme has got two stages. The first stage is to obtain the generation of F₁. The seeds of hybrids are sown on F₁ in the container in the terms of winter wheat sowing. Until the end of vernalization they are in natural conditions, and then they are placed for ripening in the greenhouse. The combinations are valued according to a phenotype and selective traits; a sorting out takes place. The second stage is to sow seeds on F₂ in a heated soil greenhouse, after vernalization the heating is turned off and a further growing continues in natural conditions. The seeds selected from F₂ lines for F₃ are sent to the breeding plots of 1.5 m² or they are sown in the autumn of the year. Some samples, which originated from F₁ and F₂ and were grown in the containers and in the heated greenhouses in 2012, were approved for the competitive Variety Testing in 2015.

The article presents the information about significance and spread of durum wheat, the reasons of deficit of durum grain in the country and the ways to improve production of this valuable crop. One of the ways is to introduce the commercial varieties of winter durum wheat ‘Amazonka’, ‘Agat donskoy’, ‘Kristella’, ‘Lazurit’ and ‘Oniks’, listed in the State Register of breeding achievements in North-Caucasus and Nizhniy-Volga region from 2010 till 2015. The new varieties possess high genetic potential of productivity. The average productivity during the years of trials (2011-2015) was 6.81 t/ha (the variety ‘Kristella’), 7.37 t/ha (the variety ‘Lazurit’); in the favourable year of 2014 they produced 8.24 and 8.80 t/ha respectively and in the unfavourable year of 2012 they gave 4.96 and 6.0 t/ha. The varieties ‘Amazonka’, ‘Agat donskoy’ and ‘Lazurit’ have got a high degree of frost resistance; the varieties ‘Kristella’ and ‘Oniks’ have got the average degree, giving way to ‘Donchanka’ on 8-18% with high drought tolerance especially in the period of ripening. The variety ‘Kristella’ belongs to the middle early maturing group, the varieties ‘Amazonka’, ‘Oniks’ and ‘Diona’ belong to middle maturing group and the varieties ‘Agat donskoy’ and ‘Lazurit’ belong to middle later maturing group. The varieties of short stem type are resistant to lodging (4-5 points), excluding ‘Amazonka’ which gives way to other varieties on 1-2 points. The varieties are tolerant to brown and yellow rust, powdery mildew; average tolerant to septoriosis, root rots and snow mold; they are highly sensitive to bacteriosis and fusarium of head and grain. The grain quality (vitreousness, nature weight, content of protein and gluten and its quality, falling number) is high and meets the demands of GOST for durum wheat. The technological and cooking properties of pasts are good (yellow and cream colors of pasta, strength of 800-900g, total assessment of 3.8-4.0 points). The sowings of the varieties of durum wheat both seed-growing and commercial are necessary to place apart from the sowings of winter soft wheat (at the distance of 200-500 m, not less) to avoid biological and mechanical contamination.

The seed quality is the most important factor for productivity increase of all agricultural crops. Its formation depends on many factors including agro technologies. It’s common knowledge that seed quality depends on a degree of plant density. But with the introduction of new varieties into production the problem of optimal seeding rates in seed-growing remains very important. The article gives the results of the research in 2013-2015, the purpose of which was to determine the best seeding rate giving the highest productivity and quality of seeds and increasing the coefficient of reproduction of winter triticale seeds ‘Izhevskaya 2’ and ‘Zimogor’ in the Middle Pre-Urals. For the purpose, Izhevsk SAA put a two-factor trial, where A was the varieties ‘Izhevskaya 2’ and ‘Zimogor’; the factor B was a seeding rate of germinated seeds of 3-8 mln per ha and the control was 6 mln per ha. The study was conducted according to the conventional methods. It has been determined that winter triticale ‘Izhevskaya 2’ with a seeding rate of 5 mln per ha and ‘Zimogor’ with a seeding rate of 6 mln per ha gave the increased yields and improved seed quality. With a rapid reproduction it’s possible to sow both varieties with the seeding rates of 3 and 4 mln per ha, as in comparison with the indexes of the control variant (a seeding rate of 6 mln per ha) the coefficient of reproduction of ‘Izhevskaya 2’ increases on 2.3-4.6 points, ‘Zimogor’ on 3.6-7.5 points; 1000-seed weight increases on 0.3-0.6g and 2.4-3.0g respectively; the seeds give better sprouts which can be valuated higher on 0.04-0.09 p and 0.13-0.31p respectively.

The article presents the results of four-year researches concerning the optimal conditions of spring wheat growing on light-chestnut (brown) soils of the east part of Kalmykia. There has been established the promising technological range of water and mineral supply, and there have been determined the spring wheat varieties with a great response on these intensification factors. The article gives the characteristics of climatic conditions of the region, the methods of conducting of field experiments and the scheme of fulfilling of field trials. The results of the experimental and theoretical researches of the resource-saving technology of spring wheat cultivation with the optimization of irrigation regime and mineral supply have been considered. The resource-saving technology of spring wheat cultivation on slightly saline light-chestnut soils has been developed, that allows decreasing specific consumption of irrigational water on 10-30% and allows yielding 6 t/ha of grain with 15.9-17.0% of protein and 39.2-41.5% of raw gluten.

The article considers the possibilities and presents the study results of winter wheat cultivation with various technologies under the conditions of insufficient and unstable moisture supply of the south of Russia. The experimental research has been carried out under the conditions of stationary trial of four crop rotation sequences with different variants of tillage (moldboard, subsoil (nonmoldboard) and graded tillage), including non-tillage variants. It has been determined that some qualitative traits of winter wheat grain were the same in all experiments (color, pest infection, kernels with smut, smell). Some traits can be eliminated and brought to the standard indexes through further improvement of kernels (moisture, weed and grain dockage, etc.). Due to the regressive analysis the beta-coefficients have been found which determined the largest effect on grain quality of such indexes as quantity and quality of gluten, amount of protein, nature weight and falling number. According to the ROC-analysis there has been given a quantitative assessment of the effect of cultivation technologies on qualitative traits of grain. The qualitative traits like falling number and nature weight occupy the largest area under the curve of the ROC-analysis (the area under the curve is of 0.847 and 0.792 respectively). it shows a great effect of the cultivation technologies (tillage) on these parameters. The obtained results of qualitative traits of grain allow saying that the use of non-tillage methods in winter wheat cultivation do not reduce the quality of the product. That’s why non-tillage cultivation technologies are possible to be used in the south of Russia with insufficient moisture supply.

According to the Russian Statistics the areas occupied with soybean have increased in 2.8 times for the last ten years. The geography of soybean growing has also enlarged for the period. The agricultural season of 2014-2015 showed that Russia ranked 8 in the world in the amount of areas with soybean [1]. Therewith, it’s necessary to develop varieties tolerant to pests and diseases even with decrease of chemical treatment of sowings. The article considers the results of screenings conducted in the years of 2013-2015. In 2013 300 varietal samples of soybean were tested. 99 varieties of them were selected according to the terms of ripening. In 2014 32 varieties were selected according to the height of attachment of a lower bean. The experiments with soybean were conducted on the fields of the Tula region. The results of phonological observations and the structural analysis of plant productivity were obtained. The chosen samples have been studied on the degree of damage with pests and diseases on the phones of their natural spread. There have been selected the slightly responsive samples of various geographical origin which can become valuable initial material in the breeding work as the sources of tolerance and resistance. The results of the study of the collection samples in the conditions of the Central part of Russia show the possibility to grow soybean and to obtain proper seeds, that contributes to import substitution of agricultural products.

The article gives the results of three-year study and assessment of the varieties of winter barley of Russian and foreign selection (Ukraine, Germany, France, Check Republic, US) on a response to a loose smut pathogen Ustilaqo nuda (Jens.) Kell. etSw. The study has been carried out on the infected field of the laboratory of immunity and plant protection of All-Russian Research Institute of Grain Crops named after I.G. Kalinenko. As the development of pathogen is biennial, the varieties-differentiators were inoculated with a spore suspension of pathogen in a flowering phase during the first year. The infected plants were labeled and harvested in the phase of total ripeness. Next year the infected seeds were sown into the phyto pathologic plot. The counting of the infected and healthy heads was carried out in the phase of milky ripeness. According to the results of artificial inoculation we have determined various degree of infection among the studied varieties. Two varieties ‘Mikhaylo’ and ‘Gorizont’ were found highly responsive and sensible to the pathogen. Eight varieties have been characterized with high resistance to the disease.

The purpose of the work is to consider and to assess the level of Russia’s independence in grain production from the standpoint of food security. We used the definition, criteria and indexes of their assessment, recommended by ‘Food Security Doctrine of the Russian Federation’. We intended to give the assessment of the state of food security in the grain production in three directions: in the consumption, in the production and national competitiveness, in the management. But the authors failed to use a number of indexes, as they were intended to evaluate the total food independence and security but not for the assessment of the considered problem according to one separate food resource (e.g. grain). Thus, the system of indexes has been enlarged with extra instruments and there has been collected necessary information to determine their actual values. The authors have concluded that the system of indexes for the assessment of food security, suggested by the Doctrine, needs the improvement and reorientation of its possibilities on the evaluation of the level of independence of country’s supply with food and population with food products of the agricultural, fishery and other sectors of the national economy, participating in the solution of food tasks.