Irina BERG
Global climate change year after year disrupts farmers' plans for high yields. In the hottest regions, such as the Kuban and Stavropol regions, it rains for weeks during the high season.
And territories far from the south of Russia suffer from severe drought. This year, for example, an emergency regime due to atmospheric drought was introduced in the Republic of Chuvashia, and in 2021 - in the Sverdlovsk and Chelyabinsk regions.
The problems of moisture conservation in the fields of potatoes grown without irrigation are being solved today with the help of various agricultural practices. Farmers and scientists who have been in the industry for many years shared their experience and recommendations.
PROVEN TECHNOLOGIES
Traditional methods of growing crops that have been tested for decades still give excellent results today. Unfortunately, modern farmers often forget about the basics of agriculture.
Potato is a very plastic plant, able to adaptface different conditions - says the general director of the center for scientific and technical support of enterprises of the agro-industrial complex "Consultant Agro" Ninel Konovalova. - But our potato growers suffer losses even in moderate drought, because they often violate technology. For example, the soil is not prepared before planting a crop. using all recommended techniques, does not developetsya to the desired lumpiness. Tubers are not always sized in size and are planted at shallow depths. The comb is low, bad shaped, with a crumbling edge. Created with a crest of soil volume is simply not enough to protect the plant's root system from drying out and subsequent partial death. Also, the feeding area is incorrectly chosen, that is, the density of planting potatoes. But if the technology is observed, the culture is able to resist drought for a long time.
For a good harvest, it is important to form a comb correctly, - confirms the candidate of agricultural sciences, the general director of the company "Molyanov Agro Group" Vladimir Molyanov. - Many growers make the mistake of creating a high ridge, in which the tubers are above the capillary layer of the soil. A deeper planting, of course, makes it difficult to harvest mechanized. But this gives a real opportunity to get a decent potato harvest even without irrigation..
It is also necessary to take into account where the car is grown.tofel, - notes the candidate of agricultural sciences, deputy dean for scientific work of the faculties of agrobiology and land resources, ecology and landscape architecture of the Stavropol State Agrarian University Timur Aisanov. - If this is a zone of sufficient or excessive moisture, it is necessary to follow the technology in which potatoes are planted in a ridge. If we are talking about dry territory, crops should be planted under the ridge.
PLOWING HAS THE MEANING
On the other hand, regardless of climatic conditions, the soil does not tolerate a formal, thoughtless attitude. And in the course of its processing, the agrarian needs to take into account many nuances.
You can not plow the field every year to the same depth, - emphasizes Timur Aisanov. - No less often than time в 4-5 years requiredcarrying out additional deepening of plowing with various kinds of slitters. For these purposes are also used chisel plows or deepcastings. With their help, the plow pan is destroyed, the compacted layer of soil, which prevents the root system of the plant from pulling moisture from the subsoil layer.
Deep loosening contributes to the fact that during the winter in the soil onmore moisture accumulates - says the head of the KFH Sergei Creevosheev. - Many farmers from different regions of the country speak about the high efficiency of this method. When I learned about this agricultural technique, I purchased special tools, applied it on my farm, and have been practicing it constantly since then. We work in the Predgorny region of Stavropol, on the mountain slopes. Our soils are carbonate, heavy black soil, so it is necessary to loosen deeply every year.
CROP ROTATION AS INVESTMENT
The correct rotation of crops in the field, combined with the observance of all tillage technologies, also makes it possible to accumulate more moisture.
For potatoes, crop rotation should be at least three years old - sure Ninel Konovalova. - This agricultural technique has a positive effect on all indicators.whether the soil: fertility, structure, mechanical composition, moisture capacity. If a follow crop rotation и properly handle the field, well structured soil is able to actively accumulate moisture.
According to long-term field experience in the central regions of Russia, potatoes can be grown in one place several years in a row - notes Doctor of Biological Sciences, Professor of the Department of Agriculture and Experimental Methods of the Moscow Agricultural Academy named after K. A. Timiryazev Michael Ma- zirov. - But in arid zones, couples stillcall high efficiency, especially in order to accumulate moisture in the soil. Black steam is the most effective, but in our time it is used extremely rare, mostly large farms. whole year to incur costs, carefully cultivate the field and not grow anything on it is unprofitable for the agrarian.
With crop rotation on farms where we we grow the elite and the first reproduction of seed potatoes, as a precursorstvennik used barley or winter wheat, - explains Vladimir Molyanov.
And for the production of superelite - only pure pairs. From intermediate sacktour in this case we refused due to the fact that green manure does not allow completely clear the field from weeds and diseases. On the In our experience, we have found that clean steam really helps to keep moisture in the soil for a long time.
Potatoes prefer a predecessor that clears the field early enough to leave time for high-quality soil preparation and moisture accumulation, - thinks Timur Aisanov.
Silage maize, legumes and grains perform this task well. That is, those cultures which leave behind a lot of vegetationny residues and are removed among the first.
In our country, during the crop rotation, potatoes return to the site on average once every 3-4 years, says Sergey Krivosheev. - For 10 years of work, we have come to the conclusion that it is necessary to alternate not two, but 4-5 crops. So the field remains free of potatoes for as long as possible, which contributes to its purification. We try to keep the land here occupied until the first snow falls. Therefore, after harvesting the predecessor, mainly winter wheat and barley, we sow green manure: mustard, buckwheat, oilseed radish. They help us as soil phytosanitary, and also contribute to the accumulation of biomass and moisture in it.
Many do not understand that crop rotation is a kind of deposit, money put in the bank, - claims Ninel Konovalova. - The farmer frees the field from potatoes and carefully works on it so that in 2-3 years the soil is ready for a higher yield. The peasant invests a lot of money, but the return will be significant for him.
FROM THE CLASSICS TO INNOVATION
Each agricultural producer will empirically determine the list of agricultural practices that are effective in the conditions of his economy. Some use traditional methods, others are advanced and not yet widely used. - Our farms are engaged in the production of seed potatoes in the Urals, in the Samara and Kaliningrad regions, - tells Vladimir Molyanov. - Previously, we contributed the recommended dose of fertilizers, based on the provision of soil with potassium, but then came to the conclusion that its dose should be increased. This element is responsible for the retention of moisture by plant cells. Well-supplied with potassium, potatoes are able to prevent its unproductive evaporation. We recommend top dressing with potash fertilizers as a mandatory procedure. It guarantees stress resistance and heat resistance of the crop in the field, has a positive effect on the formation of tubers, prevents the formation of children, promotes the formation of a strong potato skin and its preservation after harvesting.
When growing a crop without irrigation, the choice is also important varieties. Preference should be given to more heat-resistant, as well as early varieties that have time to lay tubers and practically form a crop at the expense of stocks of winter and spring moisture in the soil.
In recent years, Russian farmers have been increasingly using hydrogel to provide moisture to their crops, - tells Timur Aisanov. - This is such a polymeric material in the form of granules, which, after being introduced into the soil, accumulate moisture in the soil.rain zones, hold it, and then gradually give it back.
We started using the hydrogel three years ago in the Volzhsky district of the Samara region and got a good effect, says Vladimir Molyanov. - In this zone, floodplain lands that need to improve their moisture capacity. Their top layer does not hold water, which quickly goes down. During periods of high humidity, the granules absorb moisture, and when the soil dries out, the hydrogel allows plants to survive a short-term drought.
IN CONNECTION WITH NATURE
There is an opinion that nature itself tells the farmer how to properly cultivate the land, and provides all the opportunities for this. The zero tillage system just provides for the minimum impact on the soil and its microflora.Experiments carried out in the Stavropol Territory showed that no-till allows you to save more moisture in the soil, when compared with traditional sowing technologies, - confirms Timur Aisanov. - But this technology does not perform well on heavy, confluent soils that are heavily overconsolidated. It is difficult to sow here, especially row crops. They need a large layer of loosened soil in order to develop shoots from tubers, to increase the vegetative mass and, as a result, increase yields. For example, I am not aware of cases when potatoes were cultivated on a no-till and received high yields.
– No-till technology is best used in arid regions, where it has proven its effectiveness, - sure Mikhail Mazirov. - But it must be borne in mind that not all crops can be successfully cultivated with its use.
Snow cover at the end of winter becomes a source of life-giving moisture, so necessary for young crops.
- Such a technique as snow retention is relevant for regions where drought begins in early spring, - notes Ninel Konovalova. - In the central part of Russia, it is rarely practiced, but to the south, in the Lipetsk, Tula, Voronezh, Rostov regions, the method is still used. With the help of special devices, farmers keep snow on their farmland, which, after melting, provides the soil with a sufficient amount of moisture. But in order for it to remain in the fields, it is necessary to carry out deep autumn plowing in advance, to make the soil well structured. And in the spring, moisture must be securely “closed” by running harrows across the fields.
Whatever agricultural method the agricultural producer chooses, the recommendations of experts come down to one general idea.
- Farmers need to strictly observe zonal cultivation technologiespotatoes and do not deviate from them, - said the head of the department of potato growing of the Federal Scientific Center for Biological Systems and Agrotechnologies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Agricultural Sciences Alexander Mushinsky. - In the first eyeamong these are the planting dates, the selection of zoned varieties of different ripening periods, the application of mineral fertilizers, taking into account the provision of soil with chemical elements, agricultural practices specific to a particular zone ... Only then will it be possible to maintain the required level of soil moisture throughout the season and consistently obtain high, high-quality yields.