• • • Improvement of seed germination in field and productivity of second alfalfa under irrigation in Dagestan flat land
The research aimed at improvement of soil cultivation techniques before and after planting to improve seed germination in field and make productivity of second alfalfa close to the one, sown in spring. Field trial took place on meadow-chestnut soil, containing high loam fraction. Two-factorial experiment analyzed the effectiveness of presowing tillage on the background of soil smoothing. Single-factor analysis included rolling before and after planting. Double harrowing, followed by soil smoothing, was the most effective cultivation method on the irrigated field under arid climate of the region. Alfalfa, sown in the first-second decades of July, formed biomass for cutting by the third decade of September. Hay yield made up 4.7 t ha-1, being 14.9 t ha-1 the year after (total yield — 19.6 t ha-1). Double harrowing by disk harrows and field cultivators with tooth harrows reduced field germination of seeds and hay yield down to 12.5 and 11.5 t ha-1. Elimination of presowing soil smoothing reduced hay yield by 5.0, 8.4 and 8.4%. Soil rolling after alfalfa planting improved plant number per 1 m2 by 28%, hay yield — by 30%, compared to a control. Methods of pre- and postsowing tillage had high economical effectiveness under minimal costs (3.0 thousand rubles/ha).
Source: https://kormoproizvodstvo.ru/en/8-2018-2/, p. 16
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