Assessment of the impact of methods of biologization of the agrocenosis of apple trees (<i>Malus domestica</i> Borkh.) on soil fertility and plant productivity

Abstract

The influence of methods of biologization of the agrocenosis of the orchard, including soil blackening with cereal-legume mixtures of perennial grasses in combination with the introduction of biofertilizers of various spectrum of action, on soil fertility and productivity of apple trees (Malus domestica Borkh.) has been studied. The study was carried out in a two-factor long-term field experiment on meadow soils of the Salgir River valley (Republic of Crimea). It was revealed that the biologization of the agrocenosis of the apple tree contributed to the enrichment of the soil with organic matter, increased the content of its active components, led to the accumulation of mobile forms of phosphorus and potassium with a slight decrease in the content of nitrate nitrogen in the soil. At the same time, the concentration of nutrients in the leaves of the apple tree, including nitrogen, increased. All this contributed to an increase in the yield of fruits. Quantitative relationships between indicators of soil fertility and productivity of apple trees have been revealed. The obtained dependencies allowed us to build a model of productivity of Golden Delicious apple trees during the biologization of its agrocenosis. The most effective combination of the studied methods of biologization is the use of soil blackening with a cereal-bean mixture 3 (CBM3) with bacterization of the root system of an apple tree with a nitrogen-fixing strain (NFS).