BIOTECHNOLOGICAL PRACTICES FOR GROWING CORN FOR GRAIN UNDER DIFFERENT PREDECESSORS IN THE CONDITIONS OF THE UKRAINIAN STEPPE

Abstract

An important factor that determines the grain yield and productivity of corn is the previous crop. In the conditions of insufficient moisture in the Steppe region of Ukraine, the significance of the predecessor is determined by the accumulated moisture reserves. It is believed that the best predecessors for corn in the Steppe conditions are winter wheat and leguminous crops, while satisfactory ones are corn and barley, with sunflower considered a poorer predecessor. Corn can be grown in both repeated plantings and monoculture, but the agronomic practices affecting crop productivity in such crop rotations have not been studied sufficiently. A stationary study was established in 2005 at the Institute of Agriculture of the Steppe NAAS, with soil and climatic conditions corresponding to the Northern Steppe zone of Ukraine. A simple modified mid-ripening hybrid DK Veles was sown in the study. Seed inoculation was carried out with the biopreparation Mycofriend. The research results indicate that the predecessor was a significant factor influencing the formation of grain yield and productivity indicators of corn. When growing corn after soybeans, the average grain yield was 5.31 t/ha, after sunflower and corn predecessors it was 3.03 t/ha and 3.25 t/ha respectively, with no significant difference in yield between sunflower and corn predecessors. There was no significant increase in corn grain yield due to the action of the biopreparation factor, with a yield increase ranging from 0.01–0.06 t/ha, but a more active effect of the biopreparation was noted with the sunflower predecessor. Higher productivity indicators for grain units yield, feed units yield, and digestible protein units were achieved when growing corn after soybeans – 6.43 t/ha, 9.65 t/ha, and 0.573 t/ha respectively. There was no significant difference in productivity indicators between the sunflower predecessor and repeated corn cultivation. The highest indicators for grain units yield, feed units yield, and digestible protein units were obtained under the condition of seed inoculation with the biopreparation after the soybean predecessor – 6.44 t/ha, 9.68 t/ha, and 0.575 t/ha respectively.