Study results of the spring vetch varieties (<i>Vicia sativa</i> L.) in the Republic of Bashkortostan

Abstract

Spring vetch is a valuable leguminous plant that serves as a source of high-protein feed for farm animals, and due to its ability to fix nitrogen, it is a good green manure. The cultivation of this crop plays an important role in solving the problem of plant protein deficiency; however, in the Cis-Ural steppe of the Republic of Bashkortostan, productivity of vetch seeds and green mass is low and unstable over the years. In this regard, the purpose of the current study was to estimate the potential productivity of spring vetch varieties that would be promising for cultivation in the soil and climatic conditions of our region. Field trials were conducted in 2021–2023. Weather conditions during the years of study were contrasting in temperature and moisture availability. The material for the study was a set of spring vetch varieties ‘Omichka 3’, ‘Orlovskaya 91’, ‘Lugovskaya 98’, ‘Lgovskaya 22’, ‘Yubileinaya 110’, ‘Uzunovskaya 8’, ‘Valentina’, recommended for cultivation in the Ural region of the Russian Federation. The estimation, records and measurements were carried out in accordance with the Methodological recommendations for the study of the grain legumes’ collection (1975) and the Methodology for the State Variety Testing of Agricultural Crops (2019). As a result, there has been found that in the conditions of the Republic of Bashkortostan the spring vetch varieties ‘Lgovskaya 22’, ‘Omichka 3’, ‘Uzunovskaya 8’ with a vegetation period length of 74.3±11.6 – 75.7±12.1 days turned out to be the most earlymaturing. According to the indicators of the main yield structure elements, the varieties ‘Valentina’, ‘Uzunovskaya 8’, ‘Yubileinaya 110’ were the best in terms of ‘number of beans per plant’ (4.4±0.7 – 4.9±1.3 pcs.), ‘seeds per plant’ (18.1± 5.9 – 18.5±6.8 pcs.), ‘seed productivity’ (0.90±0.26 – 0.96±0.27g). According to our study, the most promising varieties for production in the Republic of Bashkortostan are ‘Uzunovskaya 8’ and ‘Valentina’, which were the best ones in terms of productivity of grain (1.25–1.29 t/ha), green mass (6.40–6.53 t/ha) and hay (1.61–1.65 t/ha) in 2021–2023.