THE DEPENDENCE OF THE YIELD OF MEDICINAL CHAMOMILE INFLORESCENCES ON THE DURATION OF THE GROWING SEASON OF CULTURE

Abstract

During growing medicinal plants, the main condition is the correct selection of agricultural technology, because these plants require the correctness and accuracy of actions in the cultivation process. Nowadays, medicinal plants are becoming more relevant among Ukrainian agricultural producers, as sustainable profits can be obtained from the sale of medicinal raw materials. The aim of our research was to develop and improve the elements of technology for growing chamomile medicinal (Matricaria recutita L.) in the Pollyssya region of Ukraine. To establish the effect of changing the period of vegetation of the crop by sowing the plants at different sowing periods on the extension of flowering period. For these studies used a variety of chamomile medicinal Pearl Forest-steppe. We have established that the flowering period depends essentially on the sowing period, namely on the duration of the growing season. For the autumn sowing and sowing rate of 5 kg/ha, we obtained an average plant density of 710 pcs/m2 , a plant growing season of 220 days and a long flowering period of up to 20 days. And with spring sowing the same norm – the density of plants was much lower – 640 pcs/m2 , the growing season lasted 90 days, flowering period reached only 14 days. In terms of productivity, the autumn sowing period showed the highest yields of both the raw mass of inflorescences and the air-dry, respectively. The yield of the crude mass of autumn sowing ranges from 1.1 to 1.3 t/ha and the dry weight, respectively, from 0.5 to 0.7 t/ha. As for spring sowing, the yield was slightly lower than the previous one, as the flowering period and the growing season of the plants were generally shorter. In the future it is planned to carry out more research on the impact of agrotechnical measures on the yield of medicinal chamomile in the conditions of the Pollissya zone, where this issue has not been sufficiently studied