Modern Intensive Farming Research Articles

Revisiting agricultural modernisation: Interconnected farming practices driving rural development at the farm level

Abstract Rural development related to agriculture can roughly be divided into two trajectories: 1) agri-industrial development or modernisation, and 2) multifunctional or even post-productivist rural development. The role of these trajectories varies in different rural settings, with different emphases on agricultural production and its conduct. At the farm level, the trajectories evolve from existing farming practices and their connections, which enable or disable different kinds of development. However, the connections through which changes in agricultural production practices contribute to different rural development trajectories deserve further scrutiny. This is addressed with the help of practice theory, which implies that by focusing on farmers' agricultural practices, and on the diverse materials, meanings and competences mobilised when these practices are performed, it is possible to identify how changes occur, and how the creation of novelties, or the adoption and modification of external innovations, are enabled or disabled. Empirically, the study is based on thematic interviews with Finnish farmers. The article contributes to the empirical utilisation of practice theory, particularly in relation to the evolution of interconnected practices. The analysis contextualises different agricultural modernisation and rural development processes for change in farming practices, and identifies four different farming trajectories. The results broaden our current understanding of rural development in the Nordic context by revealing the farm-level connections between modern intensive farming practices, multifunctional practices, and maintaining farming practices. The interconnectedness of farms following different development trajectories demonstrates the persistence and evolution of traditional sharing and bartering practices. This calls for a further exploration of differences in rural development in different regional farming contexts.

The Importance of the Social Sciences in Reducing Tail Biting Prevalence in Pigs.

Simple SummaryTail lesions are a major welfare concern within pig farming. Tail lesions result from biting and chewing of the tail of one pig by another and can indicate boredom and frustration within the herd. While extensive research has been carried out to understand and eliminate tail biting in pigs, findings from scientific studies have often not been applied in practice. This may be due, in part, to a failure to consider the role of farmer behaviour in improving animal welfare. If farmer behaviour does not change, it is unlikely that tail lesion prevalence will change from current levels. In this paper, the shortcomings of traditional behaviour change theories were discussed and a guide for designing human behaviour change interventions for pig farmers was provided. It is essential that collaborations between social scientists and animal welfare scientists occur if research findings are to be put into practice on farms.Tail biting in pigs has been recognised as a welfare problem for several decades, being referred to in scientific literature as far back as the 1940s. Today, animal welfare scientists have a solid understanding of the aetiology of tail biting. Despite this, there has been a major failure in applying research findings on commercial farms. Consequently, tail biting remains a significant problem in modern intensive pig farming. Of all farming industry stakeholders, farmers have the greatest influence over the welfare of their animals. Despite this, little animal welfare research has focused on changing farmer behaviour. Understanding the reasons why farmers act or fail to act to improve animal welfare is key if research findings are to be translated into practical on-farm change. Adopting the principles of behavioural science, this review discussed theory-based methods of identifying barriers to effective tail biting management. A guide was provided for designing behaviour change interventions for farmers using The Behaviour Change Wheel, a systematic framework that links the source of behaviour to suitable interventions. It was concluded that the social sciences are of great importance to ensuring that theory is put into practice.

Effect of norepinephrine treatment on Haemonchus contortus and its excretory products.

Haemonchus contortus is a highly pathogenic gastrointestinal nematode of small ruminant animals. In modern intensive farming, livestock often suffer from different types of stress. However, whether host stress hormones influence H. contortus infection is largely unknown. Therefore, we treated H. contortus with norepinephrine (NE) and analyzed the changes in its excretory/secretory products (ESPs). Label-free quantitative proteomic analysis was used to identify differences in body proteins and ESPs between the control and NE-treated groups. We also investigated the changes in ESP action by analyzing cytokine secretion and goat peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) proliferation after incubation with ESPs secreted by NE-treated H. contortus. Thirty-two proteins in the body samples and 137 in the ESPs were differentially expressed between the groups. Gene ontology (GO) annotation showed that the functions of these different proteins might be involved in energy metabolism, protein metabolism, lipid metabolism, redox homeostasis, ion channel, and cell structure. NE treatment caused oxidative stress in H. contortus and changed the expression levels of some immunogenic proteins, such as the 15-kDa ESP. Meanwhile, the ESPs secreted by NE-treated H. contortus significantly decreased PBMC proliferation and the interleukin (IL)-2, IL-4, and interferon-gamma contents. Thus, NE treatment significantly affected the H. contortus body and ESP expression, and changes in the ESPs influenced PBMC function. The results reveal a relationship between host hormones and parasites and provide new clues to explain some of the variation in individual responses to infection.

The sources and dynamics of fine-grained sediment degrading the Freshwater Pearl Mussel (Margaritifera margaritifera) beds of the River Torridge, Devon, UK

The Freshwater Pearl Mussel (Margaritifera margaritifera) is an endangered organism across its entire range. It has a complex life cycle and stringent habitat requirements and is therefore an indicator species for the general ecosystem health of host rivers. Whereas historical intensive pearl fishing contributed to population declines, excess nutrient and sediment loss associated with current land use pressures in host river catchments, including modern intensive farming practices, are now highlighted as primary contributory factors. Accordingly, this study investigated the sources and dynamics of fine-grained sediment sampled in the mussel beds of the River Torridge, SW England. Sediment source fingerprinting using a combination of colorimetric and radiometric tracers to construct different composite signatures revealed the importance of roads both as a sediment source and delivery pathway for fine-grained sediment mobilised from fields predominantly supporting lowland livestock farming. Grassland fields with evidence of soil poaching were highlighted as important sediment sources, but equally, riparian woodland was also identified as important, especially during the latter stages of consecutive runoff events when its rainfall buffering capacity was exceeded. Bed sediment storage levels (median up to 393 g m−2) were found to be low (41st percentile) compared to typical values reported by a recent strategic scale survey across England and Wales, whereas elevated turbidity peaks were shown to be long duration (days) in conjunction with consecutive days of rainfall and corresponding runoff events. Hysteresis patterns varied but were generally clockwise during the largest runoff events associated with consecutive rain days; again, suggesting mobilisation of sediment from proximal woodland sources following exceedance of rainfall buffering capacity. In combination, the data assembled by this study provides a basis for planning sediment control measures for protecting the Freshwater Pearl Mussel (FPM) beds from excessive fine-grained sediment inputs associated with the intensive use of primarily grazing land.

A review on conjoint application of organic and chemical fertilizers on soil health and productivity of rice-wheat cropping system

Rice-wheat is the most predominant cropping system in India and covers an area of approximately, 10.5 million ha. However, the productivity of crops under this cropping-system has reached a plateau and in fact is showing a decreasing trend in many areas of India where this cropping system is being practiced for a long time. There are reports of declining factor productivity, i.e. increased rate of fertilizers are needed to maintain the current yield level which is cited as the evidence of unsustainability of the rice-wheat cropping system. The prime causes of low productivity of rice-wheat cropping system in IGP area are insufficient and unbalanced amount of macro and micro nutrient. In cultivation of rice, health and nutrient status of soil declined even in irrigated areas due to application of inadequate and unbalanced quantity of fertilizers. About half of the world’s population is alive today because of increased food production fueled by mineral fertilizers. Other sources of nutrients are organic fertilizers which are good source of plant nutrients such as N, P, K, Ca, Mg, Fe, etc. as well as other organic constituents. Therefore, continuous use of organic fertilizers reduces the nutrient requirement of the soil considerably. But, it is widely recognized that neither use of organic fertilizers alone nor chemical fertilizers can achieve the sustainability of the yield under the modern intensive farming. Contrary to detrimental effects of inorganic fertilizers, organic fertilizers are available indigenously which improve soil health resulting in enhanced crop yield. However, the use of organic manures alone might not meet the plant requirement due to presence of relatively low levels of nutrients. Therefore, in order to make the soil well supplied with all the plant nutrients in the readily available form and to maintain good soil health, it is necessary to use organic manures in conjunction with inorganic fertilizers to obtain optimum yields. To correct the deficiencies in the plant nutrient application methods requires development of precision fertilizer customized technology and hence there is need for application of these nutrients in balance quantity as a customized fertilizer (CF) with special reference to location/region specific for attaining optimum growth, development and enhancing the yield of rice.  Keeping the above facts in the view, a review entitled “conjoint application of organic and chemical fertilizers on soil health and productivity of rice-wheat cropping system” has and been complied to present the current scenario of conjoint application of organic nutrients to meet the nutritional requirement of rice- wheat system.

Microbiological aspects of Escherichia coli in urinary tract infections in sows of commercial farms in Sinop-MT

Urinary infections (UI) in nuts are highly prevalent in modern intensive farming systems and cause significant economic losses, especially for reproductive failure and shortening the life of the array. The most frequently isolated agent is the bacterium Escherichia coli (E. coli). Variables such as environmental contamination pressure, management, nutrition, physiological and anatomical facilities and conditions of the animal itself are directly linked to illness. The objective of this work was to monitor microbiological urine nuts with suspected UI on commercial farms in the municipality of Sinop-MT, by counting of aerobic mesophilic total of Escherichia coli research and antimicrobial susceptibility profile. Urine samples with aerobic mesophilic total counts above 105UFC / mL were considered positive, confirming IU in 12 samples (28.57%) of the 42 females subjected to collections. Of the 42 urine samples, 305 were isolated colonies of Gram negative bacteria and through biochemical tests it was confirmed E.coli in 165 (54.09%) of these. In 37 (88.09%) of the 42 samples collected had involvement of E. coli, with or without other pathogens and all positive samples for UI by total aerobic mesophilic bacteria count showed. Through the antimicrobial susceptibility profile test, E. coli strains showed sensitivity to the following percentages: Gentamicin (100%), Streptomycin (98.70%), Neomycin (92.85%) Doxycycline (91.55%) , Enrofloxacin (80.51%), Sulfazotrim (64.28%), Ampicillin (62.97%), tetracycline (61.68%) and Amoxicillin (24.04%). The diagnosis of UI should be carried out thoroughly, assessing clinical and microbiological aspects, for the identification of the microorganism involved and the realization of antimicrobial susceptibility testing prevents the appearance of multi-resistant bacterial strains.

AUTOMATED PNEUMATIC SYSTEMS OF SOWING MACHINES TO SEEDERS OF PRECISE SEED SOWING

Modern intensive farming led to a significant increase in agricultural production. In all countries, pure (single-species) crops dominate, causing many problems in agriculture. Single-species agro-systems are highly productive, but potentially unstable, since they depend entirely on significant resources from outside. There are several ways of diversifying agroecosystems. One of the most promising areas is the introduction into practice of combined crops. The paper has studied and analyzed various technologies for sowing seeds from several crops simultaneously on the same area in a single row. The paper has studied and analyzed various technologies for sowing seeds from several crops simultaneously on the same area in a single row. The characteristics of pneumatic seed drills of dotted sowing working both on vacuum and overpressure of air flow are given. The first include the designs of seeders of domestic production in the type of SUPN-8, in which significant changes are made, to the second - the seeders of the German company «Becker», in which the above changes completely exclude the possibility of damage to the seeds. A pneumatic sowing device is presented that allows sowing three crops at the same time as placing them at different depths of sowing, as well as a device capable of sowing in three ways: dotted, nested and combined. Developed pneumatic sowing machines for combined and nesting crops allow to simplify the design and increase the operational reliability of the device, improve the ecology, obtain fuel economy, eliminate seed damage. Seeders equipped with automated pneumatic systems are able to increase the yield of silage by 20-30 %, improve the quality of feed for livestock and save crop areas by cultivating several crops on the same field. The design of the device allows you to place seeds of different cultures in one row and at different depths of embedding. The novelty in this work is the simultaneous sowing of two crops simultaneously in one row at different depths of the embankment with different schemes and step-by-sowing, confirmed by patents for the invention.

Cereal density and N-fertiliser effects on the flora and biodiversity value of arable headlands

Modern intensive farming caused pronounced changes to the European arable flora. Many species adapted to less intensive traditional farming declined severely, as did the potential of unsown arable vegetation to support higher trophic levels. To reverse these trends, various agri-environment measures were introduced. One such measure is to manage cereal headlands as conservation headlands, involving strict restrictions on pesticide and fertiliser use. An additional modification to management which could reduce crop competition and thus deliver benefits to arable plants is cereal sowing at reduced rates. However, little is known about its benefits to rare and declining arable plants, or to species of value to higher trophic levels, and whether it can be implemented without concomitant increase in undesirable weeds. We set up identical two-factorial experiments in winter wheat and spring barley, combining a nitrogen fertiliser versus no fertiliser treatment with cereal sowing at economic rates versus sowing at rates reduced by 75 %, with added sowing of a mixture of rare arable species. Both experiments also included an uncropped but cultivated control equivalent to another agri-environment measure. Our results show that reduced cereal sowing in conservation headlands can benefit rare and declining species, as well as arable plant diversity, without necessarily resulting in a concomitant increase in undesirable weeds. While such benefits tended to be larger in uncropped cultivated controls, conservation headlands have the advantage of not requiring land being taken out of production. Moreover, as shown in this study, their benefits to arable plants can be maximised by reduced sowing.

The decision support matrix (DSM) approach to reducing environmental risk in farmed landscapes

Modern intensive farming is an essential reality of modern life which brings major benefits but results in environmental pressures in constant need of solution, from increased flood risk and soil erosion to nutrient and pesticide export. The Decision Support Matrix (DSM) approach described here utilizes visualization and communication tools to help reduce environmental risk in farmed landscapes. Drawing on methods from physical and human geography, from mathematical modelling to participatory action research, the approach captures research expertise and local knowledge in forms accessible to farmers, land-use managers, planners and policy-makers. Conceptual models, easy-to-use interactive tools and examples of good and bad practice are co-developed by researchers and stakeholders, resulting in tools that enable practitioners to better understand the risks associated with specific land-use practices and assess measures to attenuate those risks. Most importantly it encourages users to take steps to reduce environmental risks.This paper sets out the philosophy underpinning the DSM approach and describes the tools developed. Examples are given of how the approach has been applied successfully to phosphorus and nitrate export, and to flood risk associated with arable and livestock farming.

Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae infections in peri-weaned and post-weaned pigs in Belgium and The Netherlands: Prevalence and associations with climatic conditions

Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae (M. hyo) is an important pathogen in modern intensive pig farming in Europe. The objectives of the present study were (1) to use the tracheobronchial swab (TBS) technique to obtain data on the distribution of M. hyo infections in recently weaned pigs in Belgium and The Netherlands, and (2) to look for associations between infection prevalence and specific climatic conditions. One hundred and seventy-six pig herds were randomly selected and 30 piglets sampled on each farm: 18 at 3–5 weeks of age and 12 at 6–11 weeks. Mucus collected from the tracheobronchial bifurcation and suspended in saline was subjected to PCR analysis for M. hyo.In 27% of herds (n = 44) at least one piglet tested positive for M. hyo at 3–5 weeks of age, and 29% (n = 47) at 6–11 weeks of age. The individual animal prevalence at the two ages was 7.1% and 10.9%, respectively. The probability of 3–5 week old piglets being M. hyo-positive was negatively associated with the precipitation rate (odds ratio [OR] = 0.971) during the week preceding the sampling. In the older post-weaning group, the odds of being M. hyo-positive at piglet level were significantly affected by season (OR of detection during autumn compared to summer 20.9). Thus, under Belgian and Dutch field conditions, piglets may be infected with M. hyo very early in life, with prevalence increasing further during the post-weaning period.

Review of human-animal interactions and their impact on animal productivity and welfare.

Humans and animals are in regular and at times close contact in modern intensive farming systems. The quality of human-animal interactions can have a profound impact on the productivity and welfare of farm animals. Interactions by humans may be neutral, positive or negative in nature. Regular pleasant contact with humans may result in desirable alterations in the physiology, behaviour, health and productivity of farm animals. On the contrary, animals that were subjected to aversive human contact were highly fearful of humans and their growth and reproductive performance could be compromised. Farm animals are particularly sensitive to human stimulation that occurs early in life, while many systems of the animals are still developing. This may have long-lasting impact and could possibly modify their genetic potential. The question as to how human contact can have a positive impact on responses to stressors, and productivity is not well understood. Recent work in our laboratory suggested that pleasant human contact may alter ability to tolerate various stressors through enhanced heat shock protein (hsp) 70 expression. The induction of hsp is often associated with increased tolerance to environmental stressors and disease resistance in animals. The attitude and consequent behaviour of stockpeople affect the animals’ fear of human which eventually influence animals’ productivity and welfare. Other than attitude and behaviour, technical skills, knowledge, job motivation, commitment and job satisfaction are prerequisites for high job performance.

Exploring public preferences for traditional farming landscapes

Given that an increasing share of budgetary resources are now being spent on measures aimed at protecting the visual quality of agricultural landscapes it will be important to better understand individuals’ landscape preferences and the factors that influence those preferences. Within this context, using a nationally representive survey of Irish residents, the central aim of this study was to gain more insight into people's preferences regarding traditional farming landscapes. Individuals rated agricultural landscapes in terms of beauty quite highly but given a choice prefer traditional more extensive farming landscapes over more modern intensive farming landscapes. Moreover, the results suggest that there are systematic differences in preferences for traditional farm landscapes between different demographic groupings and also depending on individuals’ environmental value orientations. Accordingly, in studying preferences for agricultural landscapes in particular areas it will be necessary to consider the social and demographic characteristics of the population as well as the physical aspects of the landscape.

Review: Grazing preferences in sheep and cattle: Implications for production, the environment and animal welfare

The evolutionary and domestic ancestors of sheep and cattle will have evolved diet selection behaviours that enabled them to select a diet that met their individual nutrient requirements whilst minimising the risk of being killed through predation or by eating toxins. Modern intensive farming generally involves grazing monocultures or feeding total mixed rations and these restrict the ability of livestock to select their own diet. Research has shown that grazing sheep and cattle have a partial preference of approximately 70% for clover (when offered as a monoculture sward alongside grass), and they show a consistent diurnal pattern of preference. Dairy cattle and sheep that are given the ability to select their own diet show higher levels of production than animals grazing mixed swards. There is some evidence that animals that can select their own diet are optimising their own efficiency of nutrient capture, and this potential environmental benefit warrants further research. Further research is also needed to establish if dairy cattle “need” to graze or whether they prefer to eat prepared rations indoors. Preventing animals from expressing their innate diet preferences by feeding them mixed rations may cause frustration and so compromise animal welfare, although this hypothesis requires further research.Key words: Grazing, ruminant, preference, choice, behaviour, welfare

The role of nutrition in cataract formation in farmed fish.

Abstract A brief overview of the lens anatomy and biochemistry, characteristics of cataract development in fish, as well as diagnostic techniques and evaluation of findings are given, before the role of nutrition on cataract development in fish is discussed. Nutritionally related cataracts are described based on single nutrient groups. However, in most of the studies on nutrition and cataract, interactions between several nutrients cannot be excluded, especially observed in relation to the major changes in feed composition during the last decades and the search for alternative feed ingredients. Environmental factors in aquaculture, as well as differences between fish species and strains within a species may also affect cataract development. Thus, although nutritional factors have been shown to be important in the pathogenesis of cataract, cataract occurring in modern intensive fish farming should be considered a production-related multifactorial disorder.

The Effect of Previous Experience Over Control of Access to Food and Light on the Level of Frustration‐Induced Aggression in the Domestic Hen

AbstractAnimals have been shown to respond to frustration with increased aggression and activity. Aversive environmental conditions are also known to affect reaction to frustrating events. One pertinent and aversive environmental factor that has been shown to affect aggression is exposure to uncontrollable rewards and punishments. Although used largely in experimental contexts, this situation is similar to that found in modern intensive farming systems, where environmental and social conditions are largely controlled. The aim of this experiment was to determine if previous experience of lack of control influences the expression of aggression and frustration in domestic hens (Gallus gallus). The two treatment groups of hens used had previously been exposed to control (C) or lack of control (LC) over access to food and light, additional to a restricted regime, continuously for 9 wk. Dominant‐subordinate pairs of birds were tested under water deprivation. After training, the pairs were tested for two rotations of 4:3 d of free access to the water followed by a thwarting trial. Dominant birds showed significantly more aggression in thwarting trials compared with non‐thwarting trials. While there was no main effect of treatment on the aggression shown during non‐thwarting trials, an interaction between treatment and trial type (thwarting and non‐thwarting) indicated that the LC group showed a smaller rise in aggression from non‐thwarting to thwarting trials than the C birds did. However, there was a great deal of variation shown between birds in the amount of aggression. As the home pen conditions were set up to model those found in commercial practice, this possibility that a lack of control leads to some degree of learned helplessness in intensively farmed animals needs to be considered further as it has serious negative implications for animal welfare.

Salmonella control programs in Denmark.

We describe Salmonella control programs of broiler chickens, layer hens, and pigs in Denmark. Major reductions in the incidence of foodborne human salmonellosis have occurred by integrated control of farms and food processing plants. Disease control has been achieved by monitoring the herds and flocks, eliminating infected animals, and diversifying animals (animals and products are processed differently depending on Salmonella status) and animal food products according to the determined risk. In 2001, the Danish society saved U.S.$25.5 million by controlling Salmonella. The total annual Salmonella control costs in year 2001 were U.S.$14.1 million (U.S.$0.075/kg of pork and U.S.$0.02/kg of broiler or egg). These costs are paid almost exclusively by the industry. The control principles described are applicable to most industrialized countries with modern intensive farming systems.

Diversity of behaviour during novel object tests is reduced in pigs housed in substrate-impoverished conditions

Modern intensive farming conditions lack the diversity of substrates present in more natural environments and offer young animals fewer opportunities for interaction. Evidence exists that this may affect the organization of interactive patterns of behaviour, but shifts in behavioural diversity have not been measured directly. We investigated the effect of the substrate in the home pen on the diversity of behaviour in young growing pigs, Sus scrofa. Over 5 months, 26 pigs were housed singly in either substrate-impoverished (SI) or substrate-enriched (SE) conditions. Once every month we recorded the behaviour of these pigs in detail both in the home pens and in two novel object tests. In addition, we calculated the diversity of behaviour shown by SI and SE pigs in the home pen and in the novel object tests, using a relative behavioural diversity index. In the two novel object tests, SI pigs were less mobile than SE pigs and focused their behaviour on particular substrates. In addition, SI pigs showed less diverse behaviour than SE pigs. Our results show that the less diverse behaviour of SI pigs previously recorded in their home pens persists under novel conditions, supporting the hypothesis that substrate-impoverished housing conditions structurally affect the organization of behaviour in young growing pigs.

Human-animal interactions in agriculture and their impact on animal welfare and performance

AbstractHuman-animal interactions are a common feature of modern intensive farming systems and these interactions may have marked consequences on animal productivity and welfare. Research in agriculture has shown interrelationships between the stockperson’s attitudes and behaviour and the behaviour, productivity and welfare of farm animals and the following model of human-animal interactions in agriculture has been proposed. Because a stockperson’s behaviour towards animals is largely under volitional control, this behaviour is strongly influenced by the attitudes that the stockperson holds about the animals. These attitudes and consequent behaviours predominantly affect the animal’s fear of humans which, in turn, affects the animal’s performance and welfare. The mechanism whereby fear affects performance and welfare appears to be through a chronic stress response. The risk to welfare also arises if the stockperson’s attitude and behaviour towards the animals are negative because the stockperson’s commitment to the surveillance of, and the attendance to, welfare issues is likely to be highly questionable.Recent research in the pig industry has shown that a training programme targeting the key attitudes and behaviour of stockpersons produced improvements in stockperson attitudes and behaviour and animal behaviour and productivity. These results indicate the potential to improve animal productivity and welfare by targeting the stockperson’s attitudes and behaviour for improvement. Techniques which may be useful in this regard include staff selection and training procedures addressing these important human attributes.

A test of an on-farm selection procedure for tilapia growth in Indonesia

Modern intensive fish farming encourages the use of superior strains of fish developed in centralized research institutions. In many artisanal fish farms these strains may not be available or suitable: environmental conditions may differ from those optimal for the superior strains, or the species of fish desired in particular farming systems may not have been the subject of a selection programme. In such cases, the option would be for farmers to improve their own strains using procedures that are within their financial and technical capabilities. One generation of mass selection for size-specific growth rate of tilapia was performed on a fish farm in West Java, Indonesia. Selection was applied in two steps over the 6 month grow out period following the initial stocking of size-graded fingerlings acquired from the farmer. Size grading, rather than age-matching, was a key step in simplifying the procedure for on-farm use. Selection and testing of the offspring were conducted in hapa nets set up in farm ponds. The selection resulted in a significant positive response of 2.3% as measured by the percent differences of the lengths of the selected offspring from the control offspring. A rough estimate of realized heritability amounted to 0.12.

OPTIMIZATION OF OATS CULTIVATION TECHNOLOGY IN THE SOUTH DAGESTAN CONDITIONS

In the climatic conditions of Dagestan, where the winter is mild, oat sowing can be carried out in the autumn months after harvesting the main predecessors. In the agrotechnics of oat cultivation, the technology of tillage is of great importance. The main task of pre-sowing tillage is the formation of a finely lumpy layer at the depth of sowing seeds. The formation of a dense seed "bed", which will ensure a constant flow of moisture to the seeds, their uniform placement in a row at an optimal depth and compaction of seeds with a loose layer of soil to create the best conditions for the growth and development of oat plants, their preservation until harvest.Agricultural technology of culture is studied by different authors on a wide range of indicators. Along with such breeding-valuable traits as ecological plasticity, adaptive potential, yield stability, responsiveness to the agrophone, resistance to biotic and abiotic factors, productive stem density, plant habit, coarse-graininess, which is typical for intensive varieties, it is also important to take into account the seeding rate. The aim of the study is a comprehensive laboratory and field study of oat samples from the world gene pool of VIR to identify promising varieties in connection with their possible use in the conditions of modern intensive farming culture. Using the example of one of the selected promising varieties to determine the effect of the seeding rate on grain yield. The work was carried out at the Dagestan experimental station - VIR branch (2019-2021) in the conditions of the Southern foothill zone of Dagestan, where light chestnut, heavy loamy, saline-saline soils predominate; irrigated agriculture; autumn and spring sowing periods. 150 varieties of various ecological and geographical origin and systematic affiliation were studied. The Podgorny variety (k-13559, Adygea), zoned across the North Caucasus region, was used as the standard. Oats were evaluated for resistance to fungal diseases (powdery mildew, crown rust), productive stem, coarse grain and productivity. 12 productive varieties of foreign and domestic breeding have been identified. In the systematic aspect, they are represented by two species – A.sativa L. and A.byzantina C.Koch. Including an early-stage sample (k-15503, var. aurea, Ukraine) with a yield of 908 g/m2, recommended as a promising variety and a yield source, on the example of which the influence of the seeding rate on grain yield in the conditions of Southern Dagestan was studied. Oats are a spring crop, the experience was laid down in a threefold repetition during the spring sowing period. Three variants were evaluated in accordance with the seeding rate: 250, 350 and 450 pcs. seeds/m2, respectively. For comparison, an experiment was conducted at the second seeding rate and the winter sowing period, which allowed a comparative assessment of the productivity of the variety in two sowing periods and its characteristics at three seeding rates of spring sowing. During winter sowing of spring crops, where the climatic conditions of the region allow, like the mild winters of Southern Dagestan, the duration of the growing season is artificially lengthened. At the same time, as a rule, there is an increase in yield compared to spring sowing. The variety demonstrates the maximum genetic potential. During winter sowing, the panicle is formed longer, more spikelets are laid on it, but fewer grains are formed due to damage by the oatmeal Swedish fly, which leads to a decrease in the mass of grain from the panicle. There is an unambiguous pattern in the change in the productive stem in connection with the seeding rate - a gradual increase and reaching a maximum during winter sowing. The analysis of the results shows a close positive relationship between the productive stem and the grain weight per 1 m2. Signs reach their maximum value during winter sowing. The mass of 1000 grains changes slightly with a change in the seeding rate, the range is 35.3-35.9 g, decreasing with winter sowing to 33.7 g. Probably, the laying of more spikelets during development is accompanied by the formation of fine grain. The results of experiments to study the effect of the seeding rate on the yield of a promising variety of early oats in the conditions of Southern Dagestan showed that the highest yield is observed at the seeding rate of 450 seeds, the lowest - at 250 pcs./m2.