Varieties Of Perennial Grasses Research Articles

Influence of the sowing method and seeding rate on the formation of agrocenosis and seed yield of awnless brome

The development of science-based technologies of cultivation makes it possible to reveal the productive potential of new varieties of perennial grasses. In 2021-2022 in the conditions of the Penza region, there were studied the seeding rates and methods of sowing of a new variety of awnless brome Udalets when cultivated for seed. According to the hydrothermalcoefficient, the growing season of 2021 was characterized as dry (HTC = 0.8), 2022 – as normal in terms of moisture supply (HTC = 1.0). The best indicators of the development of brome plants (mass of plants and roots) by the end of the first year of life were obtained using a wide-row sowing method with row spacing of 30 cm at a seeding rate of 5.0 million viable seeds per 1 ha. In terms of the yield of green mass and the collection of dry matter from 1 m2 in the first year of life, the wide-row sowing method with a row spacing of 30 cm had an advantage. During the year of awnless brome grass use the best indicators of seed yield were obtained by wide-row sowing method with row spacing of 30 cm at a seeding rate of 5.0 million viable seeds per 1 ha. At the same time, the number of productive stems was 106 pcs/m2, the length of the inflorescence was 19.0 cm, the number of spikelets in the inflorescence was 182 pcs., the weight of seeds from a productive shoot was 0.78 g, the weight of 1000 seeds was 4.26 g, which was 8.2; 8.0; 11.0; 13.0; 0.9 %, respectively, higher than the control variant with a row sowing method with row spacing of 15 cm at a seeding rate of 6.0 million viable seeds per 1 ha. The highest seed yield of awnless brome in the first year of use was formed with a wide-row sowing method with row spacing of 30 cm at a seeding rate of 5.0 million viable seeds per 1 ha (824 kg/ha), the increase over the control was 146 kg/ha, or 21.5 %. By a row method of sowing with row spacing of 15 cm, a high yield was obtained in the control variant (6 million viable seeds/ha) – 678 kg/ha. With a seeding rate of 5.0 million germinating seeds per 1 ha, the seed yield decreased by 7.6 %.

Анализ состояния и перспективы развития кормопроизводства в Удмуртской Республике

Abstract. The purpose of the research is based on the analysis the state of dairy cattle breeding and fodder production in the Udmurt Republic, to give recommendations for improving the supply of fodder for domestic production. Methods. The state of dairy cattle breeding and fodder production in the Udmurt Republic was assessed according to the statistical data of the Territorial authority of the Federal State Statistics Service for the Udmurt Republic and the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Udmurt Republic for 1990-2021. The fodder productivity of promising species and varieties of perennial grasses was analyzed based on the results of studies conducted at the Udmurt Federal Research Center of the UB RAS. Scientific novelty. A comprehensive analysis of the number of cattle, gross milk yield, sown areas of fodder crops and their gross harvest in the Udmurt Republic was carried out. Results. During the study period, the number of cattle decreased from 592.2 to 336.8 thousand heads, including cows - from 269.2 to 134.5 thousand heads. Milk production increased from 434.6 thousand tons in 2005 to 924.0 thousand tons in 2021. During the study period, the area of arable land decreased from 1233.6 to 917.4 thousand hectares. Forage crops occupied 55.7-62.3% in the structure of sown areas, the largest area of 567.5 thousand hectares was noted in 2005. The area of fodder crops in 2021 amounted to only 423.5 thousand hectares. An analysis of the fodder production development in the Udmurt Republic indicates the potential for increasing milk production to 1.2 million tons, the number of cows – up to 140 thousand heads. The production of fodder units on arable land should be at least 11 million tons to ensure the increased livestock and its productivity. Also, the area of fodder crops should be increased to 650,000 ha. It is necessary to pay more attention to the introduction of new types and varieties of fodder crops, increasing their yields, and the quality of the fodder produced.

History and prospects of development of the Institute of Agro-Biotechnologies of Komi Science Centre of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences

Agricultural science in the Komi Republic dates back to 1911, when the Pechora Agricultural Experimental Station was opened on the initiative of the Northern researcher A.V. Zhuravsky. It was the first scientific institution of such specialization in the north of Russia above 65° north latitude. Zhuravsky identified the main tasks facing the agricultural science of the North: the development of agriculture (improvement of soil fertility, development of swamps for agricultural use), meadow and crop production, including vegetable growing, floriculture and fruit growing. He also defined the basis of agricultural production in the North – animal husbandry. While carrying out the studies, A.V. Zhuravsky Institute of AgroBiotechnologies solves all the problems raised. The modern structure of the Institute has three departments: the Department of Agriculture of the Far North, the Department "Pechora Experimental Station" and the Department of Agricultural Genomics organized on the basis of the youth laboratory in 2019. Over the past 20 years, the Institute has produced 12 varieties of perennial grasses, seven of which have been zoned. Among new breeding achievements are Pamyati Zhuravskogo Serpukh crowned (Serratula coronata L.) variety with an increased content of biologically active substances, potato varieties Zyryanets and Vychegodsky for food purpose, resistant to drought, cancer pathogen and golden nematode, highly resistant to late blight. Research on the technology of production of complex forms of nematocidal and insecticidal bio-preparations as a means of protecting agricultural crops from various soil-dwelling phytophages has begun. Thanks to the efforts of the Institute staff, in close cooperation with the farmers of the Arctic region of the Komi Republic, the Pechora sheep breed was preserved, and breeding work with rare native groups was widely developed. The Institute is the only agricultural research institution in the Komi Republic that provides scientific support for Nothern reindeer husbandry.

Sources of valuable traits for perennial grass breeding

Aim. The purpose was to identify collection accessions – sources of valuable traits to use as starting material for creating varieties of perennial grasses in Western Ukraine. Results and Discussion. Perennial grasses play an essential role in improving the efficiency of forage production. They produce a fodder mass that contains major macro- and micronutrients, minerals, vitamins, amino acids, and other nutrients in available forms, with a high energy protein saturation. Practice shows that due to the introduction of varietal crops into production in combination with optimal technologies of their cultivation, which allows revealing the potential of each variety, it is possible to additionally obtain 20-30% higher yields of fodder mass annually and harvest 2 to 3-fold seed yields. In 2016-2020, a search was carried out and 570 new accessions of perennial grasses were recruited, of which 201 were legumes and 369 were graminaceous grasses. The collection contains 1,319 accessions, of which 232 are Trifolium pratense L., 115 are Trifolium repens L., 49 are Trifolium hybridum L., 107 are Lotus corniculatus L., 80 belong to other legume species (Medicago, Galega orientalis L. Galega orientalis L. and Trifolium species), 131 are Phleum pratense L., 187 are Dactylis glomerata L., 146 are Lolium perenne L., 53 are Arrhenatherum elatius (L.) J. et C.Presl., 67 are Festuca rubra L., 28 are Festuca trachyphylla L., 32 are Bromopsis inermis (Leyss.) Holub, 92 belong to other species of other types of graminaceous grasses (Festuca pratensis Huds., Festuca arundinacea Schreb., Agrostis alba L. etc.). Accessions that enter the Department are registered and sown for propagation in the field. After examination, valuable accessions are transferred to the National Depository and registered in the National Catalogue; the rest of the obtained seeds are used in working collections. Conclusions. The best collection accessions were identified by a set of economically valuable traits: sources of daily growth of shoots (30), winter hardiness (28), plant height (22), yield of green mass upon haymaking (28) and pasture (19) use, forage productivity (15), seed productivity (25), foliage (21), and disease resistance (23). They can be recommended as starting material to create varieties of perennial grasses with high yields of forage mass and seeds for various applications.

Оценка взаимодействия видов многолетних мятликовых трав (Poaceae) с клевером ползучим (Trifolium repens L.) в смешанных агрофитоценозах в контексте биологизации семеноводства

Nitrogen consumption is one of the most important factors and necessary conditions for plant growth and development. The contribution from the biological fixation of N2 by legumes in grass mixtures can reduce or completely replace the need for industrial nitrogen fertilizers for perennial bluegrass grasses. When white clover is cultivated in grass mixtures, the net nitrogen gain to the ecosystem from the atmosphere during the growing season as a result of biological fixation can vary from 100 to 300 kg/ha or more. This is equivalent in effect to the application of mineral nitrogen fertilizers on grass in doses from 150 to 350 kg/ha. Types and varieties of perennial grasses have different competitiveness and complementarity when they are jointly cultivated in mixed crops. The use of grasses to create less lying grass stands allows you to increase the collection of white clover seeds. When cultivating white clover in grass mixtures, there was a decrease in the biological yield of seeds compared to mono-crop by 15–38% due to a decrease in the number of generative shoots. However, seed losses during harvesting decreased by up to 9–23% depending on the type of accompanying cereal crop and the method of harvesting. They were minimal in mixed crops of clover with pasture ryegrass or reed fescue and accounted for 9–11% and 12–13% of the biological yield of seeds, respectively. The highest seed collections were obtained from grass stands of the second year of use without the use of nitrogen fertilizers from crops of pasture ryegrass, reed fescue and meadow fescue: 761, 402 and 373 kg/ha, respectively. Along with the types of cereal components, the nature of plant interaction in grass mixtures and their response to anthropogenic stresses also depend on the genotypes of white clover varieties. A comparative assessment of the effectiveness of cultivating clover varieties mixed with reed fescue showed that the highest collection of legume seeds 188 kg/ha from grass stands of the first year of use was provided by the 'Lugovik' variety – 36–68% more than with grass mixtures of the cv. 'Volat' variety f. giganteum and cv. 'VIK 70' of the f. hollandicum variety.

НОВЫЕ ИСТОЧНИКИ ПОВЫШЕННОГО КАЧЕСТВА ЗЕЛЕНОЙ МАССЫ МНОГОЛЕТНИХ ТРАВ В УСЛОВИЯХ ЮЖНОЙ ЛЕСОСТЕПИ ЗАПАДНОЙ СИБИРИ

Background. Perennial grasses are essential in the development of field forage production in West Siberia. Very pronounced continental climate of the cropping areas in Siberia leads to increased demands on the cultivars. The objects of the study were cultivated varieties of perennial grasses (awnless bromegrass and variegated alfalfa). The aim of the work was to identify the sources of high-quality green matter in variegated alfalfa and awnless bromegrass. Materials and methods. The experimental part of the work was carried out over the period of 2011–2016 on the experimental fields of Omsk Agrarian Scientific Center, located in the southern forest steppe near Omsk. Agricultural practice was conventional for West Siberia. Analysis of variance was used in mathematical data processing; stability and plasticity parameters were calculated. Results. The content of protein and cellulose fiber in the green biomass of perennial grasses was mainly influenced by the weather conditions of the year: 84.1 and 76.5% in alfalfa, 93.9 and 91.2% in bromegrass, respectively. A reduction of cellulose fiber content in the studied crops contributed to an increase in raw protein content (r = –0.348 and –0.335) and in feed value units (r = 0.544 and 0.352 for alfalfa and bromegrass, respectively). Higher yields had a negative impact on feed value units (r = –0.402 and –0.713). Besides, the yield of awnless bromegrass demonstrated a significant negative correlation with protein content (r = –0.617) and a positive one with cellulose fiber (r = 0.744). The yield of variegated alfalfa showed a weak degree of interdependence with protein and cellulose fiber contents (r = 0.239 and 0.306).). Conclusion. High responsiveness to improved environmental conditions and high stability (bi > 1, σ2 d < 1) were observed in the alfalfa cultivars ‘Omsky 7’, ‘Elbrus’ (protein content); ‘Flora 5’ and ‘Flora 6’ (protein content, feed value units, and green matter yield), and the bromegrass cultivars ‘SibNIISKhoz 99’ (protein content, feed value units, and green matter yield) and ‘Titan’ (feed values units). During the period from 2011 through 2016, the best examples in yield and in a set of green matter quality characteristics were selected: the intensive-type alfalfa lines SP-2-99/91-267 and SP-2-99/01-282, extensive-type alfalfa line SP-2-99/01-132, and the line of bromegrass SP-2-06/08-28, which was intensive-type in protein content and feed value units, and extensive-type in cellulose fiber content and green matter yield.

The Comparison of the Chemical Composition, Sensory, Phenolic and Antioxidant Properties of Juices from Different Wheatgrass and Turfgrass Species

Wheatgrass juice is mainly derived from the common wheat Triticum aestivum L. The present study focused on the analysis of the potential of different perennial turfgrass species in grass juice production by determining certain compositional characteristics. The effects of fertilisers on the plants and the cutting time on some chemical constituents and antioxidant potential of grass juices were addressed. The juices from the different species of grasses, such as T. durum, T. aestivum, Lolium perenne L., Festuca arundinacea Schreb. were obtained by pressing. DPPH (1, 1diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) radical scavenging activity, elemental composition, total chlorophylls, total carotenes, tocopherols, vitamin C, total phenols, viscosity and the colour profiles of the grass juice samples were analysed. Water-soluble dry matter, protein, total phenols, flavonoids and vitamin E (especially Durum cultivar) content were found to be higher in the juices of Triticum species as compared to the other grasses. Turfgrass species demonstrated higher concentrations of oil (in grass), vitamin C (unfertilised samples), chlorophyll (except L. perenne local) and major elements. The pressing of turfgrass was an easy process. Such perennial grass varieties have advantages over the Triticum species in terms of having higher concentrations of vitamin C (unfertilised samples) and major elements. The results of sensory analysis suggested that L. perenne (cultivar) is the most promising cultivar in terms of obtaining pressed grass juice.

PRODUCTIVITY OF GRASSLAND IN A CHANGING CLIMATE

Climate warming, which began in the second half of XIX century, and with a certain intensity continues today, cannot but be reflected in the future on the structural and functional organization of grasslands and their productivity, as well as on strategic methods of their improvement.&#x0D; Our 20-years long studies showed that phytocenosis respond to climate aridization through a significant decrease in performance even on low-lying meadows with a shallow (1-2 m below the ground) subterranean waters. In dry years, the productivity of most grass mixtures with a predominance in their composition meso-phytes, when compared with their average annual productivity in all years of research in these conditions, decreased by 26%-36%. However, environmental and biological structure of cenosis in this type of habitat remained stable.&#x0D; At the watershed habitat, where moisture is supplied only due to precipitation, more stringent conditions for grasses are formed due to the climate warming. This not only leads to poor performance, but also to changes in ecological and biological structure in terms of strengthening of cenosis xerophytization, hence the need to improve the range of perennial grasses and technologies for improvement and use of grasslands.&#x0D; The article includes an analysis of modern methods to provide the Ukrainian grasslands with composition of species and varieties of perennial grasses. It also outlines the main directions of their improvement in accordance with the regional topoecological composition due to the climate warming.

БИОЛОГИЧЕСКИЕ ОСНОВЫ СИЛОСОВАНИЯ И СЕНАЖИРОВАНИЯ ТРАВ (обзор)

The current concept about regularities of microbiological processes at ensiling and haymaking depending on the kind of preserved grasses and a degree of wilting is represented in the review. On this base the rational methods for plant mass conservation have been proved. The conservation method should be selected with due regard to the crop peculiarities (gramineous or leguminous grass), sugars contents (per dry matter) and its changes under the grass wilting, a degree of plants drying, the pH and sugar-buffer ratio in forage mass, and the composition of epiphytic microflora to provide an improved fodders storage and increased quality. Besides, it is necessary to keep strictly the modes of preliminary mass processing and loading as well as silage storage and removing. The silage additives, based on the osmotically tolerant strains of lactic acid bacteria, is one of the important elements in the applied technology, providing inhibition of growth of the undesirable microorganisms, including butyric acid bacteria and the yeasts activity, that can lead to fodders contamination by the butyric acid. Most perennial grass varieties, as well as their mixtures with legumes, cultivated in Russia, are characterized by optimal sugar-buffer ratio (1.3-4.0) for the effective ensiling with above pointed bacterial inoculants. But some new perennial gramineous grass varieties have excessive sugar contents (sugar-buffer ratio is ≥ 4.0) and are included in the group of the hard-to-ensile crops. For solving the ensiling problems with such perennial grasses, it should be recommended to cultivate them in mixed sowings with crops, characterized by lack of sugar minimum.