Modern agrotechnical measures of influence on the growth processes of plants of white annual sweet clover in the conditions of the Southern Steppe of Ukraine

Abstract

Goal. To determine the optimal agrotechnical measures that will improve the growth and development of white annual sweet clover in the conditions of the Southern Steppe of Ukraine and obtain sustainable yields of high-quality conditioning seeds. Methods. Field — to monitor the growth and development of plants; visual — to detect their phenological changes; measuring-weight — to determine the biometric parameters of plant growth and development; mathematical-statistical — for carrying out analysis of variance and statistical processing of data to assess the reliability of the results obtained. Mathematical processing of the research results was carried out using AgroStats software. The study was conducted in 2023–2025 on the experimental field of the Institute of Climatically Oriented Agriculture of the NAAS (vil. Khlibodarske, Odessa oblast). The soil of the experimental field was southern heavy-clay chornozem. The object of research was a white annual sweet clover of the Southern variety. They laid field 3-factor experiment (factor A — the method of basic tillage: plowing to a depth of 27–30 cm, deep loosening at 22–24 cm, disking at a depth of 12–14 cm; factor B — treatment with biological preparations: without treatment, Quantum SiAmin, Nertus Mix 400, PMK-U “Universalnyi”; factor C — the phase of plant development: the beginning of branching, the beginning of branching + budding. Results. With the use of these preparations, the height of the white annual sweet clover increased by an average of 9.3–16.9 cm, depending on the method of basic tillage. In variants with 2-phase treatment (beginning of branching + budding) of plants with biological preparations, their height was on average 5.7 cm higher than in variants with 1-phase treatment (beginning of branching). The highest values of plant height (110.0 cm) of the white annual sweet clover were provided by the combination of plowing and 2-phase feeding of plants with the preparation of PMK-U “Universalnyi”. Conclusions. It was proved that the greatest growth of plants of white annual sweet clover was promoted by treatment with biological preparations, the share of influence of which (factor B) was 35.6%. For the combination of plowing to a depth of 27–30 cm and 2-phase treatment with the preparation PMK-U “Universalnyi”, they received the greatest height of plants in the experiment. On average, over the years of research, this indicator has increased by 24%.