The influence of sowing dates on the formation of indicators of the structure of the winter wheat harvest

Abstract

Purpose. To establish the influence of winter wheat sowing dates for obtaining high levels of productivity in the conditions of the North-Eastern Forest Steppe and to summarize the results of the previous stages of research. To determine the yield of winter wheat varieties, which will allow to identify the most adapted to drought conditions and the most suitable for the conditions of this growing zone. Methods. Research methods: field, laboratory, analytical, statistical. The establishment of experiments and their location were carried out in accordance with the methodological recommendations "Methodical guidelines for conducting field research and studying the technology of growing grain crops". Statistical processing of the results of the experiments was carried out using the dispersion method, while the Excel application package was used. Results. According to the results of the analysis of the sheaf material, which was carried out in order to determine the elements of the plant crop structure depending on the sowing dates and varietal characteristics, it was established that in the reporting year, the plants were maximally developed under the conditions of early sowing. This pattern is especially evident in the indicators of plant height and the density of the productive stem. The maximum given indicator at the level of 121 cm was in the MIP Vyshivanka variety and 115 cm in the Bohdana variety. The varieties Vygadka and Krayevid were the lowest – 100 cm each. The density of productive stem during the given sowing period was 548 pcs./m2 on average for the varieties. The highest given indicator was for Pylypivka varieties – 576 pcs./m2 and MIP Vyshivanka – 560 pcs./m2. The density of Vygadka varieties was somewhat lower – 540 pcs./m2 and Bohdana – 510 pcs./m2. During this sowing period, the number of grains in an ear was from 34 to 38 grains. The mass of grain from an ear varied by variety within 1.58–1.74 g/ear. The mass of 1,000 grains was formed at the level of 45.4–48.5 g. The lowest development indicators were characterized by plants that were sown on November 10. Thus, their height ranged from 76 to 88 cm depending on the variety, with a density of productive stems of 390–432 pcs./m2. The number of grains from the ear was formed in the range of 32–34 pcs./m2. The mass of 1,000 grains for this sowing series was at the level of 42.0–45.2 g. The most favorable conditions for the formation of crop yield in the reporting year were sown on September 10 and October 10–20. The most productive winter wheat varieties in the reporting year were Kraevyd – 8.02 t/ha, Pylypivka – 6.72 t/ha, Vygadka – 6.68 t/ha and MIP Vyshivanka – 6.54 t/ha, the maximum indicators of which received under sowing conditions on October 10. The lowest productivity indicators were obtained at later sowing times, namely on November 10. The yield of winter wheat on average by varieties for this sowing period was 4.29 t/ha, which is 1.84 t/ha less than in the control at LSD05 – 0.62 t/ha. There was a significant decrease in the yield of winter wheat varieties when sowing on November 1 (by 0.67 t/ha at NIR05 – 0.62 t/ha). Conclusions. The results of our research determined that sowing winter wheat in the early sowing periods (10.09 and 10.10) guarantees optimal development and high productivity of plants. In 2023, favorable conditions for the formation of productivity were created for sowing from September 10 to October 20. The most productive varieties were Kraevyd – 8.02 t/ha, Pylypivka – 6.72 t/ha, Vygadka – 6.68 t/ha and MIP Vyshivanka – 6.54 t/ha, the maximum indicators of which were obtained for sowing on October 10. The lowest productivity indicators were obtained at later sowing dates, namely, November 10.