Energy evaluation of muscat sage technology depending on fertilization, soil treatment, sowing time and width between

Abstract

The aim of the research was to determine the influence of the depth of the main tillage, feeding background and sowing dates on the indicators of energy efficiency of growing sage under drip irrigation in the South of Ukraine. Methods. Field experiments were conducted in accordance with the methodology of the research case during 2011−2018 in the experimental field of PE “Agrofirma-Dodola” Beryslav District of Kherson Region. Mineral fertilizers were applied in the form of granular superphosphate and ammonium nitrate in the areas by hand according to the experimental scheme. Agricultural technology in the experiment was generally accepted for the conditions of the Southern Steppe of Ukraine, except for the factors that were accepted for study. Results. Energy consumption changed the most in the first year of use, and the highest level of 30.3−30.6 GJ/ha they reached in the variant with the application of mineral fertilizers at a dose of N60P90 and sowing in the first decade of December. The increase in energy, which reflects the difference between its yield and the cost of growing technology, varied over a very wide range of years of research, and in the fourth year of use became negative. Conclusions. The coefficient of energy efficiency in the cultivation of sage exceeded 4 in the second and third years in the variants with nitrogen-phosphorus fertilizers and sowing in the first decade of December, and in the fourth year it was less than one. In the first year of use, the energy consumption of 1 kg of sage inflorescences was in the unfertilized version with shallow plowing, sowing in the first decade of April with a row spacing of 45 cm. The minimum values of this indicator (2.01 GJ/kg) were depth of 20−22 cm, sowing in the first decade of December and row spacing of 70 cm. Correlationregression analysis proved that in the first year of use of mineral fertilizers at a dose of N60P60. In the second and third years, the best energy results were obtained with the highest energy efficiency coefficient 4.6 and the minimum energy intensity of the obtained medicinal products − at the level of 0.3−4.3 GJ/kg. In the fourth year of use, there was a sharp increase (up to 14.8 GJ/kg) and a decrease in the energy efficiency ratio (up to 0.5−0.7).