Effect of microbiological preparation EM Agro on green mass formation of dill cultivar Alligator under drip irrigation conditions
Abstract
The article investigates an important issue of enhancing productivity of dill cultivar Alligator under drip irrigation conditions typical for the Northern Steppe zone of Ukraine, particularly in the Kirovohrad region. Objective. To determine the effect of microbiological preparation EM Agro on growth, development parameters and green mass accumulation of dill cultivar Alligator under drip irrigation conditions for developing an environmentally safe technology to increase productivity of aromatic herb crops. Methods.Field experiments were conducted during 2023–2024 at Central Ukrainian National Technical University on typical heavy-loamy chernozem. The experiment was established using randomized complete block design with four replications and plot size of 10 m². The experimental scheme included five treatments: control (drip irrigation), seed treatment with EM Agro solution (1:1000), seed treatment + single fertigation (1:500), seed treatment + double fertigation, triple fertigation through irrigation system. Drip irrigation system was used maintaining soil moisture at 80–85 % field capacity. Biometric measurements were conducted, yield was determined, product quality parameters were assessed (dry matter content, ascorbic acid, essential oils, nitrates). Statistical processing was performed using analysis of variance. Results. Application of EM Agro preparation provided statistically significant improvement of all biometric parameters. The most effective treatment was seed treatment combined with double fertigation, which ensured plant height increase to 30,1 cm (24,4 % increase), leaf number to 17,3 per plant (39,5 %), rosette diameter to 24,2 cm (30,8 %) and plant weight to 23,8 g (41,7 %) compared to control. Maximum green mass yield of 240,5 g/m² was obtained with optimal application scheme, exceeding control by 70,1 g/m² or 41,1 %. Quality characteristics improved: dry matter content increased by 20,9 %, ascorbic acid by 29,4 %, essential oils by 50 %. Nitrate content reduction by 23,4 % is important for enhancing product ecological safety. Economic analysis showed the highest profitability of additional costs at 687,6 % with net profit of 6,12 UAH/m². Findings. Microbiological preparation EM Agro combined with drip irrigation creates synergistic effect, significantly enhancing productivity and quality of dill green mass. The optimal scheme involves seed treatment (1:1000) and double fertigation (1:500) on 10 th and 25 th days after emergence. The technology is highly profitable and environmentally safe, allowing its recommendation for wide implementation in leafy vegetable production.
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