Reduced Tillage, Application of Straw and Effective Microorganisms as Factors of Sustainable Agrotechnology in Winter Wheat Monoculture

In the aspect of the sustainable development of agrocenoses, the proper management of plant residues remaining after harvesting, the appropriate selection of tillage and maintaining high microbiological activity of soil are particularly important. Therefore, a four-year two-factor experiment with winter wheat monoculture was conducted. The objective of this study was to compare the effects of 18 cultivation technologies variants on weed infestation and yield structure of winter wheat grown in a 4-year monoculture. Six methods of tillage and management of residues after harvesting forecrops (first factor) and the use of microbiological preparations (second factor) were tested. The experiment showed that simplified tillage (elimination of plowing) had an adverse effect on the weed infestation of the field and most of the tested plant characteristics, including the yield. In terms of yield, the best solution was to leave the forecrop straw mulch on the field surface until plowing was carried out before sowing, regardless of the use of microbiological preparations. The application of preparations containing effective microorganisms brought beneficial effects only when the shredded straw of the forecrop was mixed with the soil using a grubber.