Eugeniy Murzaev

One of the primary factors contributing to the increasing anthropogenic impact on the environment is the intensification of agricultural production; particularly the expansion of enterprises engaged in crop production. One of the approaches to mitigating environmental risks is a partial transition to organic farming. However; the sustainable development of organic production in the Russian Federation requires the establishment of a knowledge-intensive environment that integrates the latest advancements in biological; engineering; and digital sciences to develop innovative methods for designing organic crop production technologies. (Research purpose) To conduct theoretical studies aimed at developing methods for designing machine technologies applicable to organic crop production. (Materials and methods) An analysis of previously developed design methods was conducted to evaluate their advantages and disadvantages. Based on this analysis; the classical Waterfall model - a sequential design approach - was identified as a rational choice for interpretation. (Results and discussion) At the initial stage of implementing the Waterfall model; a block diagram was developed to outline the general algorithm for designing machine technologies applicable in organic crop production. The first phase of this algorithm involves analyzing soil-climatic and economic conditions. Once these conditions are assessed; production resources; such as seed material; fertilizer system; and plant protection system; are selected based on key criteria; including environmental safety; product quality; potential yield; and financial costs. This algorithm then proceeds to the selection of the most efficient technological operations and machine-tractor units. This selection is guided by an integrated eco- economic criterion; formulated as the sum of three components: total financial costs per unit of work; economic losses due to nutrient depletion in the arable layer; and economic losses resulting from soil compaction during technological operations. The integrated eco-economic criterion must be optimized to minimize its value for each technological operation. (Conclusions) The developed methods of designing technologies for the organic production of crop make it possible to form a digital system of basic technologies and machines; to develop technological maps for organic cultivation under specific soil; climatic and economic conditions.

Bacillus strains have long been widely and successfully used as the polyfunctional biologics’ basis in various systems for crops cultivation and protection. The research goal was to evaluate application effect from experimental prototypes of multirecycled polyfunctional biologics based on Bacillus subtilis I-5/12–23 together with compost in potato organic farming. A significant stimulation of potato plants Udacha variety growth and development up to the flowering phase was observed regardless of the growing season hydrothermal conditions. The stimulation was by the additive effect of joint biologics and compost use in proportion to its dose. The multirecycled substrate-associated and liquid polyfunctional biologics prototypes together with compost almost doubled the potato tubers biological yield compared to the control regardless the growing season conditions. In the flowering phase, the biological efficacy with respect to the potato fungal diseases incidence and development was 90% under optimal hydrothermal conditions and up to 75% under drought conditions. At the vegetation end the efficacy in the potato fungal diseases development reached 70% (compost efficiency itself more than 45%) regardless of the vegetation period conditions. Four-year scientific and producing approbation of the technological application rules for the biologics’ prototypes based on B. subtilis I5-12/23 and compost developed for the North-West region’s various weather and climatic conditions showed their high efficacy in protection the organic potato. Disease incidence on plants decreased about 80%, on tubers about 50%, their quality improved, and the marketable products yield increase at 9 t ha^− 1 (3 t ha^− 1, on average). The application’s technological rules optimizing for various weather and climatic conditions is carried out by changing the consumption norms of protection means in proportion to the limiting factors. Multirecycled polyfunctional biologics prototypes combining the properties of biopesticides, biofertilizers and inoculants can be used to ensure stable organic potato production.

The paper presents the experimental study results on the effect of different doses of BIAGUM compost on the yield of Dvusemiannaya TSHA table beet variety. The compost was produced from fermented poultry manure. The table beet was grown on sod-podzolic soil on carbonate loam in the frame work of a six-field biology-based crop rotation. No protective agents were used. Mechanical and manual weed control was applied instead. The precursor on the experimental plots was potatoes fertilized with BIAGUM compost in an amount of 4 t∙ha–1 (N = 80 kg∙ha–1) in 2021. The average biological yield of table beet roots in 2022 in the control variant without compost (variant 1) was 24.94 t∙ha–1, in the variant with the compost application dose of 4 t∙ha–1 (N = 80 kg∙ha–1) (variant 2) – 29.40 t∙ha–1, in the variant with the compost application dose of 8 t∙ha–1 (N = 160 kg∙ha–1) (variant 3) – 31.28 t∙ha–1. The study revealed that the compost application (variants 2 and 3) increased the average yield by 17.88 and 25.41 % compared to variant 1, respectively. There were statistically significant differences between the variant 1 and variants 2 and 3: the LSD for the 5 % significance level was 2.42 t∙ha–1. The compost application in variants 2 and 3 increased the average mass of table beet roots by 30.7 and 33 %, respectively, against the variant 1 (control). The share of substandard roots in the total yield for these variants also increased. In all experiment variants, the nitrate content in the table beet roots did not exceed the allowable value of 1400 mg/kg. The experiment findings indicate a positive effect of BIAGUM compost application in the set doses on the table beet yield cultivated in organic farming.

The study aimed to estimate the effect of organic technologies on yielding capacity of row crops in the North-West Russia and the after-effect of compost on the successor crop. Experiments took place in 2020-2022. The crop rotation included the zoned perennial grasses, potato, and table beet. Potatoes were fertilised with BIAGUM compost produced from poultry manure in a fermenter. In 2020-2021, the compost application doses were 0 (control), 4 and 8 t ha-1 (5.5 t ha-1 in 2022) or 0 (control), 80 and 160 kg N ha-1 (110 kg N ha-1 in 2022). The table beet was sown on the plots fertilised in the previous year under potatoes. The mechanical weed control of row spacing was performed twice in the growing season. Weather conditions were monitored by the own weather station near the experimental field. The year 2021 was the warmest and the driest in the study period. In 2022, the rainfall was satisfactory for crops – 238.20 mm. In control variants, the potato yields ranged from 12.78 to 20.25 t ha-1 that was 25.6-67.5% of the cultivated variety potential. Application of 4 t ha-1 of compost only slight affected the yield. But with higher compost application dose, a significant yield gain (greatest 56.88%) was observed, especially under favourable climatic conditions of 2020. The biggest beetroot average yield – from 22.5 to 27.7 t ha-1 – was also in 2020. In 2022, the average yield was from 21.5 to 24.3 t ha-1. By the study results, the applied organic technologies proved effective for producing potatoes and table beet in the North-West Russia.

To increase the organic potato yield, it is necessary to provide the crop with sufficient nutrients and effective means of biocontrol the diseases. The research goal was to characterize the biorationals’ efficacy to achieve competitive organic potatoes’ yield under various weather conditions. A 4-year trial was carried out in the Leningrad region using Udacha variety potatoes. The tests used liquid forms of new polyfunctional biologicals Kartofin based on highly active Bacillus subtilis I-5-12/23 and organic fertilizer BIAGUM obtained from poultry manure by aerobic fermentation in a closed biofermenter. Significant stimulation in plant growth and development to the flowering phase regardless of the hydrothermal conditions of the growing season was noted. The stimulating effect was determined by the combined use of biorationals pro rata to BIAGUM dose. Kartofin biologicals and BIAGUM almost doubled the potato tubers’ yield compared to the control, regardless of the growing season conditions. At the flowering phase, the biological efficacy in potato fungal diseases incidence and development was near 90% under optimal and 50–75% under drought hydrothermal conditions. At the end of vegetation, the efficiency in fungal diseases incidence and development made up 45–65% under optimal and 45–70% under dry conditions. BIAGUM effectiveness in reducing disease development reached 45–50% regardless of growing season conditions.

The paper presents the results of experimental studies of the influence of the level of mineral nutrition and the variant composition of technological methods of care on the productivity of organic potatoes. The studies were carried out at the Experimental Station of the Institute for Engineering and Environmental Problems in Agricultural Production - Branch of Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution “Federal Scientific AgroEngineering Center VIM near St. Petersburg. The soil of experimental plots is sod-podzolic light loamy gleyic on residual carbonate moraine loam. Soil resistance was measured with a Penetrologger. The use of deep loosening of the inter-row spacings during inter-row cultivation reduced the soil resistance in the inter-row spacing by about 20% and in the root formation zone by 13%. Deep loosening of the row spacings reduced the soil resistance in the experiment both with direct measurement after the technological operation to a depth of 60 cm, and within two months of measurements. With the combined use of compost and deep loosening, the yield increase was from 1.46% to 6.04% when comparing comparable doses. The maximum potato yield of 23.6 t /ha was obtained with deep loosening of row spacings and a poultry compost dose of 8 t /ha