No 2(125) (2024)

The main tree species attitude to the main adverse environmental factors (frost, drought, soilsalinization, etc.) reflects their biological properties. Knowledge of their features complex is especially important in regions with unfavorable climatic conditions. It can help in the correct selection of the species composition necessary for plantations when they are created. The selection of the main signs of tree species resistance to natural and climatic factors when creating plantings was the main purpose of the research. The article presents the following study results of following tree species: Ulmus laevis Pall., Ulmus pumila L., Gleditsia triacanthos L., Quercus robur L., Robinia pseudoacacia L., Pinus silvestris L., Pinus nigra subsp. pallasiana (Lamb.) Holmboe., Populus alba L., Populus bolleana Louche., Populus bolleana Louche. Kamyshinsky, Populus nigra L., Populus nigra var. italica Münchh., Quercus macrocarpa Michx., Pinus sylvestris L., Pinus ponderosa P. Lawson & C. Lawson, Gleditsia triacanthos L. F. thornless in the archive of populations and plantings of the breeding and seed complex of Kirovskiy district, Volgograd, Novoanninskaya forestry and Kamyshin. It has been established that the main valuable features in the selection are drought resistance, frost resistance, growth rate, biometric indicators, renewal ability, salt resistance. For the first time, the difference in the reaction of robinia and oak plants to the use of physiologically active substances (Humistim, Hera-chlorella, Biostim start) that stimulate plant growth and fruiting was revealed in the study of their drought resistance and transpiration intensity. Data on the fruiting frequency, which is due to the biological properties of tree species, as well as the weather conditions of the growing region, pests and diseases presence identification during the research period were obtained. Recommendations on the studied tree species in various soil and climatic conditions using possibility are given.

Abandoned agricultural lands (fallow lands), which are actively overgrown with woody vegetation, occupy a significant area in the NorthWestern Federal District. In the first decades of the wood reserve growth, these forests are not of interest to the logging industry. At the same time, small woody detritus appears in them, and small-sized live trees provide an opportunity to obtain raw materials of chaga mushroom (Inonotus obliquus). Accordingly, such sites are a promising site for industrial mushroom farming. This paper presents the results of an experiment on the Inonotus obliquus, Lentinula edodes and Kuehneromyces mutabilis species cultivation in the natural conditions of postagrogenic ecosystems in the Pskov region. These experiments showed that the substrate overgrown with deciduous young growth can be used for the successful cultivation of these fungi. Live trees were infected by Inonotus obliquus, trunk clippings up to 12 cm in diameter by Lentinula edodes and Kuehneromyces mutabilis. Substrate occupation and the first fruit bodies of mushrooms/ sterile outgrowths appeared in Inonotus obliquus 10 years later, in Lentinula edodes and Kuehneromyces mutabilis – the next year after infection. The periods of mass fruiting in Lentinula edodes were 3 years, in Kuehneromyces mutabilis – 2 years. These results show the potential for successful cultivation of these fungi species in postagrogenic ecosystems and may be useful for the development of industrial mushroom production in this region. Inoculation technologies for these mushrooms in open-air conditions may be considered promising in terms of minimizing capital costs for establishing plantations, as well as serving as a component of comprehensive forest use in agricultural lands.

Global temperature   and   humidity have widespread impacts on all areas of life. Under favorable conditions, textiles are an environment for the activity of fungi and bacteria and undergo biodestruction, which leads to the spread of mold and microbiotic inflammation. Breeding improvement of fiber crops for fiber bioresistance to destructors is one of the aspects of solving environmental problems and adapting agroecosystems to a changing climate. Cotton raw material is the main one in the production of cloth and household textiles. The study of factors of fiber bioresistance to putrid destruction is relevant for the creation of a modern generation of varieties of fiber/ oilseed crops. The aim of the work is to study the biological destruction of cotton fiber of Russian breeding, grown in the Southern Federal District of the Russian Federation under the impact of epiphytic microflora and the influence of high temperatures to which textile raw materials are exposed during industrial processing. The novelty of the research is the data obtained on the resistance of multi-colored cotton fiber to biodegradation by microflora in conjunction with thermal changes in its mass, which is important for the creation of environmental friendly textiles in the Russian Federation. Data on the characteristics – components of fiber resistance to biodegradation in connection with its natural coloring constitute the scientific value of research. The research is of practical importance, since the production of cotton fiber, which is naturally resistant to putrefactive destruction by microorganisms, will help reduce the chemical load on the industrial and agroecological environment and will improve the biosafety of textile products. Naturally green, brown and white fiber of 9 varieties and lines of cotton were studied. The growth of microflora on cotton has been stimulated at 28 °C and humidity 90-98%. Fiber destruction was studied by light microscopy, temperature degradation – on a Q-1000 derivatograph. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to study the matrix of characteristics. It has been established that green fiber is more resistant to biodegradation than white fiber. Brown turned out to be the most undamaged. The heat resistance of cotton fiber is largely determined by its native, initial resistance.

Alfalfa seed production in the south of Russia was carried out by enterprises located in steppe areas at the end of the last century. In the forest-steppe zone, overgrowth of crops was observed due to overwetting. Recently, due to the observed global warming, the forest-steppe zone of the Chechen Republic has become more favorable for the alfalfa seeds production according to agro-climatic characteristics. In steppe areas, seed   production has become less efficient due to the need for stable irrigation. The development of methods to increase the alfalfa seed productivity based on growing seeds in a forest-steppe zone by selecting optimal methods and seeding rates and applying appropriate agrotechnical measures to care for crops is an urgent problem. The purpose of this work was to improve the technology of alfalfa cultivation, to develop evidence-based methods for increasing the alfalfa seed productivity in the foreststeppe zone of the Chechen Republic conditions. For the first time in the forest-steppe zone of the Chechen Republic conditions, studies were carried out on Feya alfalfa (Medicago sativa) crops by Krasnodar breeding, where the hydrothermal coefficient averaged 0.8-1.2. The soil on the experimental site is typical medium– sized chernozem, underlain by pebbles, pH 6.9. The humus content is average, nitrogen reserves are average, phosphorus is small, potassium is high. The experience was two-factor, the methods and norms of alfalfa sowing were studied. As a result of the research, a significant influence of both factors on the growth, development and seed productivity of alfalfa was revealed. The positive effect of the minimum seeding rate (1.0 million pcs/ha) on alfalfa crops with row spacing of 45 cm has been established. Positive research results in 2018-2020 indicate the possibility of growing alfalfa seed crops in more favorable conditions of the forest-steppe zone of the Chechen Republic.

Currently, spring durum wheat is in little demand in the Volgograd Region, as it is significantly inferior in productivity to winter wheat. Since 2015, the Kamyshinsky division of the Laboratory of Breeding, Seed Production and Nursery of the FSC of agroecology RAS has been working to identify valuable properties and productivity parameters of spring durum wheat varieties for further organization of breeding work. The article presents data on the study of zoned and promising durum wheat varieties tested in 2021-2023 in the competitive nursery of the Kamyshinsky division sa well as data on the study of four new spring durum wheat varieties of local breeding. New varieties were bred using individual selection from the Valentina wheat of Saratov selection which splited into Leucomelan and Erytromelan subvarieties. They were sown during competitive variety test in four repetitions on plots of 25 m in size, with a production seeding rate of 3.5 millions of germinating grains per 1 ha. All new varieties exceeded or were at the level of the Bezenchukskaya 205 regional standard and old zoned varieties of spring durum wheat in terms of productivity and adaptive properties. The Tsitsarevna wheat had a maximum productivity excess of 8% on average over three years and significantly exceeded the standard. In 2024, the Tsitsarevna wheat was transferred to the State variety testing. Despite the obvious advantage of new varieties bred in the Kamyshinsky division of the FSC of agroecology RAS, their yield is still not high enough to compete with the traditional crop of the Region – winter wheat. Nevertheless, the high quality of spring durum wheat grain and the possibility of increasing its productivity allow us to hope for the demand for this crop in the future. It’s new highly productive varieties may further affect the expansion of areas under durum wheat.

The issue of cultivating adaptive varieties is very relevant due to the climatic changes of recent decades, which have a direct impact on agricultural production. Such varieties are able to form consistently increased yields regardless of the soil and climatic conditions prevailing during the growing season. One of the main directions of barley breeding at the Omsk Agricultural Research Center is the creation and introduction of adaptive varieties into production (in terms of yield and basic grain quality indicators). The novelty of the research: an assessment of adaptability by a set of characteristics in promising barley varieties of Omsk breeding in contrasting climatic conditions of the growing season from 2021 to 2023 was carried out for the first time. The evaluation of grain quality indicators by mass fractions of protein, starch and crude fat is presented. The most favorable conditions for the increased protein content formation in grain were in 2021 (14.88 %), starch – in 2022 (58.04 %), crude fat (2.05 %) and yield (4.19 t/ha) – in 2023, on average for the nursery. The Siberian Avangard, Omsk 96 and Sasha barleys were characterized by a set of indicators (yield and improved grain quality) with additions of 1.4...2.0 % to st. for protein, 0.4. 0.6 % for crude fat and at the level of the yield standard. A positive characteristic of these varieties is their high responsiveness to improving environmental conditions and high stability (at bi>1 и ${\sigma }_d^2$<1) according to the listed characteristics. Thus, the Siberian Avangard, Omsk 96 and Sasha barleys, characterized by adaptability to difficult climatic conditions, are recommended for cultivation in agricultural production. 

Populus species and hybrids are often used as model objects in biotechnology and forest tree breeding, and are also actively used in protective afforestation, due to such qualities as fast growth rates and good adaptation to degraded soil conditions. The use of plant cell and tissue culture is an important tool for plant breeding, carried out by developing strategies for the selection of somaclonal variations and stress-resistant genotypes. An important step in the callousogenesis induction and indirect morphogenesis is the selection of the optimal hormonal composition in the nutrient environment and the type of explant, as well as cultivation conditions for obtaining regenerating plants, which must be carried out empirically individually for each plant species. The aim of our study was to determine the optimal conditions for the callusogenesis induction and the ability to indirect morphogenesis in the Populus deltoides Marshall × Populus alba L. hybrid in vitro conditions. Leaf segments and shoots of plants which has been grown in vitro culture were used as primary explants. The induction of callusogenesis was carried out on Murashige and Scoog (MS) nutrient environment supplemented with synthetic auxin 2,4-D or cytokinin tidiazuron (TDZ) at five concentrations of 0.5-2.5 mg/l with an interval of 0.5. Active induction and formation of a compact primary callus were achieved at low concentrations (0.5-1 mg/l) TDZ on leaf explants. To stop the growth processes of the callus culture and the formation of morphogenic zones, 20 g/l of polyethylene glycol 6000 was used as a stress factor, followed by the transfer of callus transplants to the MS nutrient environment for indirect regeneration of shoots. The resulting regenerants actively grew and took root after they were separated from the callus and transferred to a fresh nutrient environment. Simple and effective protocol for the Populus F₁ hybrid regeneration by indirect morphogenesis from callus tissues in vitro culture has been developed based on the results of the study.