Fodder productivity of perennial leguminous grasses on irrigated lands of the lower Volga Region

Introduction. One of the most important state tasks is to ensure the country's food security. In addition to bakery products, the food basket of the population includes meat and dairy products, the production of which depends on the provision of livestock with full-fledged feed. Perennial grasses, especially legumes, play a crucial role in stabilizing the production of highly nutritious feed, improving soil fertility. In this regard, the issues of expanding the range of perennial grasses due to the introduction of new species and varieties of highly productive legumes that allow producing high-quality feed are relevant. The purpose of the research is to search for and scientifically substantiate the main parameters of the formation of high-yielding herbage from promising species of legumes to obtain the planned harvests of high-quality fodder mass.

Object. The object of research is traditional and non traditional leguminous grasses for the Lower Volga region: yellow alfalfa, blue hybrid and variegated hybrid, meadow clover, horned lyadvenets and esparcet: sandy, vicolisty and Transcaucasian.

Materials and methods. A comparative analysis was carried out on the irrigated area of the «AllRussian Research Institute of Irrigated Agriculture» from 2019 to 2022 to identify optimal combinations of yield-forming factors affecting the productivity of the studied crops. The research material was variants of the water regime of the soil, calculated doses of fertilizers, types of legumes. All measurements and records were carried out in accordance with the requirements of the experimental business methods.

Results and conclusions. It has been established that in the Lower Volga region on irrigated lands it is possible to obtain high and stable yields of promising legumes. The total water consumption of the studied grasses depended on the variant of the water regime of the soil and the age of the herbage. While maintaining the 60% pre-irrigation threshold, the total water consumption averaged 4248 m3/ha per year of sowing, 5209 – in the third year of life, 70% - 4375 and 5426, respectively, 80% – 4660 and 5737 m3/ha. The maximum yields of green mass were obtained in the second year of life with the maintenance of pre–watering soil moisture of at least 80% HB and the application of fertilizers with a dose of N₁₆₀P₉₀K₁₀₀ – 79-80 t / ha of alfalfa, 83-88 – esparcet, 63 – liadvenza, 69 t/ ha - clover with a yield of 11.7 to 13.5 thousand k units, 2.3-2.8 t trans. prot. and 170-200 GJ OE. The fodder mass of leguminous grasses was distinguished by high nutritional value: 1 kg of dry mass of lyadvenza contained 0.8 K. units, alfalfa – 0.62-0.64, esparcet – 0.60-0.64. The content of digestible protein was, respectively, 153, 132-137.

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