The impact of sowing methods and sowing time on yield and technological parameters of buckwheat varieties

Abstract

Modern buckwheat production requires not only systemic approach and interest of government institutions, but also the improvement of technological approaches to its cultivation. The article is aimed at determining the impact of sowing time on yield and technological parameters of buckwheat varieties. The experiments were conducted during 2022–2023 at Ustymivka Plant Growing Experimental Station of V. Ya. Yuriev Institute of Plant Growing of the National Academy of Agrarian Sciences. Three indeterminate buckwheat varieties (Ukraiinka, Yelena, and Volodar) and three determinate ones (Olha, Yuvileina 100, and Yaroslavna) were included in groups for study. It has been found that wide-row sowing (the width of inter-row distance is 45 cm) is a more optimal method of buckwheat sowing for obtaining high yield and technological indicators than the common row seeding (15 cm). And these indicators were the following: yield – by 0.62 tons more; plant productivity – by 22 kernels or 1.03 g more; the number of blossom clusters – by 6 pcs. more, and blossom cluster productivity – by 0.02 g more. Moreover, seed size did not have essential difference at various seeding methods, and it was detected at the level of 1.5 g/1,000 kernels, but as to seed uniformity, it made 80.1 % at wide-row method and 76.0 % – at row one. It was revealed that yield capacity at summer sowing time (June13 and 15) made 235 g/m2, on the average, which was by 48.5 % less than at spring sowing time (May 12 and 18). The average plant productivity level made 2.0 g/plant at summer sowing time, and it was by 16.5 % more at spring sowing time. Also, by 24 % more blossom clusters were obtained at spring seeding. Moreover, at equal productivity of each blossom cluster (0.08 g, on the average) irrespective of sowing time, spring seeding was more favorable as to the amount of blossom clusters per plant. As a result, no essential difference was detected concerning kernel size between the sowing variants (1.4 g). However, the grain uniformity of experimental buckwheat varieties made 81.0 %, on the average, at spring seeding and 73.9 % at summer one. It was also determined, that at summer sowing, the vegetation period decreased by 4 days, on the average, in all varieties.