SEED PRODUCTIVITY OF CARROT (DAUCUS CAROTA L.) ВY DIRECT SOWING METHOD OF GROWING OF CULTIVATION IN IRRIGATED CONDITIONS OF SOUTHERN UKRAINE

Abstract

The aim is to investigate the influence of technology elements on the yield and quality of carrot seeds (Daucus carota L.) under the no-till method of cultivation in irrigated conditions of southern Ukraine. Research methods and materials: field, visual, mathematical-statistical, computational- comparative. Results. The article presents the results of research on the no-till method of growing carrot seeds in irrigated conditions in southern Ukraine. Data on the overwintering of mother plants of the carrot variety Yaskrava, biometric parameters of seed plants, and seed yield are presented. Depending on the growing conditions, qualitative indicators of seeds were studied. The highest density after the winter period is formed when sowing in the first decade of August – the percentage of overwintering is 59.7%. Depending on the sowing dates and plant density in autumn, the actual density of seed plants at the time of harvesting was 69.4-139.3 thousand/ha. The highest yield (596 kg/ha) was formed by seed plants obtained from sowing in the first decade of August and a density of mother plants in autumn of 250 thousand/ha. The greatest influence on the formation of productivity was exerted by plant density. The difference between the yield levels at densities of 150 and 250 thousand/ha was 20.8%. The weight of 1000 pcs. seeds on average over the years of research was 0.82–0.90 g, germination energy – 63–66%, laboratory germination – 77–84%. The germination energy of seeds grown during sowing in the first decade of August was 1.3% higher compared to the third term (63.7%). When sowing in the first decade of August, seed germination was 4.3% higher compared to the third term of sowing (78.7%). At a plant density of 150 thousand pcs./ha, an increase in germination energy by 1.7%, seed germination – by 2.7% compared to a density of 250 thousand pcs./ha is observed. In the conditions of southern Ukraine, when growing carrot seeds without transplanting, the optimal sowing time is the first or second decade of August. Correlations between plant density and seed yield have been established. Seed quality did not depend on the sowing time and density of seed plants. Varietal purity (typicality) of the obtained seeds was 96.0–99.0%. Our studies have shown that in the conditions of southern Ukraine it is possible to grow high-quality certified carrot seeds.