Nutritional Regime of the Soil and Growth Activity of the Apple Tree Root System in Orchards with Legume-Cereal Grass Intercropping

Oryol State Agricultural University named after N.V. Parakhin, Generala Rodina Str., 69, Oryol, 302019, Russia

^* Corresponding author: lana8545@yandex.ru

Abstract

This work aims to study the influence of legume-cereal grasses in the inter-row spacings of the garden on the content of nutrients in the soil and the growth of apple tree roots. The amount of nitrate nitrogen was in direct proportion to the ratio of the legume component in the phytocenosis. The nitrogen content in the control option was the smallest: 19.7 mg/kg in the soil layer of 0-30 cm and 13.4 mg/kg in the layer of 30-60 cm. In the case of natural grassing-down between rows, cereal forbs prevailed. The largest amount of nitrate nitrogen was achieved when sowing the red clover and timothy grass in a ratio of 7:3. The accumulation of nitrate nitrogen is due to the activity of nodule bacteria on the roots of red clover. The accumulation of mobile phosphorus and exchangeable potassium depends on the amount of mowed mass in the inter-row spacings of the garden. The lowest content of mobile phosphorus was detected for natural grassing. In the control option, its amount was 118 mg/kg. In the 0-30 cm soil layer, the content of mobile phosphorus was 127.4-142.6 mg/kg depending on the ratio of legume-cereal grasses, and it amounted to 95.1-103.2 mg/kg in the 30-60 cm layer. For the ratio of red clover and timothy grass 3:7, the highest phosphorus content was detected. The intercropping of the garden with a legume-cereal herbal mixture also contributed to a greater accumulation of exchangeable potassium in the soil relative to natural grassing-down - 122.3-134.9 mg/kg. The optimal ratio of legume-cereal component was 3:7. A higher growth activity of the roots of the apple tree was noted in the option with sodding with a mixture of red clover and timothy grass in a ratio of 7:3.