Reduced soil tillage is a powerful means to mitigate soil degradation. However, in arid climates, no-till rainfed technologies often result in yield drop due to lack of soil moisture and mineral nutrition. Rainfed production of winter wheat using direct sowing and diversified fertilization in South Kazakhstan was studied in 2019–2020. Eight field-scale treatments using nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers were studied for biometric parameters of winter wheat. An economic profitability of the amendments used was assessed. The soil managed to accumulate productive moisture to support plants’ needs during formation of productive organs. Use of phosphorus fertilizer at direct sowing accelerated grain maturation, and the combination of phosphorus and nitrogen fertilizer lengthened the growing season. The highest production cost of 1 tonne of grain was in the plots that did not receive any amendments, and the lowest cost was in the treatment with use of plant growth stimulants together with micronutrient fertilizer. For the first time, optimization of the soil nutritional regime with consideration of the biological and phenological demands allowed for the balance of the plant nutrition and cost efficiency of grain production with direct sowing of winter wheat in dry conditions in South Kazakhstan.

The production of rainfed crops in arid regions is an extremely difficult task, especially without tillage. In southern Kazakhstan, in 2020–2021, the approbation of various nutrition regimes for winter wheat grown in conditions of no-tillage rainfed lands has been studied. The effect of different doses and terms of application of growth stimulators, micronutrients, bio-fertilizers and mineral fertilizers, as well as their economic efficiency, was studied in ten variables. The use of a combination of growth stimulators and microfertilizers produced the highest grain yield and was the most cost-effective. The greatest value of the nominal net profit of 223.25 euro and 244.10 euro from one hectare was provided and calculated with the recommended target grain yield of 2.0 t/ha dose of mineral fertilizers, respectively; however, the production cost of one ton of grain in these treatments was also highest. Further research is continuing with a wider range and combination of amendments and various crops in a rainfed no-till winter wheat farm in southern Kazakhstan.

The dumps of dolomite dropouts from road construction occupy huge arable areas in north-western Russia. Although coarse dolomite particles neglected as a liming material due to its slow solubility, we hypothesise that they can serve as a cheap and long-lasting liming material. The weight loss of dolomite particles of various sizes from the dump applied to Albic Retisol and its effect on assimilation of Ca and Mg by barley and wheat were studied. The pot experiment with 300 g soil was conducted for 30 days in a laboratory phytotron. Results showed that coarse particles of dolomite waste had a positive effect on soil acidity already at the initial phases of the experiment. In the process of dissolution of dolomite, all forms of soil acidity decreased. The cultivation of barley had a stronger effect on the dissolution of dolomite particles than the cultivation of wheat. Barley plants accumulated Ca by 1.1-1.4 times higher than wheat, other factors being identical. The relationship between the yield of green biomass and the accumulation of calcium and magnesium in the plants were empirically described using regression analysis. Results of this preliminary study showed that the by-products from dolomite stone processing can be effectively used for reclamation of strongly acidic soil in north-western Russia. This has the dual benefit of reducing the burden on the environment and reclaiming acidic soils. Further studies should include soil microbiological and biological parameters to trace the effect of root activities and dolomite dissolution rate on a field scale.

Crop production in plastic greenhouses is one of the major sources of plastic pollution worldwide. The main hypothesis of this study is that the regular use of mulch film in greenhouses leads to the cumulative accumulation of microplastic particles (MPs) in the soil, which ultimately leads to changes in the soil properties. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to identify the possible changes in the physical, chemical, and biological properties of soil in greenhouses in three regions of Serbia. The following chemical parameters were determined: electrical conductivity, soil acidity, cation exchange capacity (CEC), total carbon (TC) and nitrogen (TN) content, plant-available phosphorus and potassium content, and trace element content. The following physical parameters were determined: particle size distribution, volumetric mass, specific mass, and porosity; the biological parameters that were determined were microbial respiration and labile carbon. The obtained data were processed using network analysis (NA) to identify the complex relationships between MP content and soil parameters. The NA results support the main findings that the presence of microplastics leads to the destruction of soil structure, which reduces bulk density and increases soil porosity. A strong positive correlation of MPs with soil particles < 0.02 mm and a negative correlation with CEC were found. In the Danube Valley, soil respiration was 78% higher in the open ground compared to a plastic greenhouse. The results contribute to a better understanding of the influence of MPs on soil properties and its ecological functions.

Rainfed wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production in semi-arid regions is strongly influenced by precipitation variability, soil water availability, and crop management practices. This study evaluated the effects of nutrient management under uniform weed control on soil water dynamics, weed density, and grain yield of winter wheat grown under rainfed no-till conditions in southern Kazakhstan. Field experiments were conducted during the 2018–2021 growing seasons on gray soils characterized by low organic matter and limited nitrogen and phosphorus availability. Eight fertilization treatments, including phosphorus and nitrogen combinations and a micronutrient treatment, were arranged in a randomized complete block design. Soil moisture reserves, weed density, and grain yield were analyzed in relation to precipitation variability. Productive soil moisture reserves in the 0–100 cm layer at tillering (BBCH 21–25) ranged from 155 to 178.8 mm and were closely associated with overwinter precipitation. Balanced nitrogen–phosphorus fertilization reduced weed density from 38 plants m⁻² in the control to 16 plants m⁻² under the P₄₅N₇₀ treatment. Yield stability varied across dry, normal, and wet years, reflecting the influence of precipitation conditions on crop performance. Overall, the results suggest balanced fertilization in no-till systems contributes to improved resource use and more stable wheat production under variable precipitation.

Soybeans are a major global commodity. A major challenge in soybean production is premature bean cracking, which leads to seed shedding and crop loss. Consistent breeding efforts are being made to minimize seed shedding in soybeans worldwide. Soybean breeding for increased abdominal suture strength has not resulted in varieties that are guaranteed to be resistant to premature cracking. Therefore, for further study of the issue, the study of the structural features of the soybean hilum is of practical interest. The trait of fusion of the seed hilum with the pod safe seeds from shedding. The paper presents studies of a soybean collection based on cracking features and resistance to seeds shedding. The largest number of cracking forms were found in the varieties of the first four maturity groups (000, 00, 0 and I). A positive correlation was observed between the cracking and non-shedding seeds traits (r = 0.48). The trait of fusion of the seed hilum with the pod valves turned out to be dominant. Our findings suggest that this trait may be influenced by a single gene or exhibit intermediate inheritance, but further genetic analysis is needed. The average yields of the control nursery numbers with a fused seed stalk (4.36 t/ha) are lower than the average yields of numbers without this trait (4.75 t/ha).