Crop production constitutes a significant portion of the EU’s agricultural output and influences land use decisions. Various elements within the crop production system can significantly impact its outcomes. This paper aims to evaluate the environmental and economic performance of crop rotation, catch crops, and different tillage practices in Latvia by analyzing data from case studies, field trials, and field monitoring to identify the potential for improvement towards a more sustainable utilization of agricultural land. Environmental performance was evaluated by focusing on nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), as it is likely to play a significant role in assessing the environmental suitability of crop production according to the Platform on Sustainable Finance. For economic performance, gross margins were calculated. Crop rotation in Latvia tends to be monotonous, with wheat and oilseed rape dominating over 60% of the cultivated area due to their profitability. The findings of this study indicate that achieving a minimum NUE of 70% is challenging. Crop rotations including oilseed rape, particularly the common wheat–oilseed rape rotation, have an average NUE below the threshold, while proper use of catch crops may increase NUE by 7–9%. The three-year field trials on commercial farms yielded divergent findings about the impact of various tillage practices on NUE and gross margin. However, the field trials conducted on the farm practicing reduced tillage for over ten years show higher NUE compared to ploughing. The advantage of reduced tillage was supported by the obtained results indicating lower costs of agrotechnical operations, including less diesel consumption.

Flax (Linum usitatissimum L) yield of stem and seeds and them quality is influenced by a number of harmful diseases but investigation about pathogens in recent years have not been done in Latvia. Each stage of development of disease is important in the pathogen life cycle and requires certain condition. Goal of this study have identify possibilities of the pathogens and were assess disease severity depending on the genotypes on flax in variable environmental conditions. The resistance to the diseases for 24 flax genotypes and standard variety ‘Vega 2’ were evaluated. The field trials have been carried out over the period from 2015 to 2016 at the Research Centre of Priekuli, part of Vilani in Latgale. Disease progress was measured every week, and for each treatment, severity of diseases index and the area under the disease progressive curve (AUDPC) were calculated. The flow cytometry method for detection of flax pathogens was developed. The Fusarium avenaveum was dominating disease and statically significant in both vegetation periods. In 2015 were identified statically significant (p

Flax is the multiple purpose crop cultivated in temperate region. Seeds of oil flax recently became important constituent for many industrial applications, such as pharmacy, medicine, food production etc. and have high prospective for use in Latvia. Understanding the underlying processes that limit seed yield in flax is major with respect to enhancing the breeding of flax for yield improvements. The aim of study was evaluated 29 flax varieties and lines (including 20 Latvian origins) plasticity of seed yield production in changeable environmental conditions. The experiment was carried out in the Agricultural Scientific Centre of Latgale on field trials over the period 2010-2013. The aim of this study was evaluated plasticity in changeable environmental conditions for 29 flax varieties and lines (including 20 Latvian origins). According to 4 years results was to establish the nature of relation between seed yield and hydrothermal coefficient (HTC), and seed yield and another yield components of flax. Apart from the changing conditions highest seed yield were produced from a varieties ‘Lirina’ (2.54 h -1t), high seed oil content from variety ‘Amon’ (53.03%). Positive and significant relationships were found between seed yield and HTC ‘T30-28-6-94’(r=+0.98*), ‘German Serenade’ (r=+0.95*) and ‘Scorpion’ (r =+0.95*).

This study aim was evaluated of flax genotypes regarding productivity, resistance to lodging and diseases as well as yield dependence relationships among phenotypic and quality traits. The 14 fibre flax genotypes were evaluated in field conditions on the background of natural infection from 2014 to 2018 for agronomically important traits and from 2015 to 2018 for occurrence diseases of flax. The data were recorded for the 15 following agronomic traits, such days to flowering, days to early yellow ripening stage, total plant height, technical height, stem yield, fibre content, 1000 seed weight, vessels per plant, harvest index, seed yield, oil content, resistance to lodging and fungal diseases during early yellow ripening stage. Genotypic and phenotypic correlations between yield and yield components were identified that total plant height, technical height and days to early yellow ripening stage played a major role on stem yield as well vessels per plant and harvest index on seed yield. The flax genotypes ‘Vilani’, ‘L26-1’, ‘K9-1’, ‘T36-1’, ‘S37-1’ exhibited significant highest stem yield ranging from 643.20 to 693.32 g m-2 and technical length ranging from 65.90 to 70.58 cm comparing to standard variety ‘Vega 2’. The most perspective genotype of ‘Vilani’ with quit low susceptibility to anthracnose, pasmo and powdery mildew and resistance to lodging was identified.