Legumes are increasingly important crops in most European Union (EU) countries because of the growing demand for feed protein, and also because they have been shown to improve the characteristics of soil. The main part of the crop rotation is taken up by cereals, but they are connected with undesirable side effects, such as the unilateral utilization of ingredients and the heightened risk of plant diseases, e.g., Fusarium. Simplification of farming methods has become increasingly popular as growers search for cheaper production technologies. However, the effects of long-term simplification in tillage practices on the production and economics of narrow-leafed lupine (NL) cultivation have not been studied. In 2012–2016, we carried out a field experiment in Poland with a one-factorial design with four replications. The aim of the experiment was to evaluate the productivity effect of conventional tillage (CT), reduced tillage (RT) and no-tillage (NT) on NL-winter wheat (WW)-winter triticale (WT)-winter barley (WB), rotation. Our results show that the productivity of this crop rotation was lower under RT and NT systems than under CT. From a practical point of view, the reduction of cultivation in rotation with 75% of cereals caused a decrease in yield in all species, which can result in resign of using the RT and NT in conditions of Albic Luvisols soil, as classified according to the World Reference Base (WRB). The highest incomes were found when the CT system was used with NL. Although income losses exceeded the value of savings in both minimalized soil tillage systems (RT and NT), all tillage systems of NL were profitable.

Phytostimulators are attracting considerable attention for replacing mineral fertilizers, which are of environmental concern, being especially forbidden in organic farming. The benefit of applying such products based on microorganisms (e.g., algae extract) or minerals of nano-meter-sized particle (e.g., nanofertilizers) is that plants can uptake them faster than soil fertilizers, targeting plant growth by regulating their phytohormones, as well as improving plant tolerance to unfavorable environmental conditions (e.g., cold stress). The aim of this study was to test and evaluate the effects of three commercial phytostimulators, called biostimulants (a seaweed-based extract—Kelpak^®, mineral nanoparticles—Nano Active^®, zinc nanoparticles—Dynamic Cresco^®) on yield, chlorophyll content, level of CO₂ assimilation and the effectiveness of PSII under cold stress. The values of all chlorophyll fluorescence and photosynthetic parameters significantly decreased under cold, which indicated a strong inhibition of light-phase photosynthesis in maize leaves. Predicted by the regression analysis minimum, 20 days was enough for maize plants to recover from the inhibition caused by stress damages in their photosynthetic apparatus. At the final measurement in maize growth stage BBCH 65, all the tested phytostimulators showed significant effects in increased values of effective quantum yield of photosystem II, maximum photosynthetic efficiency of PSII and electron transport rate. At this stage, Dynamic Cresco^® and Nano Active^® treatment significantly increased the value of maximum net photosynthetic rate (15.37% and 18.85%, respectively) and leaf chlorophyll content (7.8% and 8.7%, respectively). The application of Dynamic Cresco^® significantly promoted total dry weight by 43.4% in comparison to control under stress growth conditions with cold. These phytostimulators can be used to enhance yield and physiological status of plants after abiotic stress (such as cold) to improve crop productivity, especially in organic farming.

The field experiment was carried out in 2013 and 2014 as part of a long-term experiment to test the influence of different soil tillage systems (conventional, reduced, direct sowing) on (a) the yield of summer pea (Pisum sativum L.) and (b) the amount of biologically reduced atmospheric nitrogen (N), which was determined using the ¹⁵N dilution method (ID¹⁵N). Spring barley was used as a reference plant. Climatic conditions did not have a significant influence on the yield of pea seeds (mean value 4.56 t ha⁻¹), post-harvest residues (3.76 t ha⁻¹) and total biomass (8.33 t ha⁻¹). Soil tillage system was found to have a significant impact on all components of the pea yield in years of experiment, with the highest average seed yield values observed with the conventional system (5.19 t ha⁻¹) and significantly lower values observed with reduced tillage (4.34 t ha⁻¹) and direct sowing (4.17 t ha⁻¹). The content of total N was greatest in the pea biomass that was harvested in the conventional system (202 kg ha⁻¹) and lowest with direct sowing (155 kg ha⁻¹). Nitrogen accumulated in the pea seeds from three sources: atmosphere (mean value 35.2%), fertilizers (6.8%) and soil (57.9%), equating to 48.6, 9.9, and 85.4 kg ha⁻¹, respectively. Soil tillage system was found to have a significant impact on the amount of N that was fixed from the atmosphere by the peas: 17.7% in conventional tillage, 37.9 in reduced system and 50.2% in direct sowing, which equates to a harvested seed yield of 28.9, 52.0 and 64.4 kg ha⁻¹, respectively. In the post-harvest residues, the amount of N fixed from the atmosphere by the pea crop was also modified by the soil tillage system in range: 20.2% in conventional tillage and 32.6% in direct sowing (which equates to 7.4 and 8.5 kg N ha⁻¹, respectively), but the difference was not significant.

Many studies have focused on research about impact of time and density of sowing on the agronomic characteristics of different crops. However, the number of studies investigating such a response on the qualitative composition of different types of winter oilseed rape varieties is still limited. The aim of the research was to determine the effect of sowing date and density on yield, protein and oil content and quality of winter oilseed rape varieties: open-pollinated, a typical hybrid of traditional type of growth and a new semi-dwarf hybrid, which biology and yielding have not been thoroughly established. This experiment was conducted applying four sowing dates (August 14, August 25, September 4, September 15), three winter oilseed rape cultivars (PR45D03 -semi-dwarf hybrid, PR46W31 – hybrid, Californium – open-pollinated) and four sowing rates (30, 40, 50, 60 seeds/m²). Among the compared sowing dates, August 25 proved to be optimal for yielding of the tested winter oilseed rape cultivars. Semi-dwarf variety contained less protein and glucosinolate in seeds, but more oil in comparison to other studied varieties (hybrid and open-pollinated). The yields did not differ significantly within a density of 40, 50, 60 seeds/m², so it is important result, especially for the agricultural practice.

Climate change, including decreasing rainfall, makes cultivating cereals more difficult. Drought stress reduces plant growth and most all yields. On the other hand, consumers’ interest in ancient wheat varieties, including spelt, is growing. The aim of this work is to compare the response to drought stress between spelt (Triticum aestivum ssp. spelta) and common wheat (Triticum aestivum ssp. vulgare). Six cultivars of spelt from different European countries and common wheat ‘Bogatka’ as a reference were chosen for research. The photosynthesis process, chlorophyll fluorescence, relative water content, and the content of free proline and anthocyanins in well-watered and drought-stressed plants were measured. It was shown that the spelt cultivars ‘Franckenkorn’ and ‘Badengold’ were much more resistant to water deficit than other cultivars and even common wheat. A slight reduction of CO₂ assimilation (by 27%) and no reduction of transpiration rate, with simultaneous intensive proline (eighteen times fold increase) and anthocyanins accumulation (increase by 222%) along with a slight increase in lipid peroxidation level (1.9%) revealed in ‘Franckenkorn’ prove that this cultivar can cope with drought and can be effectively cultivated in areas with limited water abundance.