Formation of sunflower yield depending on the preceding crop, fertilization background, and pre-sowing seed treatment
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31210/spi2026.29.02.04Keywords:
sunflower, crop rotation sequence, preceding crop, pre-sowing seed treatment, mineral fertilizers, weather conditions, weather conditions, yieldAbstract
The study investigated the effects of crop rotation sequence, background mineral fertilization, and pre-sowing seed treatment with the biological preparation Mykofrend on the yield of sunflower (SY Chester hybrid) in the Southern Steppe of Ukraine. The research was conducted during 2023–2025 on southern chernozem at the Educational, Scientific and Practical Center of Mykolaiv National Agrarian University. The experiment followed a three-factorial design. Factor A was the crop rotation sequence: maize – winter wheat – sunflower; pea – winter wheat – sunflower; winter wheat – winter wheat – sunflower; or winter wheat – sunflower – sunflower. Factor B involved seed treatment with water or Mykofrend. Factor C included the fertilization background: control and N30P15K15. Yield accounting, phenological observations, and statistical data processing followed generally accepted methods. Weather conditions varied significantly: 2023 was the most favorable (257.4 mm of precipitation in spring and June), 2024 recorded 161.5 mm, and 2025 was the least favorable and arid (95.5 mm). The highest average sunflower seed yield was achieved in the pea – winter wheat – sunflower sequence. Under water seed treatment, it reached 2.31 t/ha without fertilizers and 2.57 t/ha with N30P15K15. Seed treatment with Mykofrend increased these values to 2.51 and 2.77 t/ha, respectively. In the maize – winter wheat – sunflower sequence, the yield ranged from 1.92 to 2.23 t/ha under water treatment and from 2.16 to 2.41 t/ha with Mykofrend. In the winter wheat – winter wheat – sunflower sequence, productivity levels also increased under optimized nutrition and biopreparation. The lowest seed productivity was recorded under repeated sunflower cultivation in the winter wheat – sunflower – sunflower sequence: 1.47–1.67 t/ha under water treatment and 1.60–1.82 t/ha with Mykofrend. The most favorable conditions for sunflower yield formation were provided by placing the crop after pea and winter wheat, combined with N30P15K15 application and Mykofrend seed treatment. Repeated cultivation of sunflower after sunflower reduced crop yield even with fertilizers and the biological preparation. The results confirm the feasibility of combining a rational choice of the preceding crop, mineral fertilization, and biological pre-sowing seed treatment to increase sunflower yield in the Southern Steppe of Ukraine.
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