THE EFFECT OF CUCURBITS CROPS ON THE FORMATION OF CHERNOZEM THERMOPHYSICAL REGIME
Soil thermophysical properties depend on a number of factors as moisture content, density, particle-size distribution, humus content, temperature, etc. Those factors determine the formation of the temperature regime in the soil profile. And the soil moisture is a determining factor directly affecting the crop growth and development. The knowledge of soil moisture content in the genetic horizons of chernozem enabled determining the total moisture reserve and evaluating available moisture reserves in one meter soil layer. In addition, the study of the thermal properties has revealed that the chernozems of the Altai Region’s Priobye (the Ob River area) warm up poorly particularly in the lower horizons of the profile due to high values of volumetric heat capacity and thermal conductivity. Chernozems cool slowly in autumn due to large reserves of heat accumulated during the growing season and the seasonal decrease of thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity. Another feature of chernozem thermophysical status is the stabilization of the thermal regime at the periods of cold weather.