VARIETAL DIVERSITY OF ALFALFA BY ELEMENTS OF THE CROP STRUCTURE IN THE CONDITIONS OF THE TULA REGION
Studies on blue alfalfa (Medicago L.) were conducted on the basis of the Tula Research Institute of Acriculture branch of the FRC «Nemchinovka». The biological features of the culture have been studied and the optimal parameters of the structure of seed cenoses have been determined, at which the potential of alfalfa is most fully realized. The positive role of a wide-row sowing method with a reduced seeding rate (up to 4 kg / ha) in increasing the competitiveness of perennial legumes (a high degree of tillering of plants) has been revealed. The varietal set, its reaction to the soil and climatic conditions of the zone, the properties of vegetating at relatively unstable air temperatures and increased moisture, as well as indicators of the elements of the crop structure were studied. The varieties Planeta, Victoria, Uralochka, Sarga and Nikolena proved to be non-growing, belonging to the middle-ripening group, with a high degree of branching and a powerfully developed root system.