Improvement of elements of technology of cultivation of Thymus vulgaris L. under irrigation conditions

Abstract

Goal. To improve the elements of the technology of growing Thymus vulgaris L. by establishing the optimal area of plant nutrition, the dose of the main application of mineral fertilizers, at the seedling method of propagation under drip irrigation. Methods. The research used methodological approaches that are traditionally used in domestic agricultural practice and in medicinal crop production. In particular, the development of experimental schemes was performed according to the methods of B.O. Dospekhova and M.M. Horianskyi, sampling of plants, biometric measurements, and yield accounting were carried out taking into account the characteristics of medicinal crops according to the methods of A.I. Brykin and O.A. Porada. The moisture content of the root layer of the soil during the growing season was maintained at the level of 75–80% of the lowest moisture content. Results. Based on the conducted researches, the dependence of the yield of Thymus vulgaris L. on the area of plant nutrition and doses of the main application of mineral fertilizers was established. It was fixed that with the increase in the number of plants per unit area (hectare), the yield of dry raw of Thymus vulgaris L. increased. The highest yield of grass in the first year of the growing season was obtained at a density of 222 thousand plants/ha. In the second year — the highest yield of the dried grass of Thymus vulgaris L. was obtained at a density of 111 thousand plants/ha. When specifying the doses of the main application of mineral fertilizers for the cultivation of Thymus vulgaris L. a dependence was revealed — with the increase of the dose of fertilizers, crop yields increased. In the control variant (without the main application of mineral fertilizers) the yield of raw materials (dry grass) was 3.19 t/ha in the 1st year of vegetation and 3.73 t/ha — in the 2nd. The highest yield of Thymus vulgaris L. was obtained at the use of main mineral fertilizer in a dose of N180P180K180, which was 4.69 t/ha in the 1st year of vegetation, and 5.82 t/ha — in the 2nd. Conclusions. It is proved that the improved elements of the technological process of growing Thymus vulgaris L. under irrigation conditions provide high yields of raw materials. In particular, it is necessary to adjust the planting density, which provides the optimal feeding area of the crop — from 111 thousand plants/ha to 222 thousand plants/ha, and to ensure the main application of mineral fertilizers in a dose of N180P180K180.