PROSPECTS FOR THE USE OF BACTERIAL PREPARATIONS ON FESTULOLIUM CROPS (X FESTULOLIUM F. ASCHERS. ET GRAEBN.) DEPENDING ON VARIETAL CHARACTERISTICS IN THE CONDITIONS OF THE FOREST-STEPPE OF THE MIDDLE VOLGA REGION

The paper presents research on the use of bacterial preparations in the cultivation technology of a new fodder crop Festulolium introduced in the Penza region. The effect of seed inoculation on the formation and development of a viable, resistant to arid climate agrocenosis was studied. It was found that the Izumrudny variety is characterized by high adaptive capacity and can compete with the standard VIK-90 under long-term use due to better winter hardiness (92.4%), less plant death during the growing season (7.7%). Indices of photosynthetic activity of Emerald variety festulolium are higher compared to VIK-90 variety: leaf area - 51.3 m2/ ha, photosynthetic potential - 303 thousand m2 d./ha, net photosynthetic productivity - 3.34 g/m2/day. Exogenous seed treatment leads to an increase in individual development indicators of Festulolium plants. The conducted studies show that to create early-ripening stands it is most advisable to cultivate sort VIK-90 with exogenous treatment of seeds by preparation «Agrica» + microelements.