Dresser effects on the spring barley grain quality
Authors: Kuzmenko N. V. , Sheliakina T. A. , Zhyzhka N. H. 
Published: May 2023

Purpose. To determine the spring barley grain quality depending on the pre-sowing treatment of seeds with systemic dressers and the bioagent.

Materials and methods. The study was carried out in a nine-field fallow-cereal-row crop rotation of the Department of Plant Production and Variety Investigation of the Plant Production Institute named after V.Ya. Yuriev of NAAS in 2017–2020. To protect spring barley against pests and diseases, seeds were treated with systemic dressers belonging to different chemical groups and the bioagent prior to sowing (1–8 days before sowing).

The soybean was a forecrop. Fertilization background was 6.6 tons of manure per hectare of the crop rotation area (aftereffect) plus N30P30K30. The farming techniques were conventional for the growing location. Significance of the obtained data was assessed by analysis of variance.

Results and discussion. As to the brewing cultivars, Parnas and Inkluzive, without fertilizers the protein content in their grain after the pre-sowing treatment of seeds with fungicide Vitavax 200 FF or with insecticide Cruiser 350 FS was significantly lower (by 0.40% and 0.8%, respectively) than the control value (12.46%). When fungicides Vincit Forte, Insure Perform, Lamardor 400, Lamardor Pro, Scenic, Maxim Star, Supervin, Ultrasil Duo, bacterial agent Trichodermin, insecticide Taboo, or insecticides-fungicides was used for seed dressing,  the protein content was not different from the control. In the fertilization (N30P30K30) experiments, the protein content in grain significantly increased when Scenic (by 0.84%), Lamardor Pro (by 0.88%), Trichodermin (by 0.94%), or Vitavax 200 FF (by 0.91%) was used. After the pre-sowing treatment of seeds with Record Quadro, Maxim Star, Vincit Forte, Supervin, Insure Perform, Taboo, or with Vibrance Integral, the protein content in grain was almost at the control level. In no fertilizer experiments, the protein output from 1 hectare in the control was 0.36 tons; after the pre-sowing seed dressing, it ranged from 0.30 tons (Vitavax 200 FF) to 0.39 tons (Taboo). In the fertilization experiments combined with pre-sowing seed dressing, the protein output from 1 hectare ranged from 0.56 tons (Vincit Forte, Insure Perform, Lamardor 400, Trichodermin) to 0.63 tons (Cruiser 350 FS) vs. 0.55 tons in the control.

The fertilization caused a decrease in the starch content in grain. In the experiments with pre-sowing seed dressing combined with fertilization, the starch content in grain was lower than the control value.

As to the grain cultivars, Vzirets and Ahrarii, after dressing without fertilizers the protein content in grain was within 9.77% (Vincit Forte) − 10.98% (Vitavax 200 FF) vs. 10.48% in control; after dressing combined with fertilization, it was − at the control level. When Insure Perform was applied for pre-sowing seed dressing without fertilizers, the protein content in grain was 9.70%, which was significantly lower than in the control. The protein output from 1 hectare without fertilizers was 0.40 tons in the control; after pre-sowing seed dressing, it was within 0.36 tons (Vincit Forte, Insure Perform, Lamardor 400, Scenic) − 0.45 tons (Junta Quadro). In the fertilization experiments combined with pre-sowing seed dressing, the protein output from 1 hectare was in the range of 0.59 tons (Lamardor Pro) − 0.73 tons (Junta Quadro) vs. 0.65 tons in the control.

The content of starch in the grain cultivars was 62.83% in the control without fertilizers. This figure was significantly lower in the experiments with pre-sowing treatment of seeds with Vitavax 200 FF (by 1.25%), Cruiser 350 FS (by 1.37%), or with Lamardor 400 (by 1.41%). In the fertilization experiments, a significant decrease in the starch content in comparison with the control (61.93%) was observed when Scenic (-1.51%) was used for dressing.

Conclusions. The effects of agents (fungicides, insecticides, insecticides-fungicides and bacterial agent Trichodermin) on the contents of protein and starch in spring barley grain were shown to be ambiguous.