THE INFLUENCE OF SOIL AND CLIMATIC FEATURES OF THE DRY-STEPPE ZONE OF CHESTNUT SOILS OF THE VOLGOGRAD REGION ON THE YIELD AND QUALITY OF NEW VARIETIES OF WINTER WHEAT

Background. In the conditions of the dry steppe zone of the Lower Volga region, winter soft wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is considered the main food crop. It occupies about 2.0 million hectares of acreage in the Volgograd region. Basically, all farmers in our region sow time-tested varieties and do not pay attention to new varieties that are currently being bred by breeders. The article presents the results of tests of new varieties of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), conducted in the dry-steppe zone of chestnut soils of the Volgograd region, in the fields of the farm "Kirsanov S.M." H. Zhutovo 1. The list of tested varieties was formed based on the high interest of farmers of the Volgograd region to the varieties of ANC "Donskoy" Zernograd. During the tests conducted from 2018 to 2021, we selected the varieties most suitable for our conditions. Farmers are very interested in them as they have replaced old wheat varieties with new ones. The Ermak variety was taken over. Methods. The technology of cultivating winter wheat varieties in field experiments was according to B. A. Dospekhov and the methodology of the state variety testing of agricultural crops. Results. The density of the productive stem had the greatest impact on the yield of the tested varieties. The leaders in this indicator were the varieties Don Steppe and Lydia – 358 pcs./m2. On average, the number of productive stems was in the range 312-358 pcs./m2. At the same time, the weight of 1000 seeds did not change significantly, from 34.6 to 36.0 g, on average, during the test period. The best yields were shown by the varieties of winter wheat Don Steppe 3.31 t/ha and Lydia 3.38 t/ha. Despite the lack of fertilizers and top dressing, the Etude and Don Steppe varieties were able to demonstrate a fairly high level of protein accumulation in grain at the level of 11.9 and 12.0%, respectively. Conclusion. As noted above, the conditions of the experiment did not allow winter wheat varieties to show high results in the accumulation of protein in the grain. However, the harsh background of the tests made it possible to objectively assess the potential of the varieties, their ability to show good results outside of stimulating fertilizing. Such varieties as Don Steppe and Etude were the undisputed leaders here. On average, over three years, they showed a result of 12.0 and 11.9%, respectively. Thus, according to the totality of indicators, such varieties of winter wheat as the Don Steppe, Lydia, the Beauty of the Don, Etude can be distinguished.