COVER CROPS FROM WINTER WHEAT, TRITICALE AND PEAS CULTIVATED IN PURE STANDS AND MIXTURES – SOIL AND WEED SUPPRESSION BENEFITS

Cover crops had shown a potential to improving carbon sequestration in soil and environmental quality, but these beneficial effects can be modulated by precipitation conditions. In this paper was evaluated the effectiveness of three cover crops on soil chemical properties and weed suppression. The experiments were performed on cambic chernozem soil from NARDI Fundulea Romania in two contrasting years regarding the amount of precipitation. Three cover crops were studied. The cover crop consisting of peas + triticale has increased more soil carbon content and infestation with weeds were lower as compared with cover crop consisting of peas or triticale. The differences concerning carbon sequestration, soil organic carbon, carbon to nitrogen ratio, weed suppression were influenced also by level of precipitations from experimental site. Cover crops were slow to impact C/N ratio of soil. In contrast, the floristic composition, and the degree of weed infestation were very significantly influenced by the composition of the cover crops. The use of cover crop mixtures offered an additional benefit to weed suppression that of individual cover crops

FORAGE MIXTURES WITH ALFALFA CULTIVARS, PERENNIAL GRASSES AND ANETHUM GRAVEOLENS

Fodder crops consisting of several species are a way to obtain very good quality feed. They have been used more and more recently in Europe because, in addition to the superiority of feed production and quality, sowing mixtures of several species can lead to a significant reduction in the need for nitrogen fertilizer, an increase in performance and animal health. In Romania, there are few studies on the use of multi-species feed mixtures to reduce dependence on expensive inputs in order to increase the profitability and quality of feed, in organic agriculture production system. The objective was to compare forage yield, degree of coverage and weed infestation of alfalfa single crop and perennial grasses mixtures, which include 10 synthetic alfalfa cultivars and 5 varieties, grasses (a cultivar of Dactylis glomerata, Festuca arundinacea, Phleum pratense), mixed with herb Anethum graveolens. A field experiment was established in 2022 in the experimental field of the Center for Organic Agriculture at NARDI Fundulea. The results showed that mixtures of alfalfa with dill and festuca had a higher yield than alfalfa in pure crop. Anethum graveolens seeded with forage mixtures proved the efficacy as a natural repellent of Hypera variabilis in the first year of crop. In general, alfalfa-grass mixtures had beside higher feed yields and lower weed and pests infestations than alfalfa monocultures or mixtures of two species

Spiritualitate și agronomie. Probleme etice contemporane din spațiul rural românesc și agricultură

This study interdisciplinary approaches contemporary ethical issues at spiritual, sociological, ecological level in Romanian rural areas and agriculture. It reveals the importance of spiritual activity, which was in the centre of concernings in the traditional Romanian village. Introduces the theme of objective spiritual knowledge, with his stages of: purification, enlightenment and theosis. Shortly describes vision of eastern orthodox spirituality towards creation and serving way after saints model which is different from an exploitation and even a stewardship attitude to natural environment. On the basis of an holistic ethic and christian morality, it follows the presentation of several problems regarding the subjects like: agriculture secularization and traditions disruption, loosing the food sovereignty, neglecting the biodiversity value and seeds from the national patrimony, using the synthetic chemical compounds in agriculture, modern breeding, genetically modified organisms and agriculture certification. The purpose of the work is not to give the final sentence, it is a dialogue invitation for those who want to find solutions for revival the Romanian authentic rural life of the villages. In the final section there are exposed a series of individual and comunitary impulses that regards: efforts for regaining an authentic spiritual life, diversifying the agricultural systems, rebounding a strong link between academic environment and persons from rural areas, grafting the organic agriculture on the basis of specifical Romanian spirituality, drafting a long-term strategy to ensure the food sovereignty