National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Belarus
Editor-in-chief V. Gusakov, vice editor-in-chief P. Kazakevich, V. Azarenko
1, room 118, Akademicheskaya Str., Minsk 220072, Republic of Belarus
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e-mail: agro-vesti@mail.ru
Information about the titles change:
1963 - 1991 – «Proceedings of Academy of Sciences of  BSSR. Agrarian series»
1992 - 1995 – «Proceedings of Academy of Agrarian sciences of Belarus»
1996 - 2002 – «Proceedings of Academy of Agrarian Sciences of the Republic of Belarus»
2002 - till present – «Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus. Agrarian Series»

2023 №4

Agriculture and Plant Cultivation

Mitrofanov Yu. I., Gulyaev M. V., Smirnova Yu. D., Kazmin A. E.
Agromeliorative treatment of drained soils
The paper shows efficiency of volumetric slotting, methods of basic treatment and their combined effect on the performance of field crops and agrophysical properties of drained soils. The experiments were carried out at the Gubino experimental agro-polygon of the All-Russian Research Institute of Reclaimed Lands (VNIIMZ), located at the reclamation facility in the Tver region. The soils under experiment are cultivated soddy-podzolic, light loamy gleyic, formed on a thin binomial, drained by closed pottery drainage method. Volumetric slotting was carried out to a depth of 45–50 cm with filling the subarable part (30–50 cm) with crushed straw, plant residues mixed with a humus layer. The slotting was carried out with a specially designed tool. Slot width – 16 cm, slotting pitch – 140 cm. Efficiency of ridge plowing, volumetric slotting of the soil and their joint action has been determined. The yield of oats during ridge plowing increased by an average of 0.36 t/ha (12.0 %) over 5 years, in case of slotting – by 0.60 (20.0 %), in case of combined action – by 0.82 t/ha, or 27.0 %. The share of slotting in the total increase in yield on average over 5 years was 73.2 %, ridge plowing – 26.8 %. The positive effect of slotting on the yield of field crops during the experiment was observed for 6 years. The total increase in yield from volumetric soil slotting on oats for 5 years was 3.0 tons of grain per 1 ha, with combined action with ridge plowing – 4.1 tons of grain per 1 ha, or 36.7 % higher. The increase in the yield of oats, both with soil slotting and with ridge plowing, occurred due to an increase in the number of productive stems and the mass of grain in the panicle. With slotting, these indicators increased by 8.4 and 11.3 %, with ridge plowing – by 6.1 and 12.0 %. The results of the research can be used in the development of agro-reclamation tillage systems and in adaptive agricultural technologies for the cultivation of spring grain crops.

Sachyuka T. U., Kovalenko N. A., Supichenko G. N., Bosak V. M.
Antioxidant activity of new varieties spicy-aromatic and essential-oil plants
Spicy-aromatic and essential-oil plants are among the most important food, technical and medicinal plants; their green mass, seeds and essential oils are used in various sectors of the economy. The purpose of the research was to study the indicators of antioxidant activity of the green mass of new varieties of spicy-aromatic and essential-oil plants. The research subjects were new regionalized varieties of oregano, hyssop officinalis, common basil, fine-flowered basil, fragrant onion, multi-tiered onion, fragrant rue, blue fenugreek, large-rhizome geranium and borage. The yield of green mass during flowering phase was studied in field experiments according to generally accepted methods. In laboratory experiments, the content of vitamin C and carotene was studied according to standard methods, content of polyphenolic compounds – according to method of calibration schedule based on a standard substance – rutin. As a result of field and laboratory studies, it has been determined that the yield of the green mass of the studied crops was 125–280 c/ha, vitamin C – 27.0–69.0 mg/100 g, ca- rotene – 7.5–40.7 mg/kg, polyphenol compounds – 9.6–374.2 mg rutin/g. The studied spicy-aromatic and essential-oil plants in terms of antioxidant activity (content of polyphenol compounds) can be grouped into the following series: oregano > large-rhizome geranium > hyssop officinalis > basil > borage > fragrant rue > blue fenugreek > perennial onions. Among the varieties of oregano and hyssop, higher rates of antioxidant activity are noted in varieties with a more intense corolla color (rich pink – in oregano, blue – in hyssop). The results obtained on the yield of marketable products and antioxidant activity make it possible to more fully evaluate spicy-aromatic and essential-oil plants with the prospect of their use in various sectors of the economy, primarily in the development of functional products.

Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine

Borodachev A. V., Savushkina L. N.
Study and conservation of biodiversity of honey bees in Russia
Middle Russian, Bashkir, Carpathian, Gray Mountain Caucasian and Far Eastern bees are bred in Russia. As a result of selection based on selected material, the following breed types were reared: “Priokskiy”, “Orlovskiy”, “Tatar- skiy” and “Burzyanskaya Bortevaya” of Middle Russian; “Maykopskiy” and “Moskovskiy” of Сarpathian; and “Krasnopo- lyanskiy” of Gray Mountain Caucasian breeds. Work was carried out at farms-originators of breed types “Priokskiy” on the apiaries of Federal beekeeping research centre, “Tatarskiy” – selective centre “Tatarskiy”, “Burzyanskaya Bortevaya” – State nature reserve “Shulgan-Tash”, “Krasnopolyanskiy” – Krasnopolyanskya Experimental station of Beekeeping. The materials of approbation of breeding achievements of the Bashkir and Far Eastern breeds and breed types “Orlovskiy”, “Maikopskiy” and “Moskovskiy” were analyzed. The research was guided by the “Method of conducting tests for distinctness, uniformity and stability”. Honey bee (Apis mellifera L.)” and “Methods of research work in beekeeping”. The characteristics of the morphometric features of bees, queens and drones, as well as the ethological features of bee colonies of reared breeds and breed types are presented. Reserves, sanctuaries and breeding farms are indicated that are engaged in the conservation, selection improvement and reproduction of selected queen bees and families of a certain origin, as well as their sale in bre- eding zones for further reproduction. To conduct breeding work in beekeeping, a number of documents have been prepared: Regulations on the state nature reserve for the conservation of the gene pool of the native breed (population) of the honey bee, the Rules for classifying farms engaged in breeding bees as breeding farms, the National standard for the queen bee, the Interstate standard for the bee colony. The study of the gene pool of breeds, types and populations of bees, the control of their purity are the main conditions for its conservation and rational use.

Edea Chala, Verkhoturov V. V.
Insects as an alternative protein source in poultry nutrition: review
In today’s world, poultry farming is the most dynamically developing branch of agro-industrial complex, providing the population of the planet with products of animal origin. However, poultry meat producers in developing countries face the challenges of high cost and low-quality poultry feed. Limited use of available protein sources forces professionals to consider using alternative protein sources such as forage insects. Due to high content of fat (30–40 %) and protein components (40–60 %) and wide distribution, insects are a cost-effective and potentially sustainable feed resource for poultry feeding. The conducted studies confirm that insect meal (larvae of black soldier fly, housefly, large mealworm, silkworm, grasshopper and locust) can be considered as a potential replacement for fishmeal and soybean meal in poultry feed mixtures. A review of scientific literature is presented, which highlights the use of insects as a source of protein and biologically active substances (polyunsaturated fatty acids and antimicrobial peptides) for poultry feeding and possibility of large-scale insect cliching for feed production. Information is provided on the chemical composition, nutritional and biological value of insect-based feed meal in comparison with soybean and fishmeal. There is practically no information in the literature about the negative consequences for chicken growth when using insect meal in feeding. Most scientific publications indicate that physiological indicators and productivity, when insect meal was used in poultry feeding, were practically not inferior to those in birds fed with soy or fishmeal. Thus, the use of insects as a feed component in poultry farming is a promising aspect for sustainable development of animal husbandry, which allows solving the problems of waste processing and rational use of feed resources.

Mechanization and Power Engineering

Kazakevich P. P., Yuryn A. N.
Substantiation of parameters of unbalanced vibration exciter of berry harvester
The paper presents analysis of design of a vibration exciter of berry harvester, and dwells on substantiation of the main parameters of a two-shaft unbalanced exciter drive mechanism. As a result of theoretical studies, the type and design and technological layout is substantiated for a two-shaft vibration exciter with two unbalance unit rigidly connected to each other and rotating in the same direction with a displacement of 180°. Analysis of such a vibration exciter functioning made it possible to determine the rational values of the weights’ mass mа = 4.0 kg and the arms’ length r = 0.02 m, providing vibrations with an amplitude of A = 23…27 mm in the frequency range of oscillations of 8…20 Hz, which corresponds to agricultural and technical requirements for harvesting a wide range of berry crops. The results of the research were used for designing a trailed berry harvester TBH, created by Scientific and Practical Center of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus for Agriculture Mechanization. It ensures high-quality harvesting with minimal damage to berries and shrubs of chokeberry, currant, gooseberry, dog rose and raspberry, that was determined by acceptance tests.

Sharshunov V. A., Bosak V. N., Cajc M. V., Kocuba V. I., Khromenkova T. L., Levchuk V. A.
Results of production tests and economic evaluation of a rotary beater-combing device on a flax harvester
The results of production tests of a rotary beater-combing device developed at the EE BSAA for separating seeds from flax stalks in the implementation of combine harvesting technology are presented in the paper. As a result of the research, regularities were determined for changes in the purity of threshing, the degree of damage to seeds and stems depending on the thickness of the strip of flax stems threshed by the developed device installed in the “Dvina-4M” flax harvester. Regularities of changes in the purity of threshing and the degree of damage to flax stalks from the gap between the rotor and deck in the phase of yellow and brown ripeness of flax at different rotor speeds have been determined. The results of comparative tests of a flax harvester equipped with a rotary beater-combing device in comparison with a flax harvester equipped with a single-drum combing device are presented. Use of a rotary beater-combing device on a flax harvester allows to increase the performance of the combine by 8.7 %, reduce the total loss of seeds by 32.35 % and 4.2–7.32 % as a result of undercombing, reduce damage to flax stalks affecting the output of long flax fiber by 38.01 %. Also, a decrease in the volume of the resulting flax heap was noted when using a rotary beater-combing device, depending on the quality of the stem and the phase of flax ripeness, by 28.5–56.3 % in comparison with the comb apparatus. The annual economic effect of the rotary beater- combing device will make 7831 rubles, the economic effect per 1 ha – 156.6 rubles in prices of the I quarter of 2023.

Processing and Storage of Agricultural Products

Vasileuskaya M. N., Tsikhanovich A. F.
Scientific substantiation of use of food plant raw materials for production of specialized flour food products in cases of pathologies of metabolism protein component
There is a number of diseases caused by metabolism protein disorders. The treatment requires dietary therapy with specialized food products. Information on diseases associated with metabolism protein disorders protein in this paper, as well as restrictions in the formulation of diets, analyzing vegetable crops and their products, which can be used in the production of flour food products intended for people with metabolism protein disorders. Use of raw materials in development and production of such products is often not confirmed by the results of chemical composition and, as a consequence, is groundless and inexpedient. Vegetable raw materials characterized by low protein content or absence of gluten have significant differences in technological properties compared to wheat flour, which forms the basis of most flour food products, which requires adjustments in the formulation or technological process of production of various groups of flour food products. Samples of buckwheat flour, including whole-milled flour from green buckwheat, rice and corn flours, sorghum flour, native potato and corn starches from different producers were used in the study. During the research we used common and special methods of determining the chemical composition, organoleptic and physical-and-chemical quality indicators, technological properties of the products and their chemical properties.