Sunflower “expansion” is the consequence of system problems in agriculture of Ukraine

The main scientist of Yurev Institute of plant growing, the Doctor of Agriculture, the professor, the Academician of National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine Victor Vasilyevich Kirichenko told about the main reasons of irrational use of the Ukrainian farmlands in interview to the Internet portal “The world and we”.

- In recent years the cultivation areas of sunflower considerably raised in Ukraine. Is it really true that the sunflower has the extremely negative impact on fertility of the soil? Is such distribution conducts to prompt exhaustion of farmlands?

The cultivation areas under sunflower increased because economically it is the most favorable culture and it has the cheapest sowing unit. Only 5 kg of seeds are required on 1 hectare at the price of at most 6 dollars for 1 kg – the sunflower seeds are so cheap. And the good owner, using a qualitative hybrid, can receive to 3 tons of oil seeds from hectare at the price of 3,5 thousand hryvnas per ton. Here we see the advantage of cultivation of this culture – the expenses are small, but profitability of sunflower makes 100-200 %. It also involves the agricultural producers to sow the sunflower.

Besides, it can be seeded since the end of April to June 1. And if the winter crops were lost, the barley, sugar beet didn’t grow up, so the sunflower reseeded. As a result instead of 2,9 million hectares proved in Ukraine sow to 5 million hectares. Our institute issued the methodical recommendations where to be said that in Ukraine there is a possibility to grow up 7-8 million tons of sunflower. But we never supported the increasing its cultivation areas in times.

Now is this culture pernicious for the soil or not. Any culture if it is often sowed in a crop rotation will be pernicious for the soil. The wheat can't be sowed on wheat, barley on barley etc. As also the sunflower can't be sowed more often than in 5-6 years. Because the huge number of wreckers and diseases in any culture collects and it leads to accident. All states which passed to two-field rotation, three-field rotation system increased the amount of pesticides per each hectare.

There is an opinion that the sunflower takes out the useful substances from the soil. All researches, in the result of which affirmed that the sunflower is the evil, were carried out on grades when it was in a hand in thickness, 3 m in height and the ratios of reproductive and vegetative organs in it was far not one to one. Today there are absolutely other hybrids. For example, on our range the samples have the height from 1, 2 m to 2, 2 m, and thickness of a stalk as the first finger. It is not so that sunflower which was many years ago. It is necessary for science to count everything once again and find out under what conditions such hybrids can to be harmful to the soil.

Except the prospective negative impact, the sunflower has also positive quality for fertility of the soil. For example, it takes out the potassium from lower layers, from depth of 2, 5 m and leaves it on a surface. If after the sunflower harvesting to crush its stalks, it would be about 4-5 tons of organic fertilizers on hectare. Therefore there are factors in protection of this very important culture.

The main problem consists not in negative influence of this or that culture, but in violation of those laws which left the previous generations to us. There should be the eight-field crop rotation and all cultures should be presented. The peas which will be included in the Red Book soon and buckwheat which is lack, both millet and spring wheat should alternate on the same field. It is necessary to consider the profit not for one year, but for 8-10 years according to a crop rotation. Then we correctly calculate everything and won’t harm to ecology. And any repetition of culture on one field involves a set of negative consequences from year to year, including the raised pesticide impact. It is a key problem, instead of influence of any one culture.


- Do the existing lease term of farmlands is the reason of such situation because of which the agricultural producer aspires to receive maximum from the land for some years?

I am not an expert in the field of land rent, but there are obvious regularities. If to conclude the lease contract for 3 years or even for 10 years, the tenant will be compelled to take everything from this land. And if the term will be 49 years, then it is possible to oblige him to bring it both organic chemistry, and moderate amount of fertilizers, pesticides to suppress weeds and insects. It should be thought over in an agrarian policy.

The long-term rent gives the chance to demand from the farmer that he treated the land rationally, instead of injuriously.

- Is the percentage share of farms which observe a crop rotation and scientifically reasonable rules of agriculture known?

It is difficult to say the exact information. But I will give such fact. I know that are only one-two farms on each rural area there which still had cows and who can bring 10 tons of organic chemistry on each hectare according to the rules. And if the majority of farms have no organic fertilizers, can we speak about fertility? Today it is necessary to say that the organic-mineral fertilizers are just that direction which will give the chance to receive its potential possibilities from each grade and its possibility from each hectare. The sunflower goes the last in a crop rotation and selects everything that the wheat and other cultures left. And now it turns out that it repeatedly seed on the same area. Therefore the main problem because of which wrongly accuse the sunflower is the violation of a crop rotation and rules of introduction of organic-mineral fertilizers. Other cultures have the characteristic negative influence on the soil. Sorghum and sugar beet, for example, take away a lot of water from the soil and it is far for the sunflower in this sense.

If we want to increase the productivity and we need to raise it because 1,1 billion people go hungry on all planet and it is necessary to feed them with something, and Ukraine should bring the contribution in it, so for this purpose we need to develop the irrigated lands. In the Kharkov area there were 160 thousand hectares of irrigated lands and today it would be good if we count one thousand hectare. The mineral fertilizers don't work without water. The organic fertilizers work – they help to keep the plants in a stressful weather situation. And the mineral fertilizers simply phosphorus the soil and washed out – there is no special effect from them. Thus, there should be a connection of one and others.

In due time, there was a practice to burn the stubble (the lower part of stalks after harvesting). 3-4 tons of organic chemistry was destroyed on each hectare. Now it stopped because of certain bans, the Ministry of Emergency Situations works on this matter. And now the farms think how to crush, plow or process the stubble. Already there are no such mass “fires” on fields of Ukraine. And thanks to it we return 3-4 tons of organic fertilizers to the land which form a humus, nutrients, nitrogen is added. And all this are used for the subsequent cultures.

Thus, at the correct policy of the state the change of practice of farms which negatively influence ecology is possible. Therefore the major moment is the development of the measures conducting to observance of crop rotations, rules of application of fertilizers and growth of irrigated lands. The sunflower problem about which often speak is a consequence of these more fundamental, system problems of the Ukrainian agriculture.