Transformation and Integration of Agricultural Processes and Systems into the Natural Resource Cycle

• Published in: Agricultural Machinery and Technologies Vol. 18; no. 3; pp. 39 - 48
• Main Author: Fedorenko, V. F.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Russian
• Published: Federal Scientific Agroengineering Centre VIM 25.09.2024
• Subjects: agricultural technologies; agrobiocenoses; biomachine systems; crop cultivation; entropy production principle; hydrogel; no-tillage; plant growing; pneumatic hydrodrills; root-occupied soil layer; zero tillage
• ISSN: 2073-7599
• DOI: 10.22314/2073-7599-2024-18-3-39-48

The natural shift towards a new agricultural strategy targeting at the rational use of available natural resources is marked by more economical soil cultivation methods. Innovative trends in crop production include, among other practices, the partial or complete elimination of moldboard plowing, the avoidance of vertical mixing of the arable layer, minimal soil disturbance by agricultural machinery, and a reduction in soil degradation and erosion. ( Research purpose ) The paper explores the application of technological approaches, processes, and technical systems developed in accordance with contemporary concepts of production processes in crop cultivation. ( Materials and methods ) The development of soil cultivation technologies is associated with the shift from extensive agriculture to natural resource management systems that leverage natural or nature-mimicking processes, resulting in lower entropy production than technogenic methods. New approaches, such as no-till systems, should be based on the concept of symbiosis between plants and soil microorganisms, and their interaction with environmental conditions and factors. ( Results and discussion ) To ensure optimal conditions for the preservation and development of biocenoses within the root-occupied soil layers, it is proposed to use submersible pneumatic hydrodrills capable of subsoil processing, loosening, and aeration through compressed air pulses. This process is followed by irrigation, fertilizer application and hydrogel integration. The most promising and appropriate agricultural technologies, technical systems and tools are those that maximize the genetic potential of plant productivity and facilitate the interaction between biomachine systems and natural processes. These approaches aim to achieve the highest and most rational synergistic effect. ( Conclusions ) In accordance with modern concepts in crop cultivation, technological processes and technical systems have been developed and substantiated based on the concept of symbiosis between plants and soil microorganisms. These systems utilize subsoil processing, loosening, and aeration through pulses of compressed air.