Cultivating lentils with precipitation of 250-320 mm peryear: soil tillage system, soil fertility, productivity
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51452/eaj.2026.3(131).2258Abstract
Abstract
Background and objective. Due to fluctuations in market prices for grain products, the introduction of lentils into crop rotation is considered a way to improve soil fertility and the financial sustainability of agricultural producers. The soil and climatic conditions of Northern Kazakhstan are a limiting factor for stabilizing lentil yields. The objective is to increase the sustainable productivity of lentils in a crop-rotation system by minimizing tillage systems, improving soil water-physical properties, and preserving soil fertility under unstable weather conditions.
Materials and methods. The studies were conducted in 2021–2025 on southern carbonate chernozems of the Akmolinskaya oblast in a long-term stationary field experiment of the A.I. Barayev Research and Production Center for Grain Farming (Shortandy; coordinates 51°12′N, 71°02′E), established in 1979. Soil water-physical properties were studied during lentil cultivation under conventional, minimum and no-till systems within a soil- cover crop rotation: lentils, spring wheat, spring wheat, flax, spring wheat. The main soil fertility parameters affecting lentil productivity were analyzed. The research included evaluation of no-till, minimum (reduced), and conventional tillage systems for lentil cultivation in a soil-cover crop rotation.
Results. Minimization of tillage systems based on reduced mechanical soil tillage and no-till decreases financial costs per hectare without negatively affecting soil density and moisture. Weed infestation does not increase. No-till and reduced tillage systems increase lentil yield by 55.6–61.2% compared to conventional tillage. The yield of spring wheat sown after lentils was 3.11–3.33 t/ha, compared to 3.26–3.44 t/ha after fallow. The yield potential of lentils reaches 1.8–1.91 t/ha.
Conclusion. New scientific data on soil water-physical properties, soil fertility status, and lentil productivity were obtained to substantiate the minimization of tillage systems for lentil cultivation in a soil-cover crop rotation under arid conditions.
Significance of the study. Intensification of lentil cultivation through minimized tillage and seeding systems, along with efficient use of climatic and soil resources, will reduce financial costs, mitigate the negative impact of weather variability, decrease yield fluctuations, and improve the stability of lentil productivity.
