CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE ON UKRAINIAN CHERNOZEMS

As the granary of Europe, Ukraine has seen a significant rise in productivity and efficiency of its agriculture during the past decades. Chernozems are the primary soils in Ukraine. In order to maintain continued increases in grain production, Ukraine needs to implement conservation tillage and other sustainable land management practices to reduce soil degradation. The paper reviews the problem of Chernozems degradation and summarizes the influences of conservation tillage, cropping systems, fertilization, crop residue management, strip-cropping and contour farming on physical, chemical, and biological properties of Ukrainian Chernozems for the past 50 years. The conversion from plow-tillage to minimum tillage and no-till improves infiltration rate, pH and soil organic matter (SOM) in 0- to 10-cm layer and lead to carbon accumulation in fulvic acids and humins. No significant differences in SOM storage were observed among tillage systems in the 0- to 100-cm layer. The five crop rotation increased 0.8, 0.71, 0.94 t ha -1 yield of cereals and 5.8, 1.0, 4.2 t ha -1 sugar beet under conventional tillage, deep minimum tillage and reduced minimum tillage, respectively. Recommended application of manure in conservation agriculture in the humid zone 12 t ha -1 , in semi-humid zone - 10-12 t ha -1 and 8-10 t ha -1 in semi-arid zone. Green manure, cover crops and inter crops increased crop yield by 2-10% on Forest-Steppe and Steppe Chernozems. The combination of strip cropping, contour farming, contour bunds, and terracing are particularly recommended for the sloping farmland in order to reduce soil erosion. Land-related policies and relevant legislation in Ukraine are also outlined with an aim to contribute to the creation of guidelines and strategies for further implementation of appropriate practices for sustainable agriculture. slope steepness affect the Chernozems morphological features. Svitlichniy and Chorniy (2007) reported that the soil on the terraced slopes lost less nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and calcium as compared to non-terraced slopes. Zuza (2011) reports a significant improvement in snow-trapping and available water storage by 12-26 mm with terraces. The same phenomena were earlier reported by Gichka and Timchenko (2007) in spring on terraced slopes. damaged soils, restoration of soil fertility, standards in land protection, and state oversight of land and conservation. All principles All Ukraine, passport. The certificate includes common soil (soil organic its distribution downwards acidity, salinity, microelements as well as the concentrations of the soil contaminants determined by the regulations № 4433-87 “Sanitary code soils”. The sanitary condition of the Ukrainian soils is also determined by the State Standard №17.4.2.01-81 Protection.