Application of micro-organisms for increasing yield in organic and conventional agriculture

The overarching goal of the EU Green Deal, launched in December 2019, is to make the EU the first climate-neutral continent by 2050, leading to a cleaner environment, more affordable energy, smarter transport, new jobs and a better quality of life in general. The Green Deal aims to reduce the use of plant protection products by 50% and the use of fertilizers by 20%, reducing the overall reduction in soil pollution by 50%. Such transformation will require a new approach and broad coordination between all agricultural stakeholders and new, sustainable innovations based on the latest scientific discoveries and new technologies and agricultural enterprises. Today's environmentally friendly solutions are the result of interdisciplinary collaboration that combines the knowledge and solutions of microbiology, agronomy and economics, including green and circular economics. The Latvian Agricultural Development Program defines grain growing as one of the priority agricultural sectors in the country. Several tasks have been set for the development of this sector, where one of the main goals of improving cultivation technology is to obtain a higher grain yield with appropriate quality. In connection with these objectives, a study was carried out on the effectiveness of microbiological fertilizers in the biological and conventional farming system. Preparations of micro-organisms containing nitrogen-fixing and phosphorus-solubilizing bacteria and microscopic fungi Trichoderma spp. were used in the biological and conventional field. The pilot scheme was performed in 5 variants and 4 replicates. In the control variant (1), no microbiological preparations were used (in the biological field) or a full conventional treatment scheme (in the conventional field) was used. The seed and plant and treatment scheme of the seed material was used in the 2−5 variant. The obtained results show that by applying microbiological products, it is possible to obtain up to 21% higher wheat yield in organic grain growing, while in conventional farming − up to 15.5% higher yield. Thus, it is possible to reduce the doses of agrochemicals, while working in accordance with the goals of the Green Deal and gaining economic benefits.