One of valuable spice-aromatic vegetable of Lamiaceae family is lemony monarda (Monarda citriodora L.) cultivated as nonperennial crop in most of regions of Russian Federation. Information regarding its parentage and biological special aspects are described here in this article. Brief review regarding nutritional quality and pharmaceutical importance as well as description of four cultivars of lemony monarda (which are currently included to Russian State register of selection invention and approved for usage, two of these cultivars Mona Lisa and Simka were selected and cultivated by Federal Scientific Vegetable Center are given here in this article. Main directions for up-to-date selection and application and practical usage of lemony monarda were indicated. In the field of creation of up-to-date vegetable cultivars, one of the main directions is selection of such a cultivars with high content of biologically active compounds for improvement of antioxidative activity and applicability for its cultivation at hydroponic plant with frame area to provide fresh green vegetables for people all year round. Simka cultivar meets requirements mentioned above and can be cultivated at various types of hydroponic plants including horizontal (salad lines, seedling tables) and vertical (multilayer hydroponics) types using natural (drag turf) or artificial (mineral wool blocks) substrates. This article also describes the main elements of technology of cultivation of lemony monarda in the open and protected ground to get green products and seed production. The features of the preparation of raw materials with a high content of biologically active compounds for fresh consumption and as a spicy-aromatic dry seasoning for salads, meat dishes, as a natural preservative and aromatic of jam, tea and other drinks are shown.

Relevance. Although there is notable success in breeding vegetable crops to obtain heterotic F1 hybrids, traditional selection methods have been gaining in popularity as a means of improving the economically important traits of local traditional varieties in Russia today. These varieties suffered the reduction in their valuable starting parameters (yield, the uniformity of marketable produce and biochemical composition) over the many years of reproduction. The Department of Potato Breeding and Horticulture (FSBSI “FSC of Agricultural Biotechnology of the Far East named after A. K. Chaiki”) have been working on the creation of new squash variety-populations with large fruits using the variety-population Banannaya 42, bred by V. Ya. Smolei at the Far Eastern experimental station of the All-Union Scientific Research Institute of Plant Breeding in the 1940s, as the starting material. We carried out a multi-year research on the selection of promising families belonging to this variety to increase yield, improve the uniformity of fruits and the main biochemical parameters.   Results. The breeding work conducted on the families of variety-population 945 in 2011-2022 resulted in the improvement of some economically important traits (the uniformity of fruit shape, yield, and biochemical parameters) compared to the started form. The eleven years of research allowed us to achieve high uniformity of fruit shape in the selection of the ninth year (PIP 2) – 90.0-90.7 % (increased by 34.9-36.0 %). The yield increased from 28.4 t/ha to 38.2-45.3 t/ha or by 34.5-59.5 %. The following biochemical parameters were improved through selection: the content of dry mater from 8.5 to 12.9 % or by 51.8 % on average, the content of sugars from 6.1 to 9.1 or by 49.2 %, the content of carotene from 1.7 to 3.8 or by 123.5 %, and the content of vitamin C from 9.6 to 21.1 or by 119.8 %. We selected the families of the same type from variety-population 945 (variety-population Banata) with improved and uniform economically important traits for submission to the State variety testing. The yield was 38.2-45.3 t/ha, fruits were heart-shaped, skin was greyish green, pulp was orange, and the content of sugars was 9.0-13.2 %. Large-fruited variety population Banata was included in the State register of breeding achievements admitted to use in the Russian Federation in 2024.

Relevance. Recently, the number of hot and dry years has increased significantly. Under the influence of drought, the leaves of the apple tree prematurely fall, the ovaries and fruits fall off, which significantly affects on the yield. In this regard, the study of the water regime of apple remains relevant under drought conditions.Methods. The studies were carried out on the basis of the laboratory of physiology of fruit plant resistance at VNIISPK in 2016-2017. Apple cultivars of the VNIISPK breeding growing on the semi-dwarf rootstock 54-118 were studied. Antonovka Obyknovennaya was taken as a standard cultivar. The experiments were laid in 2013, the spacing scheme was 5 m x 3 m. The crown shape is of spindle type. The row-spacing and near-trunk stripes are kept under the fall fallow. The method of artificial dehydration was used to determine drought resistance of apple cultivars. The apple cultivars were studied with the aim to determine the physiological parameters of water regime relative to their drought resistance.Results. As a result of the two-year studies, the cultivars were characterized by the average content of water in leaves (61.2-65.1%). Water deficiency in most varieties was optimal in the field and did not exceed 10.0%. The increase in water deficiency in apple leaves was noted in drought modeling. For two years, of the leaf tissues water deficiency was in leaves of the Veniaminovskoye cultivar both in the field (5.2%) and after drought modeling (22.4%). During the growing season, the distribution of precipitation and temperature during the passage of individual phenophases by apple plants influenced the overall water content in the leaf tissues. The decrease of the water content in the leaf tissues and the increase of water deficiency were observed when dry conditions occurred. The decrease of the water regime and water deficiency in leaves was notes to a greater extent during the formation of fruits. It was found that all of the studied apple cultivars had an average level of resistance to drought. The study of water regime parameters showed that Veniaminovskoye was characterized by more stable indices and this indicated greater resistance to drought.

The main problem of agroindustrial sector of national economy is an absence of sufficient production of plant proteins that are used for food production as well as a forage production. New cultivars of  legumes, namely in  soybean have to  be developed to resolve this task. Soybean seeds contain much protein up to 50%, fat up to 28 %, along with  vitamins, phospholipids,  isoflavones and ferments. Soybean is a short-day crop. The main reason that limits the spread of soybean is the absence of new early-ripening cultivars. Folk cultivars and varieties native to China produce the grain yield at the sum of temperatures over 3500oC. At the beginning of the last century, there were bred the varieties that  produced  the grains at the sum of temperatures  below  3000oC.  Only after  that  the soybean as a crop is started to be introduced in different countries. The study on association among quantitative traits is needed to select necessary accessions for breeding program. In this research estimation of correlationship based on data of structure analysis was carried out within two-year period.  The correlationship  of  economically valuable traits, such as 1000 seed grain weight, number of grains in bean (pod) and other traits such as plant height, stem thickness, the height of pod  attachment, a number of branches, number of pods on the plant, number of productive nodes, average number of pods at node, average number of grains (beans) per plant in field experiment in 2015-2016, Central Zone of Non-chernozem Zone of Russia. It was noticed  the difference in trait correlationship depended on a year, and it needs to be taken into account for realization of breeding program in soybean.

The market of Moldova has a large assortment of seed of foreign selection, such as large-fruited tomatoes, cherry and cocktail tomato. Therefore, it is necessary to launch the breeding program for hybrid development of local origin tomato typed, such as ‘Cherry’ and ‘Cocktail’ with a different form, mass and fruit color. Initially, 15 parental forms of tomato were studied for the main economically valuable traits in the open field condition. Phenotypic variation in tomato varieties and breeding accession was identified depending on the terms of cultivation. Such varieties and lines of tomato as ‘Trapesa’, ‘Rosovaya Kapelka’, ‘Seniyorita’, ‘Ocharovaniye’, ‘L. 46/06’, ‘L. 49/09’, ‘L 295/09,’ ‘L. 336/11’, ‘L. 354/11’, ‘L. 357/11’, ‘L. 388/09 (nor)’, ‘L.498 (released by TARI), ‘Tigris’, ‘Vishnya Zheltaya’ (released by OOO ‘Gavrish’), ‘Denezhnoye Derevo’ (national breeding program) were used as the initial breeding material. Totally, 15 breeding accessions were used for the study, where all of them differed in the type of bush (determinate and indeterminate); a vegetation period (ultra-early, early, middle, late); a form (roundish, oval); a fruit color (red, pink, black, orange, tiger and with a NOR gene); a fruit weight (from 10 g and above); a structure of brush (dense, loose). Lines and varieties of tomato of different terms of ripening characterized by the shortened internode, high fruit setting on the bush, high content of biologically active substances, and complex resistance to diseases were used to breed tomato hybrids of ‘cherry’ and ‘cocktail’ types with different fruit form and color.

Brussels sprout (Brassica oleracea convar oleracea L. var. gemmifera DC) is a highly valuable cole vegetable crop, which is grown widespread in Europe and cultivated in gardens in Russia. The breeding program for this crop has been carried out at VNIISSOK. The biological features, useful properties of Brussels sprout along with agrotechnical instructions for cultivation were given in the article. The modern trends in breeding program for the crop were shown. The description of cultivar ‘Hercules’ and heterotic hybrid F1 ‘Sozvezdie’ bred at VNIISSOK was given.

In  2014-2016  the  assessment of  kidney bean  cultivars bred at Omsk State Agrarian University on yield capacity, quality, and biochemical  chemical compounds  in green beans, such as proteins, zinc, iodine, iron and sucrose was carried  out  in  the  south  forest-steppe  of  Western Siberia. The technological  parameters of  green  beans: the  shape  of  cross-section  area; pulpiness,  fibrous  or non-fibrous,  and bean thickness were estimated. Threeyear study showed that all tested cultivars bred at Omsk State  Agrarian  University  surpassed  control  cultivar  in yield capacity,  chemical composition  and technological parameters of green beans. The cultivar ‘Pamiyaty Rizhovoy’ gave a highest yield: 563.4 g/m2  in 2014; 622.8 g/m2 in 2015; and 620.4 g/m2  in 2016. It is worth noticing that this cultivar is also distinguished by contents of micro and macroelements: 21.20-28.68  mg/kg  of zinc; 0.012-0.018 mg/kg of iodine; and 1.8-3.2 mg/kg of iron. In the course of the study, it was noticed the dependence of  yield  capacity  on  hydrothermal  coefficient  (HC). In 2014-2015 the yield capacity was a lowest when the moisturization was insufficient at 0.7 HC. With increase of HC the yield was higher. With sufficient moisturization at 1.0 HC the highest yield of green beans was observed in 2016.  The estimation  of  kidney  bean  cultivars  bred  at Omsk State  Agrarian University showed  that  all beans were  distinguished  by  high  quality  parameters  in  the phase  of  technical  maturity,  such  as  pulpiness,  nonfibrous, thickness 0.5 to  1.0 cm, and green and yellow colors.  The  highest  protein  content  comparing  to  the control  cultivar  ‘Zolushka’  was  detected  in  ‘Marusya’ 23.60%  in  2014,  20.94%  in  2015;  and  ‘Zoloto  Sibiry’ 19.79%  in  2016.  The  observed  results  confirmed  that contents  change of  proteins,  sucrose, and  even micro and macroelements depended on the climatic conditions. In the hot and dry summer the protein content, depending on cultivar increased 18.31% to 23.60%, in 2014, and 17.81 to 20.94% in 2015. The same occurred  with zinc 19.63  to  28.68  mg/kg  in  2014,  and  20.14  to  27.54  to 2015;  and  iron  2.0  to  3.2  mg/kg  in  2014  and  1.6-1.9 mg/kg in 2015.

Purple horsemint (Monarda citriodora L.) is a perennial plant belonging to Lamiaceae family and being cultivated as aromatic and ornamental crop in many countries of Europe and America. Last years this plant actively gains popularity among gardeners. To elaborate the standard of organization with title 'Seeds of Monarda citriodora L. Sowing qualities. Technical conditions' the basis data has been collected from laboratory of leafy, aromatic, scented and ornamental plant breeding, laboratory of stardatization, rationing and metrology at VNIISSOK. The standard for seeds of Monarda citriodora L.includes the following sections: field of utilization; normative references; terms, definition, abbreviation, classification; technical requirements; order for receiving and sample piking;method of control; transportation and storage; security requirements.

The new hybrids of largefruited pumpkin, Vega and Pervenets VNIISSOK F1, the large-fruited pumpkin varieties, Muscvichka, and zucchini cv. Kornishonniy are characterized.

In this article, the main stages of establishment and development of the laboratory of breeding and seed production of cucurbits crops since 1921 are presented. More than 50 varieties of cucurbits crops were developed. Research envelopes and main achievements of the laboratory in field of production of high yielding varieties of cucumber, pumpkin, and squash resistant to biotic and abiotic stresses are discussed.