Electronic circulation of documents and electronic services have become the most significant IT development trend in the public sector. During the last few years public sector institutions in all Europe have significantly improved the quality of the provided services. With the evolving options offered by the internet and the digital signature getting more widely used, citizens expect a more up-to-date approach to communications from governmental institutions. Successful operation of electronic services would not be possible without a proper circulation of electronic documents on the national level. This article briefly inspects the history of the electronic service development and analyses the conditions of the development, deals with the experience of different countries with the implementation of e-services. Particular attention has been paid to Latvia, its current situation and historical analysis of e-services. A special part is dedicated to Agricultural Ministry of the Republic of Latvia which is most closely related to national rural development, projects of transition towards electronic document circulation and provision of electronic services.

The first independent career related decisions are made during the ninth grade of the elementary school when the further educational institution is selected. The concept of possible selves can be used in career education to help students increase self-awareness, explore and generate options, and formulate plans to achieve future goals. The aim of the article is to examine rural adolescents’ ability to generate career-related possible selves and plausible strategies to attain these possible selves. On the basis of the Possible Selves Theory, the open-ended measure was developed by the author. The pilot research was carried out in Latvia in January 2013. Forty six nine-graders from two rural elementary schools and two rural secondary schools participated in the research. Next year and adult possible selves generated by rural adolescents include such domains as education, employment, leisure activities, physical and personal development, as well as interpersonal relationships and lifestyle. The most important ones are domains of education and employment. Statistically significant differences of the results among the gender subgroups are not found in the research, statistically significant differences exist between the possible selves and their attaining strategies generated by rural secondary school students and rural elementary school students.

Field trials with the spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) were carried out on the experimental fields of Estonian University of Life Sciences in 2011. The yield quality (volume weight, 1000 kernel weight, falling number, gluten content, gluten index, gluten content in dry matter) of spring wheat was studied in cultivar ‘Vinjett’. The wheat was part of the five-year crop rotation experiment where red clover (Trifolium pratense L.), spring wheat, peas (Pisum sativum L.), potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) and barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) undersown with red clover were following each other. There were three treatments which followed the crop rotation. In one treatment mineral fertilizers and pesticides were used, but other two treatments were organic without any synthetic agrochemicals. In mineral fertilizing treatments, the background of P25 and K95 kg ha-1 the N amount varied from 0 to 150 kg haE-1. Herbicides Sekator and MCPA 750 were used in conventional part. The aim of this research was to study red clover’s after-effect and different N fertilizer amounts’ influence on the spring wheat yield quality. In treatments where no mineral fertilizers were used and which only followed the red clovers after effect had higher gluten index and gluten content in dry matter. Higher mineral nitrogen amounts and organic treatments decreased spring wheat 1000 kernel weights and volume weights. The wet gluten content and falling number increased with increase of the amount of mineral N.

To promote the future of abandoned lands management and the reduction of fossil energy consumption in Latvia, the establishment of energy crops plantation facilities, including perennial grasses, was investigated. The objective – suitability of several perennial grasses for bio-energy production under condition of Latvia. The aim of the current research to evaluate the experimental field conditions for the cultivation of perennial grasses. The perennial grasses are modest in terms of soil conditions, they are environmentally friendly, as well as provide high yields of biomass with adequate quality for bio-energy production without large investments. With increasing amounts of bio-energy production the amounts of various by-products which are profitable to utilize as energy crops fertiliser will also increase. It is essential that plant nutrients return back into circulation by creating a complete cycle. In order to test in practice the possibility of creating this complete cycle of growing perennial grasses, an experimental field was chosen at the Research Institute of Agriculture in Skriveri. In the summer of 2011, before trials establishment, the conditions of soil were examined at four depths: 0 – 20 cm; 20 – 40 cm; 40 – 60 cm and 60 – 80 cm. The analyses showed that the experimental field conditions were appropriate for growing of perennial grasses. The results of the soil agrochemical analysis will be a base for future studies of usage efficiency of different fertiliser types on perennial grass productivity and nutrient recycling opportunities in energy crop plantations.

Abstract Studies comparing slurry injection versus spreading have reported inconsistent results so far. The objective of the study was to compare two slurry application methods, injecting and spreading, in terms of influence on sward yields and leaching of nitrogen (N) and potassium (K) from grassland. The experiment was conducted from 2008 to 2011 at the Eerika Experimental Station, Estonian University of Life Sciences. Mini-lysimeters filled with loamy sand soil embedded in three swards (three-species grass mixture (Phleum pratense, Lolium perenne and Poa pratensis), grasses mixture with white clover (Trifolium repens), and grasses mixture with lucerne (Medicago sativa)) were used. Three annual nitrogen rates (60, 120, 180 kg haE-1) in conjunction with the two slurry application methods (injecting and spreading) were applied. Percolated water quantities, N and K content in leachate and the sward yield were measured. N leaching was significantly less with slurry injection while K leaching did not depend on slurry application method. N and K leaching was more affected by sward botanical composition and applied N rate and N:K ratio n slurry than by slurry application method. Sward yields did not depend significantly on slurry application method. Slurry injection is rational only in grasses sward when used N rates are above 120 kg haE-1 yrE-1. Slurry injection may have negative influence on the distribution of white clover in the grasses + white clover sward and thus lead to sward yield decrease.

Future perspective of the research is the production of fuel pellets from energy plant (Phalaris arundinacea L., Festuca arundinacea, etc.) biomass, because it can be better burnt in granule burners and is more environmentally friendly, if compared to the fossil mineral resources (coal, oil, gas), moreover it has low moisture content (70 – 90 g kgE-1) and correspondingly it produces higher combustion energy. The research covered preparation of various content tablets from reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) variety ’Marathon’ (N fertilizer rate on the N-90 kg haE-1), energy wood - osier (Salix viminalis L) and poplar (Populus tremula L.) with N fertilizer norms N-0 and N-120 kg haE-1, and afterwards research of the combustion ability of and ash content in these tablets. Combustion ability of reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) variety ‘Marathon’ reached 17.48 MJ kgE-1. The highest average combustion ability with different pellet content was found for the fast-growing poplar both with doses of N fertilizer - 18.55 MJ kgE-1 and without N fertilizer - 18.49 MJ kgE-1. Optimum content of various component pellets for biomass was a mixture of components 1/3 (reed canary grass/osier or poplar). The lowest indicators in respect to the ash content were observed for osier (Salix viminalis L.) - 27.9 g kgE-1. The best ash content indicators for a mixture of granular composition was in a mixture of components one-fourth of the reed canary grass with three parts of osier - 34.3 g kgE-1 or with poplar - 41.8 g kgE-1.

The aim of the present research was to evaluate the affect of genetic and environmental factors on the variability of the goat milk yield, fat and protein content in goat milk in Latvia. Data of 6067 lactation records from 2400 goats of six different breeds were analysed in the period of 2001 to 2010. The highest milk yield (662.7±14.58 kg) was obtained in 2002, the highest fat content (40.7±0.05 g kgE-1) – in 2004, but highest protein content (32.7±0.19 g kgE-1) – in 2008 (p is less than 0.05). Basically there are two goat breeds in Latvia: Latvian goats and Saanen goats. In the research, 3261 Latvian and 2032 Saanen goats in closed lactations were analysed. It was found that Saanen goats gave the highest milk yield (579.3±5.01 kg), but Alpine goats – the highest fat and protein content (respectively 41.7±0.63 and 32.3±0.30 g kgE-1; p is less than 0.05). It was observed that most of all the goats kidded in winter (2379) and spring (3378). The highest milk yield (583.8±7.39 kg) was determined for goats kidded in winter season, but the highest fat content (41.8±0.06) and protein content (32.3±0.03) – for goats kidded in summer season. The average milk yield in the first lactation (1636) was significantly lower than in the third lactation (578.0±8.34; p is less than 0.05) when the goats produced the highest milk yield in the research.

The aim of the current research was to study the effect of drying conditions on the rehydration kinetics of Latvia wild grown and on cultivated cranberries. The research was accomplished on fresh wild cranberries and cultivated cranberry cultivars ‘Ben Lear’ and ‘Pilgrim’ harvested in Kurzeme region of Latvia in the first part of October 2010 and immediately used in the drying experiment. Three methods were used for pre-treatment of berries: perforation, halving and steam-blanching. Before drying in a convective drier the berries were pre-treated using all three methods and berries were dried in a microwave vacuum drier using two pre-treatment methods – steam-blanching and halving. Parts of berries were dried in the microwave vacuum drier without pre-treatment (whole berries). For drying experiments, convective and microwave vacuum drier were used. Cranberry samples were rehydrated in water at +20±1 °C and +40±1 °C. The moisture content of the cranberry samples after rehydration was estimated as oven-dry method. The rehydration properties of cranberries increased with the increase in temperature, up to +40±1 °C, the increase being more significant at the initial stages of the process. Microwave drying possibly produces a sample with increased porosity, which in turn leads to improved rehydration characteristics and a softer product and may reduce processing time. Pre-treatment of berries did not significantly influence the increasing intensity of moisture content during rehydration, but the drying methods within rehydration at the temperature of +40±1 °C significantly influenced the increasing intensity of moisture content.

The rowanberries (Sorbus aucuparia L.) are small orange-red fruits of a rowan tree and belong to the family Rosaceae. These berries have been described as an important source of flavonoids, and their antioxidant activity affects reactive oxygen species and lipid peroxidation; therefore they are suitable for production of health-food products. The ripe wild rowanberries have traditionally been used for jellies and jams, but their use as a food ingredient has been less popular because of their bitter taste. Sweeter and less astringent than wild rowanberries are different cultivars of sweet rowanberries and hybrids with other species. The aim of the current research was to determine physical and chemical parameters and sensory properties of rowanberry marmalades. The experiments were carried out in the Faculty of Food Technology of Latvia University of Agriculture. The purees of wild rowanberry and six different rowanberry cultivars were chosen for the production of marmalades. Chemical, physical and sensory indices of the product – moisture, total carotenoids, tannins, colour, hardness and intensity of sensory properties (flavour, colour, bitterness) – were determined as quality indicators. The results showed large variability in the physical and chemical parameters between the marmalades of different rowanberry cultivars and hybrids. The sensory evaluation of marmalades from rowanberry cultivars ‘Moravica’, ‘Mitchurinskaya krasnaya’, ‘Sorbinka’ and hybrid of rowanberry × hawthorn ‘Granatnaya’ showed that the degree of liking was from “neither like nor dislike” to “like moderately”, and marmalades from wild rowanberry, S. aucuparia var. sibirica and hybrid of rowanberry × pear ‘Alaya Krupnaya’ – from “dislike moderately” to “dislike slightly”.

Horseradish (Armoracia rusticana L.) is a perennial plant, with a particularly pungent flavour and significant antioxidant properties. The aim of current research was to determine the total phenol content and antioxidant properties of horseradish depending on genotype and harvest time. For experiments nine genotypes of horseradish roots collected at different times were investigated. Fresh plant material was extracted with ethanol/water solution (80:20 v/v). Total phenols content (TPC) of plant extracts was determined according to the Folin-Ciocalteu spectrophotometric method and results were expressed as gallic acid equivalents (GAE). Antioxidant activity of the extracts was measured on the basis of DPPH˙ free radical scavenging activity and the final results were expressed as inhibition of 2,2-diphenyl-1- picrylhydraziyl (DPPH˙) in percent (I, %). Total phenols content varied among analysed types of horseradish. The highest TPC was detected in horseradish root genotype 280 harvested in September and it also demonstrated the highest DPPH˙ radical scavenging activity, whereas the lowest TPC was detected in horseradish root genotype 26B also harvested in September. TPC and DPPH˙ scavenging antioxidant activity were also significantly influenced by harvest time. Positive correlation was found between antiradical activity and the total phenols content in horseradish roots harvested in September. In further experiments, use of horseradish as natural antioxidants in different food matrixes should be studied.