BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES AND MICRO FLORA IN AGRICULTURAL LANDSCAPES OF GRAY FOREST SOILS OF THE CENTRAL BLACK EARTH REGION

This work is devoted to the important issue of the study of the dynamics of microbiological processes as one of the most important factors in improving fertility. Complex transformations of organic substances and mineral compounds in the soil occur with the participation of microorganisms. High biochemical activity and the ability to adapt to different environmental conditions determine their huge role in the cycle of substances in nature. Especially great is the importance of microorganisms in the processes of mineralization of plant and animal residues, as well as in the synthesis of complex organic and organo-mineral compounds. The composition of soil microflora is an important diagnostic indicator in the characterization of soil genetic characteristics. The type of soil and its condition clearly affect microbial associations. As for microbiological studies of gray forest soils, as pointed out by L.I. Potekhina (1966), they are still limited and fragmented. Meanwhile, the zone of distribution of gray forest soils is an important agricultural area. In the Central Black Earth Region, there are 9 million hectares of arable land in average (13 % of arable land in the zone). Ploughing everywhere is very high, on average up to 65 %, black soils of the region are plowed – by 80 %, gray forest soils – up to 50 %. The total area of gray forest soils in Russia is 64 million hectares, or 2.8 % of the country's area, and in the Kursk Region – 27.3 %. According to their natural fertility, these soils are mostly much higher than sod-podzolic soils and, if properly used, can produce high and stable yields of the most diverse crops [5]. Therefore, the study of the dynamics of microbiological processes, as one of the most important factors in improving fertility, is important.