Published in Scientific Papers. Series A. Agronomy, Vol. LXVIII, Issue 1
Written by Ciprian Traian STROE, Liliana PANAITESCU
This study explores the behavior of white mustard (Sinapis alba) varieties under the specific agroecological conditions of southern Dobrogea. The experiments were conducted in the locality of Deleni, Constanța County, on two indigenous varieties, Bella and Cezara. The same agricultural technology was applied to both varieties, with the main objectives being to determine the optimal sowing density, analyze plant density at emergence and harvest, and assess the qualitative indicators of production. The results indicate that both varieties exhibit significant adaptive characteristics to the agroecological context of the region, yielding favorable average production levels in the cultivation years of 2022, 2023, and 2024. Additionally, the findings highlight the impact of environmental factors such as precipitation levels and soil conditions on plant development and productivity. The mean and standard deviation were calculated for each crop variant (Cezara and Bella, with and without fertilizer) both at emergence and at harvest, and an ANOVA test was applied to check whether the differences between variants were statistically significant. Additionally, a student’s t-test was used to compare the means between the fertilized and control variants for each variety. The results showed that the differences between variants were statistically significant (p < 0.05), indicating a clear effect of fertilization on the increase in the number of siliques. To verify the normality of the data distribution, the Shapiro-Wilk test was used. p-values greater than 0.05 suggest that the distribution of the number of siliques per plant follows a normal distribution, validating the applicability of the parametric tests used. A regression analysis was conducted to assess the impact of plant density on yield. Linear regressions indicated a positive correlation between plant density at harvest and the obtained yield, with significant determination coefficients (R2). These results contribute to a better understanding of the potential of Sinapis alba in conventional farming systems and offer insights into optimizing cultivation techniques for sustainable agricultural production in this region.
[Read full article] [Citation]
