EFFECT OF SOIL LOOSENING DURING VEGETATION ON SOIL EROSION AND SUGAR BEET PRODUCTION

The contribution focuses on verifying the effectiveness of newly designed tools for soil loosening during sugar beet vegetation. Soil loosening, weeding of weeds, storage of liquid nitrogen fertilizer in the soil, water leakage into the dripped soil layer (water paths in the drilled profile) and production indicators of sugar beet were evaluated. Higher yields occurred in case of repeated loosening (the average of 2014 and 2015), i.e. with inter-row hoeing with flat-chisel and subsequent chiseling, the root yield increased by 4.2 t ha(-1) and with inter-row hoeing with grooving chisel and subsequent chiseling, the root yield increased by 5.2 t ha(-1). The yield of white sugar was from 2.9% to 5.9% higher when the test blades were used as compared to standard blades or no inter row hoeing. Chiseling performed after inter-row hoeing positively influenced the loss of soil caused by water erosion and water infiltration into the soil. The loss of soil in verifying the soil erosion eradication efficiency (inter-row hoeing followed by chiseling) in the row of sugar beet decreased from 0.6 t ha(-1) (variants without inter-row hoeing or inter-row hoeing with standard blades) to 0.1 t ha(-1) in dry soil and from 2.4 to 0.4 t ha(-1) in the second sprinkling (wet soil).