The impact of soil cultivation methods (tillage with soil overturning at a depth of 20-22 and 14-16 cm, beardless plowing and surface treatment respectively at a depth of 14-16 and 6-8 cm, and also zero or minimal tillage)) on biological activity of various ecology-trophic groups of microorganisms on agronochernozems of the Kamennaya Steppe (Voronezh oblast) using classical inoculation methods on elective media. It is shown that chernozems are highly resistant soils that are resistant to external impacts, preserving high biological activity even at the maximum mechanical treatment. Tillage with soil overturn leads to aeration of the arable horizon and the activity initiation of aerobic microorganisms of the carbon cycle, responsible for the mineralization of both complex and simple organic compounds of the soil. The contribution of microorganisms of the nitrogen cycle (nitrate-reducers and nitrogen fixers) to the overall biological activity of migratory-micellar chernozems of arable land and layland was minimal. The level of mechanical impact on the soil affects the quantitative indices and biological activity of microorganisms in the soil - the stronger the effect, the deeper layers are affected. The processes of entrance for fresh organic matter prevail over the processes of mineralization practically in all variants of the experiment, except for tillage with the soil overturn to a depth of 14-16 cm, as indicated by the values of the mineralization coefficients. The strongest humus-accumulative effect was observed in the variant with zero treatment, which is maximally approximated to such processes, occurred in a layland. Minimal soil cultivation will help to preserve the unique structure of chernozem soil, to increase the flow of fresh organic remains, to preserve the high biological diversity which is specific for natural biocenosises.

The article assesses the relationships between the morphological properties of agrochernozems and yield of peas on the plots, experience with different methods of basic treatment (moldboard plowing at the depth of 20 - 22, 25 - 27 and 14 - 16 cm, moldboard plowing to a depth of 14 - 16 cm, combined midwater moldboard, mid-water subsurface, surface to a depth of 6 - 8 cm and zero tillage) is inherent in V.V. Dokuchaev Research Institute of Agriculture of the Central Black Earth strip, in the fall of 2014. The research was conducted in 2015 - 2016, with the application of mineral fertilizers (N60Р60К60) and unfertilized background. The highest pea yields in the fertilized as the background, and without the use of fertilizers was observed in dumping plowing and especially in the variant with deep moldboard plowing, which creates in comparison with other ways of handling the best conditions for the growth and development of peas. The lowest yield of pea was obtained with zero processing. Apparently legalistic migrational-mizelial agrochernozems the Central Chernozem zone of minimum tillage in the cultivation of peas are not effective, what is evident already in the first year after the laying of experience with different basic treatments. As shown by the results of applying multifactor analysis of variance studied the mapping properties of the soil can have the same significant impact on the yield of agricultural crops, as options for the field experiments aimed at assessing the impact of various treatments on yield.

Upper groundwater level (verhovodka) is considered as one of the factors of soil waterlogging associated with both the natural features of the territory and anthropogenic impact. On the case of one of the watershed areas of the steppe, where many years of scientific research are being conducted to assess the minimization of agrotechnical methods of cultivation of agricultural crops, a soil-geomorphological profile 1 km long was studied on which 8 wells were drilled, to a depth of groundwater with water sampling for salinity and chemical composition. The results showed that there are no visual signs of gleying in the profile of chernozems, the groundwater level correlates with the daytime surface of the relief, and in the soil-ground layer at depths of 2.0-3.9 m there is a horizon of "chocolate" clay, which forms a local aquiclude. Sulphate-sodium composition of fresh waters potentially dangerous for the salinization of chernozems at a high level of GWL (ground water level). Verhovodka is important to desalinating groundwater located above the confining layer, playing the role of a local factor of desalinization of the soil-ground layer of sediments.Since 2009, in the Kamennaya Steppe, according to the data of the main hydrogeological well No. 1, the GWL is constantly at a depth of over 7 m, which characterizes the beginning of the next natural-anthropogenic aridization. In conditions of a lack of surface moisture, no-till techniques should be recommended as a factor in reducing evaporation and moisture accumulation in the steppe chernozems.

In the conditions of field experience, the influence of different methods of primary processing (plowing, dump, surface and zero) on the reserves of nutrients (nitrate nitrogen, mobile phosphorus and exchangeable potassium) at depths of 0…10, 10…20 and 20…30 cm and in the layer 0…30 cm was considered. The degree of heterogeneity of the arable layer was estimated by the coefficient of variation at depths of 0…10 and 10…20 cm for each plant nutrient being determined. Stocks of all nutrients both at separate depths and in the layer 0…30 cm of agrochernozems under the conditions of the experiment increased by the end of the growing season of winter wheat. It is shown that the increase in nitrate stocks most significantly occurred when using small treatments, the depth of the impact on agrochernozems which did not exceed 10 cm (surface and zero treatment). The highest reserves of mobile phosphorus in the layer 0…30 cm had the options of experience with in-depth treatment of agrochernozems. However, during the growing season, the rate of increase in the reserves of this food element in the specified layer was higher in options with small treatments due to their significant increase at the upper depths. Approximately the same picture was observed for the exchange of potassium. Clear, observed time trends of homogeneity of arable horizon on stocks of batteries depending on the considered methods of tillage, have been identified. The expected trend related to a higher degree of homogeneity of the distribution of nutrients in the arable horizon of ploughing plots compared to other variants of experience, especially with zero treatment, is not always confirmed.

The variability of the carbonate profile of chernozems was studied during the long-term field experience on minimizing treatments and using no-till. The structure of the soil cover of the experimental fields is dominated by typical chernozems (Voronic Chernozems Pachic. WRB) – 82% in combination with over – dug – 12 % (zooturbated) and leached-6 %. Boiling depth and pH were used as the main properties that diagnose the acidity of soils and their variability in space and time. During one rotation (4 years), the acidity of chernozems on average showed a tendency to decrease at depths of 0-10 and 10-20 cm, respectively, by 0.18 and 0.12 pH units. The process of soil alkalinization is generally due to the natural variability of climatic parameters during the experiment. The greatest changes in acidity between technologies are associated with the use of no-till, for which significant differences in pH in a layer of 10-20 cm were revealed from all technologies using the processing of chernozems. In the conditions of the modern climatic situation in the subzone of typical chernozems, the use of no-till also leads to a decrease in the variability of the pH in the field space. In the provision of soils with nutrients, this can affect the technology and doses of mineral fertilizers.

In the conditions of field experience, the influence of different methods of primary processing (plowing, dump, surface and zero) on the reserves of nutrients (nitrate nitrogen, mobile phosphorus and exchangeable potassium) at depths of 0…10, 10…20 and 20…30 cm and in the layer 0…30 cm was considered. The degree of heterogeneity of the arable layer was estimated by the coefficient of variation at depths of 0…10 and 10…20 cm for each plant nutrient being determined. Stocks of all nutrients both at separate depths and in the layer 0…30 cm of agrochernozems under the conditions of the experiment increased by the end of the growing season of winter wheat. It is shown that the increase in nitrate stocks most significantly occurred when using small treatments, the depth of the impact on agrochernozems which did not exceed 10 cm (surface and zero treatment). The highest reserves of mobile phosphorus in the layer 0…30 cm had the options of experience with in-depth treatment of agrochernozems. However, during the growing season, the rate of increase in the reserves of this food element in the specified layer was higher in options with small treatments due to their significant increase at the upper depths. Approximately the same picture was observed for the exchange of potassium. Clear, observed time trends of homogeneity of arable horizon on stocks of batteries depending on the considered methods of tillage, have been identified. The expected trend related to a higher degree of homogeneity of the distribution of nutrients in the arable horizon of ploughing plots compared to other variants of experience, especially with zero treatment, is not always confirmed.

In a field experiment on legalistic migration mizelialnah agrofermotech the South-East of CCZ considers the influence of processing method on agrochemical soil properties in a year and four years after laying the experience. To take into account the effect of tillage on the agrochemical properties of the soils in the corresponding experimental variants the humus content were determined by Tyurin and carbonates by Kozlovsky and mobile phosphorus and exchange potassium – according to Chirikov in depths of 0–10, 10–20, 20–30, 30–40, 40–50 cm in the selected samples. A study of the change in stocks of soil properties important for plant nutrition along the profile to a depth commensurate with the extent of the root system of crops was made. In assessing the heterogeneity of agro-chernozems on plots with different main tillage methods the coefficient of variation of the organic matter content, mobile phosphorus, and metabolic potassium in soil samples taken from depths of 0 - 10, 10 - 20, and 20 - 30 cm were calculated. It is shown that for the three years that passed between the agrochemical properties of some trends in the distribution of nutrients and organic matter on variations of the experience have remained virtually unchanged, whereas were marked and significant changes of these parameters in the upper layer of the soil column, depending on the applied processing method. The increase in the reserves of organic matter and plant nutrients in the variant with zero treatment compared to other methods, observed after four years of experiments, is apparently associated with the manifestation of the fertilizing effect of soil with mulch rotting, applied at zero treatment on the surface of agrochernozems.

In a link of a crop rotation in the conditions of the field experience put in 2014 on the lands V.V. Dokuchaev Research Institute of Agriculture of the Central Black Earth strip during 2015-2017, we studied the changes in productivity of agricultural crops (peas, winter wheat, grain maize), depending on processing method chernozems. A year and three years after the experience in the soil layers 1 - 6, 11 -16, 21 – 26, 31 - 36 cm see drill N. A. Kaczynski in five-fold repetition determined the bulk mass. It was found that in the two years that passed between the definitions of bulk density significantly increased the density of the soil in the variant with zero treatment, which became significantly higher for all the studied layers of soils in comparison with other variants of experiments. Three years later, the experiments began to appear significant differences in density and between other variants of the experiment: between the moldboard and minimum treatment in the layer 11-16 cm, between the moldboard treatment and plowing in the layer 21 – 26 cm. It is shown that the yield of crops in the variant with zero treatment was significantly lower compared to other methods. The decrease in yield in this variant was closely related to the ongoing soil compaction. Consideration of the winter wheat quality indicators (protein content, gluten, gluten deformation index) made it possible to conclude that the grain of this crop, grown on soils with zero tillage, exceeded the quality of the grain obtained in other variants.