The statutory activity of IUNG-PIB is conducted as a part of the scientific-research programme entitled:
„THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF CROP PRODUCTION AND MANAGEMENT OF AGRICULTURAL AREAS IN POLAND”.
Implementation of the interdisciplinary programme requires teamwork, leading to comprehensive problem solving. The programme has a horizontal structure, aimed at achieving research objectives at different levels, e.g. plant and soil, crop and crop rotation, and farm, region and national level. According to the implemented objectives, it contains 3 sub-programmes linked in substance and forming an integral whole.
It covers the development of crop production on agricultural land and its impact on the formation of agricultural area. The activity of IUNG-PIB focuses mainly on the agronomic challenges and protection and shaping the environment.
The main objective of the programme is to carry out research on the sustainable development of plant production and the protection and shaping of the agricultural environment, to support the decisions of the ministry and regional authorities, and to provide information and recommendations for agricultural advisory services and practitioners.
Scientific sub-programmes realised within the framework of the IUNG-PIB statutory activity:
- Recognition of plant growth and development processes and opportunities for shaping the quality of the agricultural crops;
- Development and improvement of efficient and environmentally secure systems and technologies for the production of primary crops;
- Evaluation and support for the processes of shaping agricultural production areas at various levels of management taking into account natural, organisational, and economic conditions;
The statutory activity – sub-programme 1.
Recognition of plant growth and development processes and opportunities for shaping the quality of the agricultural crops
Sub-programme coordinator: prof. dr hab. Teresa Doroszewska
Plant production depends on a number of factors. The most important include the biological characteristics of the plant and the habitat conditions for its growth and yield. Development of research methods and techniques provides new tools to improve crops in terms of resistance to biotic and abiotic stress, yield increase and better quality of plant products. Plant genetic conditions are subject to modifying environmental influences, resulting in the need for research taking into account biological, habitat and agrotechnical aspects. Increasing plant yield and improving its quality can be realized through targeted breeding, recognition and use of physiological properties and application of appropriate agrotechnical treatments. Environmental factors, especially light, water and temperature have a substantial influence on plant production. The basic and non-renewable element of the natural and thus agricultural environment is the soil and available nutrients. The fertility and productivity of soils are fundamental aspects for obtaining optimal yields with high quality parameters. Taking into account all the biological, chemical and physical processes in the soil and assessing the quality and biodiversity of the soil environment will enable the existing potential to be used more effectively and will also contribute to ensuring proper crop protection.
The aim of the research sub-programme is to identify the impact of biological and habitat conditions on the processes determining the high level and desired quality of plant products. Individual issues of the sub-programme take into account breeding, physiological, phytochemical, phytopathological and microbiological aspects affecting the desired quality of products. They concern the issue of biodiversity in agricultural crops and the soil environment.
The results of the research will allow clarification of the issues at stake on a scientific basis. They will also contribute to the development of principles of operation allowing the optimum yield of crops with high quality parameters to be obtained.
The statutory activity – sub-programme 2.
Development and improvement of efficient and environmentally secure systems and technologies for the production of primary crops
Sub-programme coordinator: prof. dr hab. Teresa Doroszewska
The unique nature of plant production lies in the implementation of technological processes in space and time. On the farm scale, the area is made up of separated fields, and time includes one or several plant rotations, i.e. several plants grown in succession. The effects of many agrotechnical treatments can be assessed only on the scale of the whole space-time defined in this way, i.e. based on the whole farm area over a period of several years. This applies in particular to tillage and weed control and fertilisation. Tillage and fertilisation must therefore be considered both in terms of the production technology of individual plants and in terms of the entire crop rotation. The technologies must be effective, which means ensuring a minimum input of means of production per product unit, and safe for the natural environment. The safety of production technology consists in eliminating the negative impact of agrotechnical measures on the soil, ground water and the plant grown, as well as in obtaining plant products with assumed quality and utility parameters. Such products should help to preserve human and livestock health.
The aim of the research sub-programme is to develop plant production technology in accordance with the principles of integrated plant protection and the Code of Good Agricultural Practice.
The development and implementation of the DPR Code is the basic form of implementing Poland’s international obligations under the Helsinki Convention (HELCOM) and the EU Nitrates Directive. The part concerning the principles of sustainable fertilisation takes into account the requirements of the Act on Fertilisers and Fertilisation.
The statutory activity – sub-programme 3.
Evaluation and support for the processes of shaping agricultural production areas at various levels of management taking into account natural, organisational, and economic conditions
Sub-programme coordinator: prof. dr hab. Mariusz Matyka
The agricultural environment is one of the indicators of agricultural potential. The degree to which this potential is used is determined by organisational and economic conditions. The formation of the agricultural environment is closely linked to the concept of sustainable development. It means the conscious introduction and assessment of the effects of changes in ecosystems and the indication of actions ensuring the rational management of agricultural space. The processes of shaping the agricultural environment include:
- assessment of natural conditions from the point of view of possibilities of agricultural production development,
- recognising all soil functions,
- indicating threats to the environment,
- designation of sensitive areas exposed to environmental degradation processes,
- seeking opportunities to reduce or eliminate risks,
- supporting the concept of multifunctional and sustainable rural development.
Activities in the field of shaping the agricultural environment run simultaneously with the processes of its use and protection.
Polish agriculture, in accordance with the development strategy and accession requirements, will undergo quite profound changes. The condition for undertaking such transformations is to rationalise the use of agricultural production area and to incorporate newly emerged needs and agricultural development programmes into its shaping. The need to meet these challenges will increase the demand for information support, which is an indispensable basis for appropriate decisions.
The design of IT systems, which are in line with the needs and standards adopted in the European Union, requires the urgent processing of agroclimatic, soil and equipment data into digital form. The sub-programme will be implemented through the creation and adaptation of models and applications enabling quick access to information characterising: the conditions of agricultural production, the valorisation of rural area, the ways of land management, the expected production effects, the effects of the use of natural agricultural resources and other functions of rural area. The models and applications developed will describe in a dynamic way the variability of natural and anthropogenic phenomena and processes, taking into account economic conditions and principles of eco-development. Databases, models and applications generating the necessary information will relate to three levels of management and decision-making: national, regional and local. Moreover, an assessment of potential production possibilities of different regions of Poland will be carried out, as after the introduction of the market economy, this differentiation has clearly increased and the existing criteria for the regionalisation of plant production have become outdated. The results obtained may be useful for the regionalisation of future agricultural policy.
The aim of the research sub-programme is to support the rational use of agricultural production area at various levels of management, taking into account natural, organisational, and economic conditions. Simultaneously, the sub-programme aims to develop the principles of organisation and functioning of agricultural holdings, enabling the implementation of sustainable development goals in various natural, economic and organisational conditions. The research work will be primarily aimed at identifying such a structure which will enable the effective use of the farm’s own resources and proper linking of plant and animal production.