CAPITALIZING ON THE PEDOCLIMATIC RESOURCES IN THE SOUTHERN AREA OF OLTENIA THROUGH THE SUNFLOWER CULTURE

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to monitor the biological potential of sunflower cultivation to capitalize on the pedoclimatic conditions in the sandy soil area of southern Oltenia. The results obtained during 2024-2025 showed that sunflowers capitalized on the microclimate in this area, carrying out all the physiological processes of plant growth and development over a period of about 108,9 days, under conditions in which the air recorded a total thermal resource of 2491°C. Positive correlations were highlighted between the soil humus content and the morphological characteristics of the plant, namely, plant height and leaf area index. The seed production obtained from sunflowers varied within the limits of 3281-4326.5 kg, with a thousand-seed weight of 55.8-66.7 g and a hectoliter weight of about 28.7-34.05 kg/hl. The 0.23% increase in soil humus content led to statistically significant differences in seed production and seed quality indices (thousand-seed weight and oil).