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Involvement of students in applied research in agriculture

May 3, 2023
By: Gerd Alscher

The agency of the Latvian University of Biosciences and Technologies “Malnava College of the Latvian University of Biosciences and Technologies” continues the tradition of involving students in applied research projects. In recent years, the college has been involved in several research projects in the field of agriculture, related to innovative solutions in the treatment and processing of industrial hemp, the cultivation of grasses for fodder production, strawberry cultivation technologies using substrate heating in high tunnels, etc. In the 2022/2023 academic year new projects have been started in the field of applied research.

In 2022, the assessment of the economic characteristics of plant varieties (SĪN) has been started at the LBTU Malnava College. The college cooperates with customers who want to perform economic evaluation of plant varieties in the Latgale region. Sowings of different cereal varieties are established according to the methodology monitored by the Laboratory for the Evaluation of Economic Properties of Plant Varieties of the Latvian University of Biosciences and Technologies. Involvement in the evaluation of the economic properties of plant varieties is useful not only for applied research, but also for practical training of students on breeding technologies.

LBTU Malnava College annually announces a grant competition for academic staff and student research projects, within the framework of which applied research projects are implemented in the areas of strategic specialization of the college. Thus, in 2022, the project “Comparison of the composition of silage obtained from sown grass and natural meadow grass at ZS “Bērzi” and ZS “Laimītes” was supported in the project competition. In this project, students and lecturers of the study program “Entrepreneurship in agriculture” studied the silage composition of sown grasses and natural meadow grass, analyzed the results of fodder investigations, as well as prepared proposals and developed feed rations for improving the quality of feeding in livestock farms.

In 2023, the implementation of the research project “The influence of growing conditions on ornamental plants” was started in cooperation with Rēzekne preschool educational institution “Rūķitis”, in which students and lecturers of the study program “Crop production” were involved. As part of the project, it is planned to conduct an experiment and integrate the idea of an urban garden into the greening of the territory. On the other hand, the research part of the project will study the influence of various factors on the growth processes of ornamental plants.

Applied research at Malnava College of LBTU takes place as a development-oriented innovation, which will contribute to the establishment of the Latgale Center for Bioeconomics and Smart Agricultural Technologies on the basis of LBTU Malnava College in the nearest future. The involvement of students in the implementation of various projects contributes to the transfer of theoretical knowledge into practical research.

Agency of the Latvian University of Biosciences and Technologies “Malnava College of the Latvian University of Biosciences and Technologies” is the leading professional educational institution in Eastern Latvia in the agricultural and road transport sectors. The college combines more than 100 years of experience and traditions in the field of education, professional teaching staff, material and technical base and technologies that meet the requirements of the industry to prepare knowledgeable and skilled specialists in the agricultural and road transport industry. LBTU Malnava College implements short-cycle professional higher education study programs, vocational secundary education, continuing education, non-formal education programs, as well as assessment of non-formal education qualifications.

Karīne Laganovska
Deputy Director of Studies and Research
E-mail:karine.laganovska@malnavaskoledza.lv

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