Department of Vegetable Crops

The experiment station surface area is 2.0 ha, and it consists of two areas. The smaller area (garden) beside open field production area, accommodates plastic greenhouses, and a barrack for the experiment station technical staff and manager, with practical work classroom for students and a shed for gardening equipment and tools. Three hydrants supply the irrigation water from the public water supply system. The larger area (the so called field) has no hydrant in the vicinity, so irrigation is not possible, which limits carrying out of trials. Beside two hot-air heated greenhouses (128 m2 and 96 m2), there is the third greenhouse (130 m2) with floor heating by hot water, which is shared with Department of Soil Amelioration. Other greenhouses are unheated with different surface areas (270 m2, 72 m2, 3 x 96 m2). Also, high tunnels (54 m2, 3 x 42 m2) are used for the research and and seed production.

Activities for vegetables, spices, aromatic and medicinal plants at the experiment station include:

• testing varieties and introducing new varieties of crops in production,
• introduction of new technologies and elements of technology in production,
• preparation of studies, investment programs, investigations and reviews,
• production of seeds in basic seed category and seedling production.

The Department has IMT 533 tractor with plough, rotavator and plastic mulch laying machine. The small machinery available at the station includes: digging machine, sprinklers, rotavator, mowing machine, organic mulch cutter, manual sowing machine, and drip irrigation systems. The practical work classroom is fitted with laboratory equipment, including scales, hygrometer, eteric oil distillation equipment, tenderometer, mobile pH/EC-meter, oxygen meter.

Teaching activities are performed for modules carried out by teachers of Department of Vegetable Crops. They includes practical work and exercises in classroom, garden and greenhouses. The cultivars of vegetables, herbs, aromatic and medicinal plants, are grown for practical work performed in the outdoor garden area and the greenhouses, while vegetables are grown for demonstration and carrying out of practical work in cultivation methods. Every year, about 10 to 15 trials for research needed for preparation of graduation theses are conducted at the experiment station.