Abstract. The authors presented the results of research and development, on the basis of which a new device was created that facilitates the restoration of degraded mountain pastures after unsystematic use with excessive grass grazing. The purpose of the study is to develop a new method of improvement and a prototype of attachments that will allow the seeding of perennial grasses in sparse grass and bare areas of the soil, which will increase stiffness. The object of the study are the working bodies: sowing devices, the original design, scatter cones, net runners. The novelty of the technical solution lies in the fact that the authors of the article developed a new resource-saving method for improving mountain fodder land using a modernized seeder equipped with removable working bodies for automatic, targeted seed sowing, sowing seeds only in degraded and bare areas, skipping areas with normal grass stand. The tests were carried out at a mountain hospital, located on the southeastern exposition of the Dargavsky depression of the North Ossetia-Alania, at an altitude of 1650 m above sea level with a slope of 10°, in six plots, with a recorded area of 360 m2 two options in triplicate. The first option is natural seeding, and the second is the seeding of grasses by the aggregate. The plots are located across the slope randomized. It was found that at a concentration of 17.2 MJ of energy in 1 kg of dry matter of feed, the total collection in the control plot was 29.7 GJ, and in the seeded experimental field – 85.3 GJ. It was revealed that changes in the grass stand influenced the accumulation of biomass of phytocenosis. So, the crop of the aboveground fodder mass, when sowing grasses, in the first year of observations was 18.2 c/ha of dry weight, which is 5 times higher than in the control. During the growing season of the third year of observations, the yield in the sown area was 59.1 c/ha of dry weight against 17.3 c/ha in the control.

Abstract. The article presents the results of R&D and new units for the restoration of degraded mountain areas. The purpose of the study is the accelerated restoration of the natural phytocenosis and the implementation of measures to improve meadows using these aggregates. The object of the study is the technologies and units developed by the authors for the following operations: cutting bumps, raking stones, sowing grass mixtures with the simultaneous application of mineral fertilizers. The research objectives included: determining the initial floristic composition of a degraded mountain meadow; assessment of the impact of events and agricultural practices on the change in the floristic composition of the grass stand, its productivity and energy intensity; identification of the effectiveness of the application of the developed units when sowing herbs in turf and targeted application of mineral fertilizers. The novelty of the technical solution lies in the fact that new resource-saving methods have been developed to improve mountain fodder land using small-sized universal units. . The tests were carried out at a mountain hospital located on the southeastern exposition of the Dargavskiy depression of the North Ossetia-Alania, at an altitude of 1650 m above sea level with a slope of 10°, in six plots, with a recorded area of 360 m2. Three options in triplicate. The first option is natural seeding, and the second is grass seeding by the aggregate, the third option is grass seeding and low doses of N60P45K20 fertilizers. The plots are located across the slope randomized. It was found that at a concentration of 17.2 MJ of energy in 1 kg of dry matter of feed, the total collection in the control plot was 29.7 GJ, and in the seeded experimental field – 85.3 GJ; the crop of the aboveground fodder mass, when sowing grasses, in the first year of observations amounted to 21.8 c/ha of dry weight, which is 3 times higher than in the control. During the growing season of the third year of observations, the yield in the sown area was 39.2 c/ha of dry weight against 19.3 c/ha in the control.

Abstract. The authors present the technology and descriptions of aggregates for hay harvesting on mountain slopes. The aim of the study is to reduce the loss of green mass when harvesting hay with the use of mountain modification aggregates, to improve the safety of hay with the use of a preservative (table salt). The object of the study is a complex of hay harvesters, aggregated with low-clearance tractors, designed to work on sloping areas with a slope of up to 16°. The tasks of the research included: to select a set of hay harvesters, to study and use their technical capabilities, which allow optimizing the harvesting time, ensuring the lowest losses of the harvested feed, increasing its quality and safety for the winter-stable period of keeping animals. The novelty of the technical solution is that the selected haymaking machines allow you to reduce the time of haymaking operations in mountainous areas and reduce the cost of manual labor. Tests of this technology were carried out in the mountain zone of the RSO – Alania (Dargavs basin, the stronghold of the SKNIIGPSH) at an altitude of 1540 m above sea level in the south-eastern exposure with a slope steepness of up to 150. Results. It was found that the content of pressed hay increased-feed units by 32.1 %; dry matter by 29.6 %; crude protein by 17.3 %; fat by 7.4 %; fiber by 14.2 %; sugar by 17.6 %; metabolic energy by 8.0 %. The developed technology allows more than 1.2 times to reduce mechanical losses, provides an increase in productivity compared to manual harvesting in 4–5 times, reducing the time cleaning 3 times at the same time increase the nutritive value of forage mass, increases palatability harvested forage 18.5 %, which positively affects the physiological condition of the animals during the winter housing period, increasing milk yield is 11.7 %.

Abstract. The authors presented the results of research and development, on the basis of which a new resource-saving method and unit for raking and recycling stones from the slopes of meadows and pastures with an exposure slope of up to 12° was designed and created in order to improve, reduce erosion processes and increase the productivity of mountain slope areas. The purpose of the research is to develop a new method of improvement and a prototype of a mounted stone harvesting unit for slope natural forage lands with the utilization of small and medium-sized stones in simultaneously cut channels. The object of research is the working bodies for raking stones with a diameter of more than 50 mm (comb) and a special plow that cuts channels for their subsequent disposal. The novelty of the technical solution is that for the first time the small-sized chisel cultivator KPG-2, 4 is equipped with new working bodies for removing stones from slope meadows and pastures. The developed unit carries out Shuttle movement, starting from the top of the meadow part of the slope, corrals across the slope, raking stones with a comb, and, as necessary, disposing of them in the channel, simultaneously cut with the help of a single-body plow. The unit was tested in a hospital on the southern slope of the Dargava basin of the RSO-Alania (left Bank of the Gizeldon river) at an altitude of 1650 m below sea level, with a slope of 10°. The use of the developed unit allows enriching the soil with organic nutrients that stimulate the increase in the productivity of forage lands, reduce erosion and other degradation processes of the soil cover, create favorable conditions for the use of mechanization tools in meadows and pastures increase the environmental and economic significance of natural forage lands.

Abstract. The authors presented the results of scientific research and experimental development, on the basis of which a prototype was designed and created for applying liquid fertilizers to the grass and the soil surface of mountain meadows and pastures in order to improve them, reduce erosion processes and increase productivity. The aim of the work: to develop and create a combined multifunctional unit for the application of liquid fertilizers on mountain meadows and pastures, providing an increase in the productivity of agricultural landscapes and profitability of agricultural production by 15–20 %. The object of the study are fertilizer application rates and interchangeable working parts: a container for liquid mineral fertilizers, a collector of sprayers, tips. The novelty of the technical solution lies in the fact that a combined multifunctional unit based on a chisel cultivator ССМ-2,4 was created for the first time. The research of the unit was carried out on the basis of the workshop of the mechanization group of the North Caucasus Research Institute of Mining and Piedmont Agriculture (NCRIMPAC) and at the high-altitude experimental site in the village of Dargavs Prigorodny district of North Ossetia-Alania. When creating a prototype of a unit for applying liquid fertilizers, the developments of the authors are used and combined, which are confirmed by the issuance of patents for useful model of the Russian Federation No. 144420 and No. 130781. As a result of the application of the developed prototype of the unit, the erosion processes are reduced, the productivity and profitability of the sloping lands increases, and the botanical composition of the herbs is improved. It was established that the design and functionality of the proposed unit also allow it to be used in the mountain zone in nursery farms and on tilled crops with simultaneous application of liquid fertilizers in the forest zone. The use of a prototype unit will reduce erosion and other types of degradation of the fertile soil in the mountains, solve the problem of surface improvement of hayfields and pastures and, as a result, increase the productivity of forage lands by 15–20 %.