Demands for Modern Cropping Systems

The article introduces the development of crop farming since the beginning of the Virgin Lands Campaign in the Kulunda Steppe. For this purpose, it describes the significant stages and their influence on the land use, explains the different cropping systems and outlines the consequences of intensive land use. Afterwards, the current limiting factors are classified according to natural and anthropogenic origin, then analysed and assessed. The final part of the article articulates the requirements for a modern farming system to provide a framework of evaluation for the topics and methodology of the examinations which are presented in the following articles.