The effect of the PMM polymer-mineral additive on enhancing the filtration properties of the soil, increasing the drought resistance of plants, and increasing the yield of agricultural crops was investigated in post-forest brown, stony, calcareous, medium-thick soils of the foothill zone. The influence of the introduction of the "PMM" additive, both separately and together with fertilizers, on the dynamics of changes in moisture and dissolved nutrients in the soil layer, the amount of water evaporated from a unit of leaf area per unit of time was revealed. The experiments revealed that these agrotechnical practices help to create a favorable environment, rich in nutrients and moisture, in the upper horizon of arable land (0–15 cm), which is essential for increasing crop yields.

The article presents the results of the studies on the changes in the quantity, marketability and quality indicators of the potato crop under the influence of the application of organic mineral fertilizers and growth promoters in the post-forest brown soils of the Askeran region of the Artsakh Republic, in potato fields grown in arid conditions. Two-year research has revealed that although the one-time application of equivalent amounts of organic and mineral fertilizers equally affected the quantity, marketability and quality indicators of the potato crop, fractional or combined application of these fertilizers had a more beneficial effect on the specified indicators of potatoes than their one-time application. At the same time, the studies revealed that in the one-time and fractional applications of organomix and mineral fertilizers, as well as bio-liquid application variants, compared to the variant without fertilization, the content of nitrates increased by 45-115 mg/kg, but their amount in the potato crop is within the limits of marginal permissible density. (MPD) Due to the limitation and high cost of mineral fertilizers, fertilize the potato fields with organomix at the rate of 8 t/ha, 60% of which is in sowing and 40% with nutrition, first soak the potato planting material with a solution of bio-liquid (14 l/ha) 2-3 days before sowing and as a result, a potato crop of 350-360 c/ha will be ensured, with a high content of starch and ascorbic acid (vitamin C), which is proposed to be invested in agricultural production.

Analysis was done on the efficiency of moisture accumulation and counterflow action in tiered tillage. It was discovered that post-forest silty-gravel soils in the foothill, mid-mountain, and mountain zones of Artsakh, located at an altitude of 600-1300 m above sea level, where the average annual amount of precipitation varies between 490-600 mm, are light-brown, brown, and dark-brown in color. According to the findings of the study, the tiered method of basic soil cultivation by its moisture accumulation and the anti-erosion effectiveness is superior to the anti-erosion measures applied in the traditional ploughshare tillage system. In the case of tiered method of cultivation, water from atmospheric precipitation is well absorbed in deep cracks developed in the soil, it prevents surface and subsoil flow on slopes, and during freezing in winter and thawing in spring, it provides self-loosening of the soil. High yields are produced as a result of water retention and organic matter mulch on the soil surface, which reduce ineffective moisture loss and runoff.

In order to mitigate the devastating effects of drought on the pebbly dark brown soils of the foothill zone, where, according to the average annual data, 520-560 mm of precipitation falls, and the average annual temperature is 10.80°C, the agronomic and economic efficiency of the application of ameliorative and full (NPK) fertilizers regulating the water regime of the soil has been tested in the sowing of autumn triticale. Through experimental research, the positive effect of polymer-mineral additive and fertilizers on the hydro-physical properties of the soil and drought resistance of plants was revealed, as a result of which the water regime of plants was improved, and the grain yield of autumn triticale, compared with the tester, increased by 66.7%.