About 35% of all grain crops in the world are wheat. In procurements, its share is more than 53%. Moreover, Russia is one of the main suppliers of such grain to the world market.
Two varieties of this crop can grow in the fields: winter and spring. The latter type of wheat is the main food grain crop in our country. This agricultural product is mainly used for baking bakery products and alcohol production. Of course, all the appropriate technologies for the cultivation of spring wheat must be followed exactly. Otherwise, it will not work to grow a good crop of this crop.
A bit of history
According to an ancient legend, the goddess Demeter taught people to grow wheat. Once upon a time, hard times came for all peoples on earth. Beasts almost disappeared in the forests, and fish in the rivers. People did not know what to do, and already began to despair. And then Demeter came down from the sky, took a spear from the hands of one of the soldiers and drew a furrow on the ground. Then the goddess pulled several spikelets from a wreath on her head and scattered grains along the furrow. Soon a wheat field rose at this place and hunger receded.
Of course, wheat as a gift from Demeter is nothing more than a beautiful fairy tale. But how did a person actually learn to grow this culture? According to many scientists, the ancestral home of this cereal is Western Asia, Transcaucasia and the adjacent areas of Iran and Central Asia.
It is known for certain that wheat was known to the peoples of Europe, Asia and North Africa back in the Neolithic era. In the 4th millennium BC, this cereal was cultivated in Egypt, China, Mezhdurechye and on the territory of modern Switzerland. Wheat was once the main cereal in Persia. In Ancient Greece, during the Olympic Games, athletes ate exclusively bread from wholemeal flour.
How spring wheat differs from winter wheat
In ancient times, this culture was grown, of course, in the simplest way. Today, the development and implementation of technologies for the cultivation of spring wheat, as well as winter wheat, are carried out by highly qualified specialists. But, of course, scientists are adopting a thousand-year experience in growing grain.
Both varieties of wheat - both spring and winter - are quite widespread in Russia. Such varieties differ mainly only in terms of vegetation. For the winter variety, it is approximately 280 days. Spring wheat cultivation technology allows you to get a crop already 100 days after planting. That is, the growing season in such varieties is three times shorter than in winter crops.
Spring wheat is planted in the spring, and the crop is harvested at the end of the warm season. Winter varieties are planted in autumn. In this case, the seedlings of the grain go under the snow. Spring wheat, in comparison with winter, gives smaller yields. However, cultivating it in the fields is easier.
Where they plant
In order to get a good spring wheat crop, crop rotation must first be observed. Otherwise, the inputs of the previous culture and weeds will clog its planting, which will lead to a slowdown in its development. Legumes and corn are believed to be the best precursors for spring wheat. Also, this crop is often planted in the fields after:
potatoes;
sugar and fodder beets;
melons;
buckwheat;
flax.
Several crop rotation options can be used in fields with spring wheat. For example, the rotation in plantings by years may be as follows:
Durum wheat is usually grown after perennial grasses, pure steam or deposits. If winter varieties are involved in crop rotation:
This technology of cultivating spring wheat allows you to do additional mowing, followed by digging the earth to a depth of 8-10 cm, and then 30-32 cm. Using this technique, the structure of the soil improves, air and moisture exchange in it, and, as a result, the yield of spring wheat.
In some cases, varieties of this variety are planted on the field and immediately after winter crops. However, such technology is used only in the most extreme cases. Such a crop rotation, unfortunately, can lead to the accumulation of wheat pests and various pathogens in the fields.
Spring wheat cultivation technology briefly
The process of growing this popular culture in Russia usually includes the following steps:
That is, growing wheat is a rather laborious affair and requires the availability of certain knowledge and skills.
Soil preparation
Nowadays, in the fields the most often used, of course, is the intensive technology of spring wheat cultivation. You can get a good crop of such varieties only on previously carefully cultivated soil. The operations before planting spring wheat in the fields are as follows:
after the predecessor, in the autumn they shelter the ground with disk plows in two directions to a depth of 6-8 cm;
after the growth of weeds, that is, after about 2-3 weeks, re-treatment is carried out by 8-10 cm;
after fertilizing, the soil is loosened to a depth of 20-22 cm, usually using plows PLN-5-35 or PN-4-40.
In the early spring after the onset of the period of physical ripeness of the soil, the fields allotted for spring wheat carry out harrowing of the winter fallow. Immediately before sowing, the earth is additionally cultivated to the depth of seed placement.
Fertilizer application
According to the technology of growing spring wheat, to obtain good yields in the fields, it is necessary to use mineral fertilizers. Sometimes soil properties can also be improved with lime. Fertilizers for this crop are selected taking into account the fact that in order to obtain 1 centner of grain along with straw in the fields, the following should be applied:
The above figures can be considered conditional. In each region, the rate of fertilizer applied to plants should be adjusted depending on the composition of the soil, predecessor, etc. The technology of spring wheat cultivation in Northern Kazakhstan in this regard, for example, may differ from the cultivation methods in the central regions of Russia, Ukraine, etc.
Fertilize the field using such top dressing in the fall before plowing. In the spring, just before wheat is planted, usually granular superphosphate is introduced into the soil.
During the growth and development of this crop, the land in the fields is additionally fertilized with nitrogen compounds. At the same time, they are usually introduced in three stages:
The general norm of nitrogen fertilizers used during the growing season is in most cases 60 kg / ha. Exceed its experts do not recommend. Otherwise, the wheat will begin to develop too intensively, which will lead to depletion of moisture reserves in the soil. The introduction of an excessive amount of nitrogenous fertilizers can also be harmful in the sense that because of this, plants become more susceptible to various kinds of diseases.
Seed preparation
Spring wheat varieties can be soft or hard. They differ not only in grain properties, but also in terms of cultivation in relation to climate. Hard varieties are most often cultivated in the steppe zone, and soft varieties are cultivated in more humid areas, for example, in the south of Siberia in the Kemerovo region. The technology of cultivating spring wheat, however, is used almost the same in both cases. In order to get a good harvest of spring wheat, its planting material, among other things, is supposed to be pickled. This procedure is performed on farms usually 15-30 days before sowing. This allows you to achieve the greatest effect from the use of pesticides. Pickling in a couple of weeks or a month also reduces tension during sowing.
Used for processing planting material of spring wheat can, for example, such means as:
"Premis";
Vitavax
Vial TT, etc.
The seeds of this culture are treated, of course, in a mechanized way. For example, PS-10 machines can be used for this purpose. Etching is carried out with moistening of the planting material with water. In this proportion, 10 liters per 1 ton of seeds are used. In order for the pesticide to adhere better to the grains, the sodium salt of carboxymethyl cellulose is additionally used. This product forms a film and attaches well to the seeds.
When they sow
The technologies for cultivating spring wheat in Belarus, for example, are not much different from the methods of growing it in Russia, Ukraine or Kazakhstan. The difference in this case lies mainly in the need to improve the soil of unequal composition and, of course, the timing of planting. To a decrease in temperature, this culture is considered stable. But nevertheless, in the warm regions of the planet spring wheat is sown earlier, in the cold - later.
It is necessary to lay the seeds of this culture in the soil containing a lot of moisture for their germination. Also, according to technology, when growing spring wheat, the sowing dates are chosen taking into account:
In the middle zone, mid -ripe spring wheat varieties are usually planted on May 15–25, and medium late varieties are planted on May 15–20.
Seeding rate
Plantings of spring wheat, of course, should not be too thickened. Otherwise, the crop will sharply reduce its productivity. Grain shortage in the fall will be with too rare wheat planting. So that the plants subsequently make full use of soil moisture, the seeds should be distributed throughout the field, among other things, evenly.
Seeding rates for different climatic zones may be different. The technology of cultivating spring wheat in the Republic of Bashkortostan, for example, in this regard may differ from the cultivation methods in other regions of Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, etc. For example, in the middle zone of the Russian Federation this crop is usually planted at the rate of 2-2.5 million seeds per 1 ha.
How exactly is sown
There are several technologies for cultivating spring wheat in the fields. Sowing this culture can be carried out, for example, by different methods. But the most common ways to plant this crop are:
The second technology allows you to distribute the seeds in the soil as evenly as possible. However, it is still used less frequently than tape. The fact is that when you use it, you have to sow the field twice. And this, of course, leads to additional costs.
For planting spring wheat by the tape method, for example, such machines as SZS-2.1L can be used. Such seeders are equipped, among other things, with dividers in the sub-blade space.
Of course, when sowing seeds of spring wheat, no matter what technology is used for this, the depth of laying the seeds should be observed. Planting material of this culture is sealed up in a compacted and moist bed. The seeds of this culture are sown to a depth of usually 5-8 cm. This ensures rapid germination. When planting, among other things, you need to make sure that all seeds are planted to a lonely depth. In this case, the seedlings subsequently rise together.
How to care for crops
Thanks to the introduction of spring wheat cultivation technologies developed by modern scientists, significant yields of this crop can be obtained. But in any case, when growing such varieties in the fields, you have to fight:
with weeds;
with pests;
with diseases.
Weed control
Root sprouting and rhizome weeds cause the greatest harm to wheat during cultivation. It can be, for example:
field bindweed;
field boot;
sow thistle field.
Of annual plants, this culture harms everyone more:
bristle green;
wild oats;
chicken millet.
It is necessary to deal with all these weeds during the growing season when growing spring wheat. Otherwise, if their quantity is not too large, crop losses can amount to 5-7%. With significant weediness, this figure often grows to 30%.
Weed control in fields with spring wheat can be carried out both mechanically and chemically. In the farms during the warm season, among other things, they draw up special cards, highlighting three degrees of contamination: weak, medium and strong.
Some types of weeds, such as, for example, wild oats, are destroyed by harrowing in two tracks. Also, to control unnecessary plants in the fields, of course, herbicides can be used.
Pest control
Various kinds of insects cause spring wheat, usually not as much damage as diseases. However, pest control on plantings of this culture is definitely necessary. Most often, spring wheat is affected by such types of insects as wireworms, pseudowires, bread beetles, Swedish flies, bugs, turtles, Hessian flies, and drunks.
Fight pests on landings using pesticides both by ground and by air. You can also reduce the number of pests in the fields through spring and summer cultivation.
Disease control
When cultivating spring wheat, agricultural enterprises, of course, have to deal with all kinds of its diseases. This culture can be damaged by fungi and microorganisms at all stages of its development. Scientists know more than 40 diseases of this culture. The most common ones are:
dusty smut;
solid smut;
root rot;
brown rust;
ergot.
In order not to lose crops due to diseases, farms try to sow spring wheat varieties resistant to them. Also, to prevent infection of the fields, planting material is carefully selected. Actually, the fight against wheat diseases itself consists primarily in chemical processing. Most often, various kinds of fungicides are used to process the fields.
Harvesting
Thus, the above article briefly presented the technology of cultivating spring wheat. But to grow a large crop of this culture, of course, is still not enough. It is also necessary to collect it without loss. There are only two modern methods of harvesting spring wheat:
separated;
direct combining.
The choice of a specific technology depends primarily on the state of crops. The first technique is usually used in fields littered with grass, the second - in all other cases. Using any technology, harvesting at farms begins at the time when the grain reaches the phase of wax maturity.
New technologies for the cultivation of spring wheat in the world
Currently, scientists have developed many modern methods of intensive cultivation of wheat. In most cases, they are based on the use of new effective fertilizers and sowing technologies. Original innovative technologies for growing this crop are being developed today. For example, specialists from the University of Sydney have come up with a method of accelerated wheat production, which allows you to get up to three crops of this crop per year. True, their technique is suitable mainly only to accelerate breeding work with wheat, including spring varieties.
Scientists have proposed to cultivate this culture in closed ground using energy-saving LED lamps for lighting. Specialists have long experimented with the parameters of such equipment and the microclimate in the greenhouses themselves. As a result, they developed an innovative spring wheat cultivation technology that made it possible to get the crop 8 weeks after planting.