Annual herb rape belongs to the cruciferous family, the genus Cabbage. A feature of this culture is that it does not have a single wild ancestor. Genetic scientists have found that rape is a natural hybrid of rape and garden cabbage. In the fields, this crop is usually grown to obtain oilseeds or as a siderate. The technology of cultivating rapeseed, like any other crop, of course, has some of its own characteristics.
Culture Description
Rapeseed is an annual with an upright stalk of a bluish-green color, divided into branches of several orders. The leaves of this plant are petiole single-row, and the inflorescences are racemose, loose, with yellow petals.
The rape fruit is a slightly bent narrow pod containing about 30 pcs. spherical dark small seeds separated by membranous partitions. The length of rapeseed pods can reach 12 cm.
The seeds of this crop are very small. 5 g of them can contain up to 1000 pieces. This plant propagates exclusively by the seed method.
The root of rape is rod-shaped. In adult plants, it branches strongly and gradually grows in the horizontal direction.
Biological features
The rape plant is tall. The length of its stem by the end of summer can be 1-2 m. The root system is also very well developed in this culture. In the soil in the vertical direction, it can grow to a depth of 40 cm.
Externally, rapeseed is very similar to other wild and cultivated plants of the Cabbage genus. However, he has one characteristic feature. On the stem of this plant, leaves of three varieties grow at once.
In any case, the technology of rapeseed cultivation is not much different from the method of growing most other cruciferous crops.
Inflorescences on rape blossom about 40 days after emergence. The ovaries of the pods on this plant are formed by the end of summer.
The origin of rapeseed
There is no wild ancestor in this culture. However, the technology of cultivating rapeseed in the fields has been known to people for a very long time. As scientists managed to find out, people began to grow this culture back in the 6th millennium BC. e.
Unfortunately, in ancient times, scientists have no consensus regarding the area of distribution of this plant. Some botanists believe that the first rape was once cultivated by the inhabitants of the Mediterranean countries. Other scientists believe that in ancient times this culture began to spread from England. According to researchers, approximately in the XVI century. rapeseed from Great Britain first came to Germany, and then to Poland and Ukraine.
In Russia, this plant began to be cultivated quite late. For the first time this culture was introduced into our country in the 19th century.
Economic value
Rape is used by humans quite widely. In the national economy, this culture is used, for example, for the manufacture of:
biofuels and industrial oils;
the basics of animal feed used in animal husbandry;
cosmetics and detergents;
edible vegetable oil.
Rapeseed is also highly regarded as a honey plant. The green mass of this plant in terms of the composition of substances useful for agricultural crops is comparable to manure. Therefore, this culture is often used as siderate.
Main varieties
Winter or spring rape is cultivated on farm fields. The first variety of this crop usually produces more abundant crops. It is believed that it is more profitable to cultivate winter rape than spring rape. But at the same time, this variety is also more demanding on growing conditions. For example, spring rape is more resistant to drought.
It is risky to grow winter rapeseed, including because, despite the winter hardiness, it can freeze during the cold season. This usually happens when, after early thaws, ice crusts form near the root necks of plants.
Growing conditions
Rapeseed refers to cold-resistant crops of a long day. This plant is cultivated mainly in countries of the temperate climatic zone. In arid regions, rape, unfortunately, does not show high yields. A favorable condition for its vegetation is high humidity.
Rapeseed is absolutely undemanding to the soil. However, it grows best on neutral or slightly acidic soils with a high or medium nutrient content. That is, they are very good for this culture:
Do not grow rapeseed on soils:
heavy in mechanical composition;
with a subsurface layer, poorly permeable to water;
peat;
lungs with insufficient thermal conductivity;
salt marshes;
sour without liming.
Cultivate this culture in Europe, Ukraine, Belarus. In Russia, this plant is grown in the Central regions, in the south and even in Siberia. The technology of cultivating spring and winter rapeseed in almost all regions of our country is the same.
Selection of Precursors for Rapeseed
It is believed that it is best to plant this plant in those fields where row crops have previously grown, under which a lot of organic fertilizers were applied. Very good predecessors for rapeseed are:
lupine and clover;
cereals and legumes;
silos.
It is not recommended to plant this plant after beets or any plants of the genus Cabbage. Before planting this crop, the field must be carefully aligned.
Growing Features
In short, rapeseed cultivation technology includes the following operations:
soil preparation for planting;
seed dressing;
planting seeds;
field treatment with herbicides;
watering if necessary;
processing fields from pests.
If this crop is cultivated for seeds, they are harvested after the pods ripen. Rapeseed grown as siderata is cut at a young age. Next, the green mass is embedded in the ground.
Spring rapeseed cultivation technology for seeds
In this case, nitrogen fertilizers are applied to the soil in the autumn for plowing, as well as in the spring directly during sowing. Phosphate top dressing on the field is usually improved in the winter. Spring rape for sowing oilseeds is usually sown in the immediate vicinity of livestock complexes. A feature of this plant is that it responds very well to organic fertilizers. Usually 80-100 tons of manure per hectare is brought under such rape.
Spring form is sown on oilseeds most often in the second decade of May. For example, according to the cultivation technology, in Belarus rapeseed should be planted no later than May 20. The seeds of this culture are pre-pickled with fungicides and insecticides. Place rapeseed planting material in the soil to a depth of 2-3 cm. Between the rows leave a clearance of 40 cm. The sowing rate is 5-7 kg of seeds per 1 ha. Fields with spring rape grown on seeds are treated with herbicides in most cases only before germination or immediately after.
Harvesting in the fields with this crop can be carried out directly and separately. The latter technique is used in clogged fields with uneven ripening of plants. The rapeseed is mowed into rolls in the yellow-green ripeness phase at a seed moisture content of 30-35%. In any case, it is impossible to overemphasize this culture on the field. Otherwise, you can lose up to half the crop. Rape is cut using mounted reapers. Direct harvesting of the spring form is carried out on clean (in terms of weeds) fields under good weather conditions.
Of course, spring rape cultivation technology also has a theoretical justification. Fedotov V. A, Sviridov A. K. and Fedotov S. V, for example, in their book “Agrotechnologies of Grains and Industrial Crops” exactly described the methods of cultivating this form of culture.
Growing winter rapeseed for seeds
In this case phosphorus fertilizers are applied under the main tillage. Nitrogen is used in spring at the very beginning of the growing season. Seeds of winter rape, as well as spring rape, must be processed.
In autumn, weeds on the field grow very quickly. In some cases, they can even inhibit young crops. Therefore, pre-emergence herbicides when growing winter forms must be used without fail.
Rapeseed of this variety is sown usually in the 1-2 days of August. In Belarus, the technology of cultivating winter rapeseed, for example, involves planting it on August 10-15. In any case, this procedure is usually carried out a month earlier than the planting of winter crops. A good rape crop can be provided only if it leaves under the snow with the following biometric indicators:
the number of developed leaves - 6-8 pcs.;
thickness of the root neck - 6-12 mm;
stem height - 3 cm;
root mass - at least 3 g;
the mass of the plant itself is 20-35 g.
According to technology, when cultivating rapeseed on oilseeds, it is important to ensure that plantings of this crop are quite dense. A field with this plant should be inspected in the spring immediately after the snow melts. If significant thinning is detected, it is supposed to finish the planting with a spring variety of rape.
Merits as a Siderat
When grown on seeds, rapeseed cultivation technology must be followed exactly. The same goes for planting this crop as a siderate. Thus, rapeseed is actually used very often in farms. The advantages of this culture as siderat are:
the ability to quickly build up a dense green mass;
the development of the root system, which ensures high-quality aeration of the soil;
the presence in the tissues of essential oils that can reduce the incidence of soil.
The green mass of this plant contains a lot of nitrogen. In this regard, rapeseed is second only to legumes.
Winter rapeseed cultivation technology as siderata
Thus, rapeseed is usually sown under different kinds of seedlings: peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, etc. The exception in this case is cabbage. Plant winter rape when used as green manure after harvesting the main crops. Usually this is 2-3 decades of August.
According to the technology of cultivating winter rape in Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine, the soil under the culture is previously loosened by a Fokin plane cutter or cultivator. Mineral and organic fertilizers are also added to the ground. Planting is carried out in this case at the rate of 150-200 grams of seeds per hundred square meters. Seeds are pretreated and mixed with sand. Planting material is deepened by 2-3 cm. The row spacing width is left at about 15 cm.
According to the established technologies, rape when cultivated as green manure is supposed to be cut with a cultivator about a month before planting the main crops. At the same time, the earth is dug up with the turning of the layers.
Growing spring form as a green manure
In this case, rapeseed is used as a precursor for winter crops. Sowing of the spring form when used as siderate is carried out from March to August. Such rapeseed grows in the fields before mowing, usually not for long. Cut it off during the flowering period. The technology of cultivating spring rapeseed as siderata, of course, involves, among other things, turning soil layers after cutting. In order for the green mass in the earth to quickly rot, the field after this is also supposed to be additionally watered.
Pests and control measures
According to rapeseed cultivation technology in Siberia, the Urals, in the Central regions, etc., this crop is sometimes supposed to be processed from insects. Landings of this annual with various kinds of pests are damaged, unfortunately, quite often. Spring rape can be particularly affected by insects. Quite often, this culture is damaged, for example, by pests such as:
Rapeseed flea cruciferous. This pest can affect all green parts of rapeseed. To combat this insect, plantings usually use insecticides made, for example, based on substances such as deltamethrin, dimethoate, and phenvalerate.
Rapeseed flower beetle. This insect eats unopened plant buds. They struggle with the flower beetle by spraying plantings with insecticides during budding.
Caterpillars of an onion moth. These pests damage the leaves of plants, and sometimes their stems. To combat this pest, deltamethrin or lambda-cygalotrin-based products are usually used.
Caterpillars of the cabbage moth. This insect usually damages rape leaves. In this case, it is recommended to use insecticides based on cypermethrin or gamma-cygolatrin to control the pest.
The best varieties of winter rape
Breeding work with this culture is, of course, quite serious. A variety of varieties of winter rape can be grown in the fields. Most of them are characterized by high productivity. But the most popular varieties of this crop among farmers are:
Atlant. This variety is great for growing in almost any region of Russia. Its advantages include high productivity and abundant branching.
"Frost". Rapeseed of this variety is usually grown in regions with a cold climate, for example, in Siberia and the Urals. In addition to frost resistance, its advantages include a high degree of resistance to disease and frost.
The most popular varieties of spring rape
Of this group, in the fields, such varieties are most often grown as:
"Salsa KL". This precocious hybrid is appreciated by agricultural workers primarily for its good resistance to lodging and shedding of seeds.
"VNIS 100". This relatively new variety is mainly suitable for cultivation in the forest-steppe zone. Its advantages include a high percentage of oil content in the seeds.
Is it possible to grow in the country
To obtain oilseeds, rapeseed is cultivated, of course, only in large farms. As a siderat, this culture is also grown in private suburban areas. The technology for the cultivation and harvesting of rapeseed in this case is used almost the same as in the fields.
About 200 g of seeds are used for sowing one hundred square meters in suburban areas. If there are animals or a bird on the farm, rapeseed can also be planted denser. You can sow this culture in the garden from early spring until late autumn - as needed.
For convenience, rapeseed when planting in a summer cottage is usually mixed with sand in a ratio of 1:50. Next, planting material is scattered over a dug out and pre-leveled area, sealed in the ground with a rake.
The seeds of this culture usually emerge 4-5 days after sowing. Subsequently, growing, rape occupies almost the entire area of the site. This siderat is mown in the garden, as in the fields, in the flowering phase. Green mass close up in the ground with a shovel.
Instead of a conclusion
Thus, we found out what a plant such as rape is. The cultivation technology, biological features, the significance of this crop for agriculture - all of this was examined by us in detail. This culture, as you can see, is undemanding and hardy.
Unfortunately, in Russia rapeseed is not grown too much. Recently, however, agricultural enterprises have begun to pay more attention to this crop. After all, the benefits of growing this plant (both on oilseeds and as green manure) can actually be obtained enormously. It is quite possible that in the near future rapeseed will still take its rightful place in the list of agricultural crops cultivated in Russia.