Winter rye is an extremely important fodder and food crop, which includes a large amount of protein (up to 15 percent) and carbon (up to 81 percent). In addition, its grain contains vitamins A, B, and E. Rye bread is baked from flour, which is superior to the wheat analog in biological value and caloric value. The main agricultural value of the crop, first of all, is that due to its rapid growth and high bushiness, it is able to effectively control weeds. Rye bran, grain and flour are also used as concentrated feed, which is in no way inferior to perennial herbs in quality. Among other things, winter rye is also used for technical purposes. More specifically, it can be processed into molasses, alcohol and starch, and cellulose and acetic acid can be made from straw.
The crop was formed from a weed that littered wheat crops. Its place of origin is considered to be Southeast Asia and the Caucasus. In Ukraine, winter rye first appeared around the first millennium BC, and the first mention of cultivation on Russian territory dates back to the ninth century. Now its cultivation is widespread not only in our country, but also in the USA and Western Europe. Despite this, in world terms, among all cereal crops, rye is in one of the last places. The area of its annual crops is about twenty million hectares. When growing rye on fertile soils and with the introduction of a sufficient amount of fertilizer, it gives good yields (up to 20 centners per hectare). Along with this, compared with wheat, this figure is about one and a half times less.
Now a few words about when to sow winter rye. This is done in the fall, when the average temperature is about fifteen degrees. In this case, the probability of its damage by parasites is noticeably reduced, and the culture itself is better rooted. Crops can withstand frost at 25 degrees. Germination in the soil begins to occur already at 2 degrees Celsius, and friendly seedlings form when the temperature is 10 degrees. Thanks to its well-developed root system, winter rye tolerates even spring droughts. Moreover, during its growth, the culture is not very demanding on humidity, therefore it develops well in prolonged heavy rains and in heat. She is not picky about the type of soil. Rye normally grows even on sandy and infertile soil. Compared to other crops, it better absorbs phosphorus and potassium directly from the earth.
The most widespread among us are tetraploid and diploid varieties of winter rye. The difference between them is the number of chromosomes that make up the somatic cells of the plant. The first of these varieties appeared relatively recently and has 28 chromosomes. As for the second, she has 14 chromosomes. Diploid varieties are more common. The most popular of them are such as Niva, Volya and Bohuslavka. In the tetraploid group, we note September, Pukhovchanka and Drevlyanskaya.