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How spring wheat is grown: basic concepts and features of the culture

How spring wheat is grown: basic concepts and features of the culture

01 / 09 / 2021

Spring wheat is one of the main crops for spring sowing. Unlike its winter “relative”, this type of cereal goes through the entire growing season in 4–5 months, since it is harvested in July-August, depending on the climatic zone.

Content:

Introduction.
Biological characteristics and differences of culture.
Peculiarities of crop care.
The main pests.
Characteristic features of crop varieties.

Spring wheat is one of the main crops for spring sowing. Unlike its winter “relative”, this type of cereal goes through the entire growing season in 4–5 months, since it is harvested in July-August, depending on the climatic zone. Spring wheat is represented in a wide variety of species (more than 20), but mainly 2 are known - hard (T.durum) and soft (T.aestivum). We will understand the peculiarities of its cultivation, which will help to get a good harvest.

Biological characteristics and differences of culture

It is worth immediately identifying the differences with other wheat - winter. Spring radically differs from it in a number of properties:

ability to self-pollination;
weak root system, which makes nutrients poorly absorbed;
susceptibility to low t °. Seedlings that germinated at an air temperature in the range from 4 to 7 degrees are only able to withstand a drop to -10 for a short time;
susceptibility to weed suppression;
exactingness to soil moisture (not less than 65%);
vulnerability to drought.

Spring wheat grows best on neutral or slightly alkaline soils, it does not tolerate acidic soils.

The main characteristics include the tightness of the sowing time. Usually, field work begins after the snow melts and the soil warms up (this period is different in different areas). If you miss favorable terms, then the yield will seriously decrease. Because of this, there is no exact sowing period. Each climatic zone has its own. In addition, depending on the conditions of the region, varieties of different vegetation duration are used.

The seeding depth, rate and pattern also vary. These indicators are influenced by both the characteristics of the variety and the climatic conditions of the region. Basically, when sowing, 2 methods are used: cross or narrow-row. This method makes the cereal more resistant to lodging (which cannot be provided by ordinary continuous sowing technology). The embedding depth depends on the properties of the soil and the climate of the area. On black soil, provided there is sufficient moisture, it is necessary to plant seeds up to 3-4 cm. In arid regions - 6-8 cm.

Interesting: depending on which method is chosen (narrow-row or cross-row), as well as on the variety, the seeding rate can vary within 12-15%. This difference also affects the harvest. If the norm is higher, then 200-300 kg more grain can be harvested.

Another distinguishing feature from winter grains is smaller yields. The average indicator varies from 1.2 to 1.5 t / ha, but with the help of modern technologies it can be raised up to 3 tons, and even up to 5 tons in favorable regions.

The nuances of care

In addition to the features with respect to the timing, seeding rate and depth, it is also important to provide the crop with the correct agricultural technology. Among the mandatory measures:

protection of water in the ground;
treatment from pests and weeds;
measures to prevent lodging.

To ensure these measures, special agrotechnical operations are performed: rolling after sowing, pre-emergence harrowing (within 3-5 days from the moment of sowing) and post-emergence (in the phase of 3-4 leaves), the introduction of herbicides against perennial weeds and insecticides (against insects).

Major pests

Spring wheat is affected, depending on the characteristics of the variety, by various insects: swedish fly, aphid, caterpillar, leaf sawer, cereal miner, drunkards, thrips. To protect crops, they are treated with insecticides: "Fury", "Decis", etc.

If brown spots, powdery mildew or septoria begin to appear on the culture, then it is necessary to treat the fields with fungicides (protection against diseases). The choice of a particular agent and the dose depend on the nature of the lesion.ф

Characteristic features of crop varieties

The main indicator of grain density is the specific gravity of wheat. It is measured in special units - kg / hectoliter. It is the minimum indicator of the specific gravity that is the distinguishing feature of the competitiveness of a certain variety. The fact is that this characteristic is directly influenced by genetic properties. However, it happens that the specific gravity decreases due to a violation of the diet of crops (with an excess or deficit).

Despite the wide variety of species, all spring wheat is usually divided into hard and soft, as mentioned above. Usually in the conversation it is meant triticum aestivum, which accounts for up to 95% of the crops. Mainly soft spring wheat is used for flour production. Solid species are used to make cereals and pasta.

T.durum is hardly cultivated in our country due to its demanding climate. Hard spring wheat requires moderate temperatures and clean soils. For this reason, hard types of crops are grown in domestic fields to a greater extent, which are less demanding on soil and climatic conditions and diseases.