Everything about growing spring wheat: cultivation technology from sowing to harvesting

Wheat is one of the most important agricultural grain crops. It is used to make bread, confectionery, pasta and many other products. Production waste is used as feed. The culture is an early one, tolerates frost well, and is resistant to lodging. We will talk about the features of cultivating spring wheat in the article.

What is spring wheat

Spring - wheat, sown for grain in spring. It goes through the entire vegetation cycle in the warm season and produces a bountiful harvest by autumn. In the Russian Federation, spring wheat is grown almost everywhere, including areas of risky farming.

Characteristics and biological features

The growing season of spring wheat ranges from 70 to 120 days. It is not afraid of frost, germinates already at +1...+2°C, seedlings appear at +4...+6°C. At the same time, the slow rate of germination allows it to easily tolerate low temperatures.

The transition to the tillering phase begins when the temperature reaches +10…+12°C. Ripening and milk ripeness require an increase in temperature to +20...+25°C. Wheat does not tolerate too high temperatures (more than +35°C).

Not all soils are suitable for culture. Spring wheat grows well on sod-podzolic, sod-carbonate, and loamy soils. In this case, the humidity of the arable layer should be at least 70%.

Important! For full development, booting and heading, wheat needs good lighting during the day. Spring crop refers to self-pollinating plants.

Spring wheat yield

On fertile soils with moderate moisture, the average yield in the Russian Federation is 30-35 c/ha. Application of modern cultivation technologies, timely protection from pests and diseases, application fertilizers increase this figure to 50 c/ha.

Cultivation technology

A set of agrotechnical methods and techniques when growing spring wheat must be carried out consistently. Planting and harvesting are carried out as quickly as possible. If sowing is extended over time, difficulties will arise with harvesting. If the crop is not harvested within 5-10 days, a significant part of the grain will die on the vine.

The main stages include:

• preparation of soil and planting material;
• sowing in compliance with the rules of circulation;
• fertilization;
• protection from pests and diseases;
• crop care;
• cleaning;
• drying and storage.

In preparation for sowing, a weekly schedule of technological operations is drawn up, which is adjusted as weather conditions change.

Predecessors of spring wheat in crop rotation

The culture develops well after one- and perennial leguminous grasses, row crops and leguminous plants, except sunflower. Potatoes, flax, buckwheat, melons, fodder and sugar beets, as well as busy fallows are considered the best predecessors. In some cases, spring wheat is sown after winter wheat as an insurance crop. However, this can lead to an accumulation of pests and diseases.

Wheat cannot be placed on uncultivated lands: the weakness of the root system will not allow it to develop normally and the plant will be crowded out by weeds.Cereals (except corn) are also bad predecessors, since they have common diseases and deprive wheat of the nutrients necessary for grain ripening.

The most favorable growing conditions

Spring wheat does not tolerate hot climates and low humidity. Therefore, in our country, arable lands in the Volga region, the Urals, Siberia, and the Non-Black Earth Region are occupied by it. The presence of constant strong winds also adversely affects crop cultivation.

Spring wheat needs a sufficient number of sunny days, especially during the heading and ripening period. The southern regions of the Russian Federation cultivate winter wheat varieties more, since spring wheat here may not withstand high temperatures. temperatures. In the foothill regions of the North Caucasus, spring wheat shows good yield results.

The soil must be prepared for sowing in advance. Autumn plowing is extremely important. After harvesting the predecessor, the soil is peeled to a depth of 6-8 cm; after 15-20 days, re-processing is carried out. In early spring, the plowed land is harrowed, and before sowing it is cultivated to a depth of 5-6 cm.

Spring wheat seeds

For sowing, calibrated seeds free of impurities are selected. They are taken from high-yield areas. Before sowing, the planting material is treated. To destroy dry smut - by a dry method, dusty - by a thermochemical method.

The last stage of preparation is inlaying (coating with a mixture of microelements, growth stimulants and disinfectants), which will prevent the appearance of root rot, the development of smut and molding of seeds.

Sowing wheat

Spring wheat is one of the first crops sown in spring. As soon as the soil warms up to +5...+6°C, sowing work begins.Thanks to early sowing, wheat germinates quickly and has time to take root well before weeds awaken.

Spring wheat is sown in narrow rows using machinery. Planting depth is 4-5 cm. If the grain is deeper, it will be difficult for seedlings to break through to the surface. To awaken, wheat needs a strong bed and high soil moisture.

When to sow in spring

On every farm, sowing dates shift annually in one direction or another. This depends on the actual onset of spring, snow melting and soil warming to optimal temperatures.

Important! Seed sowing rate for solid varieties – 5-6 million grains per 1 ha, for soft grains – 4-5 million. Using modern technology, these figures can be reduced by 2-3 times.

The practice of ultra-early sowing

The experience of farmers after the cold spring of 1986 and high yields of spring wheat aroused interest in early sowing technology. Ultra-early planting dates protect wheat from May droughts, damage by grain flies and flea beetles. Rust is also less common on spring wheat when sowing is critically early.

Important! When deciding on extra-early sowing, you should take into account the typical weather conditions of the region. If there is a threat of severe frosts after the emergence of seedlings, there is a risk of their complete death.

Sowing technology

Recently, farms have not used the cross method so as not to compact the soil, not to waste fuels and lubricants (fuels and lubricants) and not to delay sowing time.

Most agricultural enterprises have adopted a narrow-row method, which allows the wheat to grow evenly and receive enough nutrition and sunlight. This method makes further care and harvesting easier.

After sowing is completed, the field is rolled with ring rollers to improve seed-soil contact and accelerate the emergence of seedlings.

Care of spring wheat crops

3-5 days after sowing, the soil is harrowed to remove crusts and thread-like seedlings of weeds. In case of severe infestation, the procedure is again carried out in the phase of 2-3 wheat leaves. But it is better to avoid this, since repeated harrowing leads to rapid drying of the soil, as a result of which the cereal will not be able to form nodal roots. During the tillering phase, the soil is harrowed with a rotary hoe.

The main weed in spring wheat fields is wild oats. To combat it, triallate (Avadex) is used, which is applied during the pre-sowing soil preparation period. During the growing season, amine salt, illoxan and Dialene are used to kill weeds.

To protect wheat from diseases (powdery mildew, rust, rot) in the booting and heading phases, plants are treated with Fundazol. To destroy pests, Decis, Volaton and Tsimbush are used.

As soon as spring wheat begins to emerge, the crops are treated with the drug “Tur”. This will protect the crops from lodging. It is permissible to use herbicides and insecticides at the same time, if necessary.

Intensive technology for cultivating spring wheat

The use of the latest methods of soil preparation and cultivation, the maximum use of mechanized labor, the combination of advanced plant protection products and effective fertilizers is only a small part of what intensive technology includes.

During the planning period of sown areas, agronomists take soil samples, examine it, and draw up a field passport. In accordance with this document, a preparation plan for sowing is prepared, which includes:

• composition and timing of fertilizer application;
• requirements for plowing depth and other stages of soil cultivation;
• selection of seed material;
• anti-erosion measures;
• protection from pests and diseases at all stages of cultivation;
• planting and harvesting methods.

Thanks to this approach, the farm not only saves material and technical resources, but also increases productivity to 55-60 c/ha.

Features of growth and development of spring wheat

The growing season of a crop includes the following phases: germination, emergence, tillering, booting, panicle formation, flowering, ripening. Depending on the phase, the preferences of the crop change - from high humidity in the first and second, to minimal humidity in the last.

Approximate timing of the phases:

• germination – 5-7 days;
• emergence of seedlings – 15-20 days;
• tillering begins when 3-4 leaves appear and ends in the phase of 8-9 leaves - by this time 11-25 days have passed;
• entering the tube signifies emergence, development and growth ears of corn – this process lasts about a month;
• heading - 2 months after germination, the ear emerges from the sheath of the top leaf, the period lasts about 10 days;
• flowering lasts no more than a week;
• ripening – 1-1.5 months.

Attention to the transition from one phase to the next allows for efficient methods of tillage and fertilization of wheat fields.

Seed ripening

Spring wheat grain goes through three stages of ripening:

• milk ripeness – 1-2 weeks;
• wax – 1 week;
• full – 12-16 days.

Yield statistics

In our country, slightly less spring wheat is grown than winter wheat. About 13 thousand hectares of arable land are occupied by crops. At the same time, the area under crops has been continuously growing over the past 30 years (since 1990).

The leader in wheat yield in the Russian Federation is the Krasnodar Territory - an average of 55-60 c/ha is harvested here. In second place is the Oryol region with 40-45 c/ha. Third place is shared by the Stavropol Territory and the Rostov Region, where wheat yields range from 35-39 c/ha.

Conclusion

Spring wheat in our country is cultivated by farms in a wide range of climatic zones. This crop is an early crop, tolerates frost well, ripens during the short warm summer and produces generous harvests.

Cultivation technology is based on the requirements for proper preparation of planting material, tillage, application of fertilizers and protection of plants from pests and diseases. Productivity in our country is close to record levels. Many farms show results above the world average, while the quality of Russian grain is in many ways superior to similar foreign varieties.