Skip to content

Winter rye for grain

Winter rye is the most widespread grain crop in our country. Every year about 1 million hectares of fields are allocated specifically for this crop in our country. Methods of winter rye treatment should be followed as accurately as possible, because only in this way you can achieve a good yield of this crop.
grain

Uses
The main consumer of winter rye grain is traditionally the food industry. Rye grain is most often used for baking bakery products. Also from the grain of this plant is produced starch and, of course, rye flour, which is used in the household for baking.

Biological features
This valuable crop can be grown in many regions on our planet. The largest rye yields are harvested in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus and the Russian Federation. Methods of winter rye treatment in all these regions are very similar and have been developed taking into account all biological features of this crop.
Rye is an unpretentious and low-demanding plant. The main advantage of rye is its resistance to low temperatures. Even during such winters, when there is no snow at all, rye can tolerate frosts up to -25 ยฐ C. The seeds of this crop begin to germinate. The seeds of this culture begin to germinate immediately after the temperature becomes plus and reaches at least +1 ยฐ C. And also rye is completely undemanding to the predecessors and the composition of the soil. The only condition for obtaining a good harvest – on the ground it is necessary to produce high-quality basic and pre-sowing treatment of the soil.
Another important “plus” that this culture possesses is drought resistance. The root system of rye is much stronger than that of most other cereal crops. It is for this reason that rye never lacks any nutrients and elements.

Peculiarities of crop rotation
As mentioned above, rye is not at all demanding to predecessors, but the methods of cultivation used today still provide for the observance of a certain crop rotation. The best forerunners of rye are considered such agricultural crops as:

  • clover;
  • potatoes;
  • flax;
  • sunflower;
  • lupine;
  • legume-oat mixtures;
  • corn;
  • pure fallow.

Rye can be referred to those few agricultural plants from which it is possible to get a good yield by growing them on one place.

Land preparation

This process of rye cultivation should be approached with maximum responsibility. In the case when the predecessors of this crop were such agricultural plants as potatoes or sugar beets – land treatment should be carried out at a depth of at least 10-12 cm, and if the predecessors were perennial leguminous grasses – at a depth of 25-30 cm.

Methods of winter rye treatment: soil fertilization
To the composition of the soil this agricultural crop is practically undemanding, but the use of fertilizers makes it possible to significantly increase yields.

Intensive methods of cultivation of the crop involve the use of two main types of fertilization – mineral and organic. After cereal and grain crops, the land that will be used for growing winter rye should be fertilized with organics in the proportion of +/- 25 t/ha. In spring, when vegetation is actively resuming, the crop should be fertilized with nitrogen in the proportion of +/- 95 t/ha. If the pH values are less than 5.5, in addition to everything else, liming of the land should be carried out.
Care of the plant during the growing season

To get a good harvest of winter rye, during its development it is necessary to carry out a whole complex of different agrotechnical processes. Immediately after the seeds are sown, the field should be rolled. After this process, the contact between the soil and the seed will be significantly improved and the capillary rise of moisture will be accelerated. As a result, the grain in the ground will swell faster and the sprouts will be more friendly. In autumn, the fields where rye is grown should be treated with special preparations, which are designed to destroy snow mold.

In the winter period on the fields where winter rye is grown, it is necessary to carry out the procedure of snow retention. Thanks to this, young plants can be protected from freezing. As it was proved by experts – a snow layer of +/- 40 cm can protect the plants even in case of very severe frosts.
https://grain.st/

In spring, the fields with this crop should be harrowed. Technique for cultivation of this crop should be used standard – tractors with mounted needle equipment. This process makes it possible to perfectly level the top layer of land, as well as saturate it with oxygen and moisture. As a result, the germination rate increases significantly and the sprouts develop more actively. Harrowing should be done after the snow has melted and the ground itself has dried out.

For the full development and growth of the plant, it should be fertilized with nitrogen. This fertilizer is best applied by root application. Also after the beginning of tillering (until the tube is formed), it is necessary to treat the land with herbicides. The presence of weeds on the plots where winter rye is grown can significantly reduce yields.

How to fight rye diseases

Rye is an unpretentious crop. However, during the growing process, it can be affected by various microorganisms or pests. For this reason, rye cultivation techniques include, among other things, insect control. Quite often rye during cultivation can be affected by:

  • powdery mildew;
  • snow mold
  • root rot

Harvesting

This important process should be done in a timely manner, because if harvested late, the grain may begin to crumble. The harvest period for this crop can last for +/- 10 days. It is very important to harvest rye as quickly as possible when the weather is wet.

The methods used for growing winter rye in our country are practically the same. Harvesting this crop can be done either by separate harvesting or by direct harvesting. If direct harvesting will be used, then harvesting should be done after reaching full maturity, and grain moisture should reach +/- 20%.

If separate harvesting is used, it is necessary to wait until the waxy ripeness stage, when grain moisture will be between 35-40%. The rye is cut with reapers and threshing starts as soon as the grain is completely dry (3-5 days).

en_USEnglish