The weather conditions this winter in Poltava region are unfavorable for winter crops. Currently, due to sharp temperature fluctuations, an icy crust has formed in the fields. The soil has frozen to a depth of almost a meter. The condition of winter crops can be assessed after the thaw and vegetation restoration. This was reported by the head of the plant science department at Poltava State Agrarian University Volodymyr Gangur, according to agronews.ua.
Читай нас також у Viber та Telegram.
An icy crust has formed on the shoots of winter wheat due to rapid weather changes. First, there was thaw, then rain and a sharp drop in temperature. Currently, in some places, the ice thickness in the field reaches five centimeters.
“Wheat about six centimeters tall, it looks a bit from under the snow. The wheat is very frozen. The wheat went into winter very well, sprouted nicely, grew nicely, there was frost, snow covered it, everything was very good. Then in the middle of winter, there was a thaw, rain came, and a very thick ice layer formed on the wheat,” noted entrepreneur Mykhailo Babych.
In total, Mykhailo Babych sowed nearly thirty hectares of land with winter wheat.
“This ice, on the one hand, can affect the worse option of further sprouting, but it can also save from these frosts, which were very strong, 25 degrees below zero, it can save the root system. And if the root system is alive, then the wheat will sprout and give its shoots and continue to develop,” added the entrepreneur.
“The nature of the weather conditions definitely has a certain negative impact on the state of winter crops. Especially those winter crops that are characterized by low frost resistance. That is winter barley and winter rapeseed. As for winter wheat, winter wheat is more frost and winter resistant. Therefore, today, this nature of weather conditions does not yet have such a pronounced negative impact on the condition of winter wheat overwintering,” noted the head of the plant science department Volodymyr Gangur.
According to meteorologists, the soil in the fields is currently frozen to a depth of almost a meter. However, according to the scientist, the critical factor for plants now is the temperature near the tillering nodes.
“The depth of soil freezing itself has a greater impact on the condition and viability level of winter crops, but the temperature of the soil at the depth of the tillering node is of the utmost importance. And especially the most negative impact is not so much the temperature drop to critical values, but the duration of the period during which plants are exposed to such temperatures,” added Volodymyr Gangur.
As Volodymyr Gangur explained, agrarians will be able to assess the condition of winter crops and determine their viability level after the thaw and vegetation restoration. In total, in Poltava region, agrarians have sown over 291 thousand hectares with winter crops.