Perennial forage plants. Zhitnik - care and cultivation of cereals in the garden Zhitnik plant
Wheatgrass (Agropyron) is a perennial grass plant. The wheatgrass is native to Eurasia and North Africa. There are almost 100 species in the genus of this cereal.
The wheatgrass got its name from a combination of two ancient Greek words – “wild” and “wheat”.
13 species have been cultivated in Russia. It is grown in the Volga region, Western Siberia and Northern Kazakhstan. The plant is highly valued as fodder; its hay is rich in proteins and mineral salts. However, several types are also used as decorative ones. Together with other cereals, wheatgrass improves the rocky hills, garden plots, suitable for lawns. Easily tolerates haircuts.
Description of the plant
Wheatgrass is a plant with a powerful fibrous root system. Thin grass roots go into the ground to a depth of 2.5 meters. Hollow, depending on the type, smooth or rough, with a large number leaf stems reach up to 80 cm in height.
The leaves of wheatgrass are dark green to grayish-green, linear and rigid. The top and edges of the leaf are rough. They can be either flat or slightly curled vertically.
The inflorescences are collected in spikelets, growing up to 12 cm in length and up to 2.5 cm in width. Small green spikes become yellow when ripe. They are deviated from the ear by 90 degrees and are located parallel to each other
The seeds of the plant are small, only 5-6 mm, and ripen into light yellow grains. All grain crops are divided into narrow-eared and wide-eared according to the structure of the ear.
Economic importance
Zheat grass is valued for its feeding properties. The cereal is grown as a fodder and pasture plant. It has, unlike other cereals, the highest nutritional benefits of hay. 30 hectares yield 16 centners of hay. Wheatgrass contains about 12% protein, 3% fat, 10% ash, 43% nitrogen-free substances and 32% fiber.
The plant is well eaten by absolutely all types of livestock before it starts to spike; animals eat it worse after flowering. Well digestible.
From the second year, the wheatgrass begins to bear fruit and provides material for planting. However, it also reproduces easily by self-sowing.
It grows in grass in one place for about 10 years.
Types and varieties
Comb-shaped wheatgrass
Comb-shaped wheatgrass
Comb wheatgrass (Apropyrum pectiniforme Roem. et Schult) was cultivated in 1896 by V.S. Bogdan. Belongs to the broad-spike species. Distributed in the steppes, forest-steppes of the Volga region, Western and Eastern Siberia. Like all grain crops, it produces large harvests of hay and seeds. Has great nutritional value. From 1 hectare 20 centners of harvest are collected.
This loose-bush grass reaches from 40 to 90 cm in height. The stems of the plant are smooth, slightly rough under the spike, the leaves are narrow, gray-green. Dense spikelets are from 1 to 3 cm wide and 1.5 – 6 cm long, 3-10 flowers are formed on them. Produces light yellow oblong seeds, not exceeding 7 mm in length and 1 mm in width.
Comb-shaped wheatgrass tolerates not only drought, but also cold winters, and easily withstands short-term flooding in the spring. It is classified as a winter cereal.
Comb-shaped wheatgrass
Broad-eared wheatgrass is distinguished by a wide, dense ear. Its fruit is a membranous grain.
Comb wheatgrass
Comb wheatgrass
Comb wheatgrass is a perennial, broad-spiked, loose-bush grass. It is not widespread in culture, but in the wild it is very often found in the Far East, Eastern Siberia and eastern Kazakhstan. Of all wheatgrass, it is the most cold-resistant and drought-resistant. But, unlike the comb-shaped one, it produces less yield.
The spikes of the comb wheatgrass reach 6 cm in length, 1-2.5 cm in width, the purple spikelets closely adhere to each other. More drought-resistant and winter-hardy compared to comb-shaped wheatgrass, but lower in productivity.
Siberian wheatgrass
Siberian wheatgrass
Siberian or sandy is a perennial grass. It grows on sandy and chernozem soils in southern Siberia, northern Kazakhstan, and in the steppes of the Lower Volga.
Siberian wheatgrass is the most demanding of moist soil, does not like drought and does not tolerate flooding. It is characterized by high winter hardiness.
Unlike the comb-shaped one, this wheatgrass is narrow-spiked. Its inflorescences are narrow and elongated. A long, up to 15 cm, spike has 3-4 spikelets per cm. The fibrous roots are well developed. The leaves and stems are very delicate.
Despite its fragility and fragility, it easily tolerates trampling and is a good pasture and hay crop.
Care
Being a drought-resistant plant, it grows well in dry loamy and sandy soils. When harvesting, about 15-20 cm is left to retain snow. In winter, shelter is not required; it can easily tolerate spring frosts.
The wheat grass does not need watering; it is fed extremely rarely. Suitable for feeding mineral fertilizers and manure.
In order for the wheatgrass not to lose its decorative effect, the plant is renewed from time to time by dividing the clumps.
Landing
For sowing grain crops, the soil is well cultivated and leveled. Sowing can be carried out twice a year - in spring or autumn. Winter sowing is also possible. Only freshly harvested seeds are suitable for planting.
However, several rules should be followed: when spring planting the optimal depth for seeds is 2-3 cm, while in autumn it is 1-2 cm.
Depending on the sowing method, seeding rates also depend.
Diseases and pests
The plant is disease resistant. Its main pests are rodents, wheat flies and mosquitoes. Fields attacked by pests are treated with hexachlorane. It is important that the treatment is carried out before the plant blooms.
The Zhitnyak genus from the Cereals family unites 26 plant species. Nature settled these herbaceous perennials in the extratropical zones of Eurasia and North Africa. Over time, with the help of humans, Australia and America entered the range.
Plants grow in forest and forest-steppe zones, often reaching semi-deserts. Latin name formed from a combination of the ancient Greek words "wild" and "wheat". The connection with cereal can also be traced in the Slavic variants of the name.
Zhitnyak has a fibrous root system. Thin roots penetrate the soil up to two meters deep. Erect cylindrical stems are usually smooth, sometimes rough. Plant leaves have a linear shape. The leaf blades are flat or slightly folded vertically. The color is predominantly dark green, but there are species with glaucous and bluish foliage.
Interspecific differences are not only in the size and color of the leaves. All Zhitnyaks are usually divided into wide- and narrow-spiked ones. The first ones have large and dense ears. In the second, short spikelets are collected into an elongated thin spike. Flowering occurs in the summer months. The fruit is a light yellow miniature grain.
Growing
In culture, Zhitnyak is often grown as a pasture and fodder plant. However, one species, namely the combed wheatgrass, has found application in decorative floriculture.
The plant is suitable for arranging garden lawns. Wheat grass can be planted in mixborders in company with other representatives of the Cereal family. It decorates rocky hills and revitalizes garden areas with poor and dry soils. The long-living plant does not cause any difficulties in growing. It tolerates haircuts well and grows back quickly.
Starting from the age of two, Zhitnyaki bear fruit, supplying planting material. Actively reproduces by self-seeding. In addition, you can divide the bush into several parts. The divisions take root easily.
Diseases and pests
Rust, rodents.
Reproduction
By seeds, by dividing rhizomes.
First steps after purchase
Zhitnyak seeds are sold separately or mixed with others lawn grasses. When purchasing, it is important to make sure that the shelf life has not expired. Seeds remain viable for three years.
When sowing in open ground should be taken into account climatic conditions. In arid regions, winter sowing is recommended. IN northern regions and subject to regular moistening, spring sowing is possible.
The soil must be dug up, weeds removed, fertilizer applied and watered. The sowing depth depends on the composition of the soil. In light soil, a depth of 3–4 cm is permissible, in heavy soil only 2 cm. The first shoots appear after 5 days, after a week and a half - en masse. After another month, tillering begins. However, in the first year, seedlings develop slowly.
Secrets of success
Zheat grass develops equally well in sunny and shaded areas. The plant is suitable for any garden soil; it can grow even in saline soil. However, Zhitnyak appears in its full glory on sandy and loamy soils, with a reliable drainage layer.
One of the advantages of the plant is drought resistance. The moisture that the roots extract from the deep layers of the soil and the rains fully satisfy the needs of Zhitnyak. It is recommended to pamper the plant with periodic watering only in particularly hot summers.
Zheat grass does not need winter shelter, and tolerates without harm to health return frosts and short-term spring flooding. Feed the plant twice a season - early spring and late autumn. Zheat grass is responsive to both organic and mineral fertilizers.
Mature plants do not allow weeds into their territory. Young Zhitnyaks require regular weeding for normal growth and development.
Possible difficulties
Zhitnyak does not require constant attention from the owner. Very rarely affected by rust. Symptoms of the disease are red or brown spots and stripes on the leaf blades. Domestic and imported drugs have been developed for treatment. The most effective ones are presented on the website in the “Medicines” section.
Over time, the Zhitnyak bushes age and decay. Rejuvenating division solves the problem.
Moles and voles, breaking through underground passages, disrupt the soil structure and damage the root system of Zhitnyak. Homemade and industrial repellers that perfectly protect the area from uninvited guests will help you cope with this scourge.
Wheatgrass- rhizomatous perennial of the Poaceae family.
2n=14, 28, 42. Wheatgrass is a loose bush grass. Root system fibrous, penetrates the arable soil layer. The stems are straight, 80-100 cm tall, slightly rough under the spike. Leaves are narrow-linear, flat or rolled lengthwise, 1.5-5.0 mm wide, rough or hairy above, smooth below. Inflorescence - spikelet, ovoid or linear, dense, but with clearly visible gaps between spikelets, up to 6.5 cm long and up to 2.5 cm wide; comb-shaped, noticeably narrowed upward. The spikelets are bluish-green and green, glabrous, with 3-10 flowers, 0.8-1.5 cm long. The glumes are 3-5 mm long, ovate-lanceolate, glabrous, quickly narrowed into an awn, rough along the keel. The lower lemma quickly narrows into an awn, glabrous, 5-7 mm long. The seed is 6-8 mm long and 1 mm wide. The weight of 1000 seeds is approximately 0.8-1.8 g. Wheatgrass is a plant of the winter type of development. It begins to bear fruit in the second year of development. The crop blooms in June and ripens in July. Wind-pollinated crosshair.
Broad wheatgrass has been known in cultivation since approximately the end of the 19th century. It is cultivated in the CIS in small areas in semi-desert, desert and steppe zones, mainly in rainfed conditions. 15 varieties are zoned for pasture and hay use.
Cultivation area of broad wheatgrass (Agropyron pectiniforme)
Wheatgrass typical xerophyte. Frost-resistant. Drought resistant. Frost resistant. Salt and drought resistant. Photophilous. The crop is most productive in the dry steppe zone - on light chestnut, chestnut, solonetzic, solonchak, loamy and clayey soils, although it can be successfully grown on all types of soil.
Wheatgrass when organizing long-term cultivated pastures, it is the main component of grass mixtures in desert and steppe zones. Tall varieties are suitable for hay use and are grown in clean crops. The wheat grass grows at the end of April, and at the beginning of May it can be used for grazing, and at the end of May for mowing. Grows well on pastures, withstanding 3-4 grazing. Hay is harvested once during the growing season. The nutritional value of wheatgrass is similar to that of meadow fescue and timothy. It is well eaten by domestic animals on pastures, in the form of silage, hay, herbal flour, silo. Used for fixing eroded soils, grassing lawns and sports fields.
Wheatgrass (Agropyron). Perennial loose bush grass. There are 13 species of wheatgrass found in Russia. Four types of wheatgrass have been introduced into culture: comb-shaped, comb-shaped and two narrow-spike wheatgrass - desert and Siberian.
Broad-eared wheatgrasses are characterized by a wide, rather dense spinous ear, while in narrow-eared wheatgrass it is narrow, elongated, short-awned, and loose. The color of the leaves of broad-spiked wheatgrass is green, while that of narrow-spiked wheatgrass is dark green and bluish.
All types of grain crops are very drought-resistant plants, are distinguished by good feeding qualities and productivity, distributed mainly in arid areas.
The most widespread in grass sowing (up to 90% of the total area sown with wheatgrass) is the comb-shaped, or broad-spiked, wheatgrass.
In the wild, wheatgrass grows everywhere, but is mainly distributed in the dry steppe zone, in the southern regions of the forest-steppe, in Western Siberia, the Caucasus, and Central Asia.
Comb-shaped wheatgrass was first introduced into cultivation by V.S. Bogdan at the end of the last century (1896) at the Valuysk experimental station, and then spread to many arid regions of the Volga region, in the southern and southeastern regions.
It has good feeding qualities, nutritional value, protein content is 10-12%. 1 quintal of hay contains on average 53.2 feed units. In terms of digestibility, wheatgrass hay can be equated to good meadow hay. The average hay yield is 10 centners per hectare.
Distinguished by its high drought resistance, wheatgrass as a forage plant in crops has become widespread in the southern steppe regions, in the arid steppe regions of the Volga region, in the northern regions of Kazakhstan, in the steppe regions of Western and Eastern Siberia.
Good hay yields are obtained on chestnut and light chestnut soils in the dry steppe zone. On pastures, wheatgrass is well eaten by livestock before heading; later, the eatability drops sharply.
Comb wheatgrass is a single-cut plant. The greatest yields of hay and seeds are produced in the second or third year of life. The yield of hay in the culture reaches 20 centners per 1 ha. This plant begins to thin out and fall out of the herbage in the third or fourth year of life, when good care stays in the grass for 5-6 years.
In arid zones, wheatgrass is the most important component of alfalfa-cereal mixtures. When mixed with alfalfa, it forms a good grass layer with a fine-clumped, strong structure.
Of all the cereal components in legume-cereal grass mixtures in arid regions, wheatgrass occupies one of the first places. In less arid areas, wheatgrass is significantly inferior in productivity to other perennial cereals.
The best zoned varieties of comb-like wheat grass are Kpacnokutsky 4, Millerovsky, Chishminsky 6, Brodsky.
Comb wheatgrass is not widespread in cultivation. It grows wild in the harsh conditions of Eastern Siberia, the Far East and partly in the eastern regions of Kazakhstan. More drought-resistant and winter-hardy compared to comb-shaped wheatgrass, but lower in productivity.
Desert wheatgrass is more drought-resistant and salt-tolerant than comb-shaped wheatgrass. It has a limited distribution and is found on dry clay soils of the Aral-Caspian Lowland, in the Stavropol Territory, Volgograd Region, and Kazakhstan.
Siberian wheatgrass, brittle, is found in the wild in the steppe and semi-desert regions of Western Siberia, the Volga region, the Urals, and Central Asia. Grows on sandy and sandy loam soils, in cultivation it gives good harvests on dark chestnut and... chernozem soils. More demanding of moisture and less drought-resistant compared to other types of wheatgrass. It is distinguished by exceptional winter hardiness. In cultivation it may be advanced further north than other wheatgrass species.
Zhitnyak belongs to the genus wheatgrass (Agropyron)- loose bush grass, has become widespread in many arid regions of the Volga region, in the southern and south-eastern regions.
A perennial loose-bush semi-mountain grass of the spring type of development, 50-90 cm high. The roots are fibrous, reach a depth of 1.5-2 m on chestnut soils and 2-2.5 m on chernozems. Forms a large number of shortened and well-leafed elongated vegetative shoots. The leaves are rough on top and along the edges.
Inflorescence-spike is flattened, comb-shaped, up to 6.5 cm long, 1-2.5 cm wide; the spikelets are deflected almost at a right angle from the axis of the spikelet and are located parallel; on the lower flower scale the awn is 3-4 mm long.
Seeds light yellow, lanceolate, 5-6 mm long, average weight of 1000 seeds is 1.9 g.
Widely distributed in the south of the forest-steppe zone, in the steppe and semi-desert, rising into the mountains to the forest belt. It is drought-resistant, winter-hardy, and tolerates soil salinity well. Tolerates flooding with water for up to 20-30 days. Reacts poorly to irrigation and snow retention. Early ripening cereal.
Valuable forage plant. 100 kg of hay contains 48.7 feed units and 6.9 kg of digestible protein; 100 kg of grass during the heading period contains 22.7 feed units and 4.1 kg of digestible protein. Before heading, it is well eaten on pasture by all types of livestock, after heading - satisfactorily, after flowering - poorly.
Used to create cultural and seeded hayfields And pastures in areas of natural growth. Full development reaches in the second or third year after sowing. Stays in the grass long time, often crowding out other plants. When mowed early, it produces good results. Hay yield 16-30 c/ha. The seed sowing rate in pure crops is 12 kg/ha, in grass mixtures 6-10, in continuous seed crops - 12, in wide-row crops - 6 kg/ha. Planting depth ranges from 1 cm on heavy soils to 3 cm on light soils. Seed yield 2 c/ha.
Zhitnyak It has good feeding qualities, nutritional value, and contains 10-12% protein. wheatgrass hay has 53.2 feed. units In terms of digestibility, it can be equated to good meadow hay.
It is highly drought-resistant. In arid zones it can be considered the most important component alfalfa-cereal mixtures.
Wheatgrass has a wide, rather dense spinous spike. The leaves are linear, their color is green. Cross pollination. The fruit is a membranous grain.
Grows successfully in a variety of soils. Single cut plant. Largest yields hay and seeds occur in the second year of life. It begins to thin out and fall out of the grass stand at 3-4 years of age; with good care, it stays in the grass stand for over 5 years.
Zhitnyak It is best to sow in the fall under the cover of winter crops; spring sowing can only be practiced in the northern regions. Seed placement depth 1-2 cm. Seed sowing rate wheatgrass V pure form in arid areas 10-12 kg, in double grass mixtures 6-8 kg.
Harvest for hay wheatgrass necessary before flowering, in the full heading phase, since after flowering it quickly becomes coarser. Alfalfa-wheatgrass The mixture is mowed during the period of budding - the beginning of flowering of alfalfa.
To obtain seeds wheatgrass highlight the most fertile and moisture-provided areas with clean crops wheatgrass or mixed with legume components. Harvesting with simple machines is carried out at the beginning of the waxy ripeness of the seeds, when the grass becomes greenish-brown. After threshing wheatgrass on conventional threshers, a lot of triplets (unseparated seeds) remain, which are passed through the clover grinder. The seed plants are harvested using combines at the end of the wax stage - the beginning of full ripeness of the seeds, when the grass becomes brownish-yellow.