Rye

The Russian word rye dates back to Praslav. * rъžь ^[4] , which lead to the dialectal pra-ie. * rug ^h is (from him the same English. rye ) ^[5] .

Morphological features

Botanical illustration from a book by O. V. Tome Flora von Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz , 1885

Secale cereale - Toulouse Museum

Rye is an annual or biennial herbaceous plant. Sowing rye as a natural species is a diploid form. In recent decades, breeders have obtained a doubling of the number of chromosomes in the cells of tetraploid rye, the varieties of which form a large grain (the mass of 1000 grains reaches 50–55 g ), a powerful straw that is resistant to lodging.

Root System

Rye has a fibrous root system , penetrating to a depth of 1-2 m ^{[6] [7]} , therefore it tolerates light sandy soils ^[8] , and due to its high physiological activity it quickly assimilates useful substances from the soil from sparingly soluble compounds. A tillering node in rye is formed at a slightly shallower depth from the soil surface (1.7–2 cm) than wheat (2-3 cm). When the grain is placed deep in the soil, rye lays two tillering nodes: the first is deep, and later the second is closer to the soil surface, which becomes the main one. The tillering intensity of rye is high - each plant forms 4-8 shoots , and under favorable conditions - up to 50-90.

Stalk

The stalk of rye is hollow, with five to six (rarely three or seven) internodes ^[9] , straight, bare or pubescent only under ears. The height of the stem, depending on growing conditions and varieties, ranges from 70 to 180-200 cm (average 80-100 cm).

Leaves

The leaves are broad-linear, flat, with a gray stem along with the stem. The length of the leaf blade is 15-30 cm, the width is 1.5-2.5 cm. A short tongue and short bare or pubescent ears (auriculate) covering the stem are placed at the base of the blade. The leaf blade on the upper side is sometimes covered with hairs, which indicates comparative resistance to lack of moisture and adaptability to light sandy soils. The tongue and ears of the rye leaves dry and fall early.

The stem carries an inflorescence at the top - one elongated, slightly drooping complex spike ; under the spike, the stem is slightly hairy. The ear is not unbreakable, with a strong axis that does not break into joints, 5-15 cm long and 0.7-1.2 cm wide, consists of a checkered, almost tetrahedral rod and flat spikelets sitting on the protrusions of the rod and facing the flat side. Spikelets are two-flowered with an embryo of the third flower, and only the triflorum variety has three-flowered. Spikelet scales linear-awl-shaped, with one vein , shorter than flower scales, gradually pointed, without spine or with short spine 2-3 mm long, rough on keel; outer floral scale slightly longer than spikelet, about 1.5 cm long, lanceolate, with long spine many times larger than spikelet, with five veins, keel with thick, bristly, slightly sickle-curved cilia; awn rough, straight, 2-5 cm long.

Flowers and Fruits

Three stamens , with elongated anthers protruding from the spikelet, upper ovary with cirrus bilobed stigma ; wind pollination .

Grain oblong, slightly compressed laterally, with a deep groove on the inside in the middle; after ripening, it falls out of the spikelet. Rye grain varies in size, shape and color. Its length is 5-10 mm, its width is 1.5-3.5 mm, its thickness is 1.5-3 mm. The weight of 1000 grains in diploid rye is 20–35 g, tetraploid - 50–55 g. The shape of the grains is elongated (with a length to width ratio of more than 3.3) or oval (with a length to width ratio of 3.3 or less) with a noticeable transverse wrinkling on the surface. The color distinguishes grain white, greenish, gray, yellow, dark brown.

Biological Features

In ontogenesis, rye undergoes the same phenological phases and stages of organogenesis as wheat . Under the same conditions, rye seedlings appear 1-2 days faster. At 1-2 days faster, she begins and tillering. The tillering node is laid closer to the soil surface (1.7–2.5 cm), two- and three-node plants are more common. Rye tillering occurs mainly in autumn. In the spring, it begins to exit the tube after 18-20 days from the start of spring regrowth, and after 40-50 days it spike. Flowering occurs after 7-12 days from the start of heading (in wheat after 4-5 days) and lasts 7-9 days. The phase of milk ripeness occurs 10-14 days after flowering and lasts 8-10 days. 2 months after heading, the rye matures. Then post-harvest ripening takes longer, so rye sprouts less often in the ear. The weight of 1000 grains in diploid varieties is 23–38 g, and in tetraploid varieties 35–62 g.

To the cultivation conditions, especially to soils, rye is less demanding than wheat. She has a well-developed root system, which penetrates to a depth of 1.5 to 2 meters and is able to absorb phosphorus and potassium from sparingly soluble compounds. Rye is less sensitive to soil acidity . It grows well at pH 5.3-6.5. Therefore, it can be grown on podzolic soils unsuitable for wheat. But the best are fertile structural chernozems and gray forest soils of medium and light loamy texture. It grows poorly on heavy clay, boggy, saline soils.

Rye is more winter-hardy than other winter breads. It withstands temperature reduction at the level of the tillering unit to minus 19-21 ° C. Seeds begin to germinate at 0.5–2 ° C. It ends the growing season in the fall and resumes in the spring at 3-4 ° C.

Rye is a cross-pollinating plant of long daylight hours. Pollen is carried by air. Favorable for pollination is quiet warm weather with sufficient humidity. In hot weather with low humidity, pollen loses its viability. Unfavorable for pollination is windy and rainy weather.

To avoid pollination, seed plots of diploid varieties should have a spatial isolation of 200-300 m, tetraploid - more than 500 m.

The transpiration coefficient is 340-450. In order for plants to form 1 centner of grain, they need to take 2.9-3.3 kg of nitrogen , 1.1-1.4 kg of phosphorus, 2.2-3 kg of potassium from the soil. The utilization of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium from soil reserves is 0.20-0.35, 0.10-0.17, 0.10-0.22, respectively, and from organic fertilizers 0.20-0.35, 0, 30-0.50, 0.50-0.70, from mineral ones - 0.55-0.80, 0.25-0.45, 0.65-0.80.

There is an assumption that rye comes from the species Secale montanum Guss. wild in southern Europe , southwest and central Asia . Some of the traveling scholars admit the existence of not only wild rye, but also other loaves in some places. For example, F.K. Biberstein met wild rye in the Caucasian-Caspian steppe, then in the Crimea , near Feodosia , and near Sarepta . K. Linnaeus speaks of wild rye, which seems to come across on the Volga , near Samara . There is an assumption that rye in those regions could be brought in by the Tatar tribes that once lived beyond the Volga. N.A. Severtsov considered rye to be descended from wild relatives growing in southern Russia, northern Africa and Central Asia .

Today, Anatolia (ter. Turkey) is considered the birthplace of rye. Initially, it was considered as a weed plant, but when cultivated in Europe, it acquired independent significance due to its special resistance to cold weather ^[10] .

According to the observations of A.F. Batalin , rye in the south after mowing can sprout, that is, it turns out to be a perennial plant. Such rye, according to Batalin, is quite similar to the wild species of rye - Secale anatolicum , which grows wild in Turkestan . It is believed that our rye came from a perennial wild species, but only thanks to the culture became annual. But J. Warming considered a relative of rye Secale montanum , which grows wildly in Central Asia , is distinguished by brittle straw, grains that grow together with films, and long-term development. According to E. von Bieber , most of the nerds to the testimony of travelers about the homeland of rye is mistrustful. The same is claimed by O. Decandol on the basis that various authors very often mixed Secale cereale with other perennial species or with ears that are easily broken and which are considered different by modern botanists ( Secale fragile - according to Bieberstein, Secale anatolicum - according to P Boissier , Secale montanum - according to J. Husson and Secale villosum - according to Linnaeus). But the true place of origin of most of our bread plants (including the homeland of rye), as well as domestic animals, remains unknown, although some of these plants, such as wheat, were sown in Ancient Egypt 4000 years BC. e. and cultivated by almost all the peoples of that time.

The composition of the grain includes carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, minerals ^[11] .

Spring Rye

The yield of winter rye is higher than spring. Therefore, spring rye has a limited distribution in the northern regions, where winter rye freezes due to extremely low winter temperatures. In Russia, spring rye is grown mainly in Central Siberia, in Yakutia and Transbaikalia. Due to the small share of spring rye, a small number of varieties are used in agriculture today.

Some varieties, such as Vyatka 1996, are created as insurance in the event of the death of winter crops in the European part of Russia. ^[12] .

Among non-insurance Siberian varieties, the Onkhoyskaya variety is the leader in terms of ear and grain productivity. The average yield is 18-27 kg / ha. Record yield of 39 kg / ha. The growing season is 76-100 days. It tolerates spring frosts, May-June drought. ^[13] .

Since rye can withstand frosts well, spring rye can be sown very early when the soil temperature rises to the temperature of seed germination - 1-2 ° C.

Winter rye

The technology of cultivating winter rye has a certain similarity with that for winter wheat . Productivity increases if winter rye is placed in clean pairs ; in areas with sufficient moisture, it is also possible to place in occupied and sideral pairs. It is characterized by waste cleaning ability, which allows us to consider it a good precursor for a number of vegetable and cereal crops. Pre - sowing tillage for winter rye varies: when placed in occupied and clean pairs, the autumn -and-winter complex is used, while after unpaired precursors only small-scale processing is performed.

The main fertilizers for winter rye are organic ( manure , peat moss composts ), the norms for which are 30-40 tons per hectare for sod-podzolic soils and areas with sufficient moisture, or 15-20 tons per hectare for chernozem soils and arid areas; It is also possible to use mineral fertilizers ( nitrogen , phosphorus , potash ). Nitrogen fertilizers are applied fractionally, depending on the planned yield and taking into account diagnostic indicators; the limit is 60 kilograms per hectare.

For sowing , sorted seeds are selected with the following indicators: purity - 99%, germination - 95%, the minimum mass of a thousand seeds - 35 grams, the lower limit of growth force - 80%. Before sowing, they are etched to prevent a number of common diseases . In the interests of the normal development of plants, sowing is carried out 50 days before the onset of stable cold weather (that is, until the moment when the average daily temperature drops below 5 ° C). When sowing, several methods are used, in particular - narrow-row, ordinary and cross. The seeding rate depends on several parameters and indicators and is set at the rate of 500-600 productive stems per square meter; in a particular region, it can be from 3 to 6 million germinating seeds per hectare.

Winter rye is characterized by sensitivity to sowing depth. If the soil moisture is sufficient, then the depth of seeding does not exceed 5 centimeters; in dry weather, this parameter can be increased by 1-2 centimeters.

In order to care for crops , a number of operations are carried out, in particular - rolling , harrowing , treatment with herbicides and retardants . Rolling with ring rollers , in particular, can be practiced immediately after sowing; this helps to densify and level the field, and also positively affects the germination of seeds. Treatment is also carried out against plant diseases: snow mold , root rot , powdery mildew and some others.

Winter rye can be harvested in one or two phases. Single-phase harvesting is carried out by combines during the period of full ripeness, when the grain moisture does not exceed 20 percent. In turn, two-phase harvesting begins during the period of wax ripeness (humidity from 35 to 40 percent), which means mowing by row headers and laying in stubble rolls ; after a few days, the stems and grain dry out, the rolls are selected and threshed . In connection with the biological characteristics of rye, harvesting should be done in a short time ^[14] .

Rye is a typical cereal grain crop . Rye kvass is made from grain , flour is produced that goes mainly to bread , starch is obtained, and it is also used as raw material for the production of alcohol .

Rye is one of the most common (after mustard ) and the most valuable siderate . It effectively suppresses weeds and plant diseases, surpassing other known siderates in this property due to its particularly rapid development. Rye has a strong structuring (loosening) effect on loamy soils, making them lighter and more permeable. Кроме того, она частично вытесняет различных вредителей (в особенности нематод ), кроме проволочника , которого рожь, наоборот, привлекает. Высевается она под зиму, чтобы к весенним посадкам её возможно было убрать; весной рожь высевается только в том случае, если засеваемый участок не будет обрабатываться в данном году ^[15] .

Свежие стебли ржи могут использоваться как фураж .

В прошлом, а иногда и по сей день, ржаная солома используется в качестве дешёвого и простого в изготовлении кровельного материала . Такая кровля, при условии своевременного ремонта, служит несколько десятков лет.

Рожь возделывают прежде всего в Германии , России , Польше , Белоруссии , Украине , Скандинавии , Китае , Канаде и США . На территории России рожь выращивают в основном в пределах лесной зоны. Лидерами по выращиванию ржи являются Германия, Россия и Польша. В 2011—2016 годах на долю этих трёх стран приходилось от 60 до 68 % мирового производства ^[16] .

Диетические свойства

Зёрна, отруби и зелёные стебли ржи используются в лечебных целях.

В белке зерна содержатся лизин и треонин — аминокислоты , необходимые для роста и восстановления тканей, производства гормонов и антител. Рожь способствует сопротивляемости организма заболеваниям, обладает отхаркивающим действием, как диетический продукт полезна при сахарном диабете . Поэтому даже ржаной хлеб в определённом смысле является лекарством. В народе его используют как лёгкое слабительное, отвар из отрубей, наоборот, оказывает закрепляющее действие. Полезен ржаной квас: он нормализует пищеварение, улучшает обмен веществ, благотворно влияет на сердечно-сосудистую систему.

Рожь посевная — единственный вид культурной ржи, который широко распространён в мировом земледелии, в том числе и в России, как важнейшая продовольственная и кормовая культура. Вид объединяет более 40 разновидностей. Все сорта ржи, которые имеют распространение в России, принадлежат к разновидности var Vulgate Körn. (колосовой стержень неломкий, наружная цветковая чешуя голая, зерно открытое или полуоткрытое).

Сорта в России

В России допущено к использованию около 49 сортов озимой ржи.

Выведены и рекомендованы к использованию высокопродуктивные короткостебельные сорта, устойчивые к полеганию и болезням: Безенчукская 87 , Короткостебельная 69 , Дымка , Пурга , Саратовская 5 , а также сорт многолетней ржи Державинская 29 .