Rice field. Technology of rice cultivation

Rice - one of the most valuable cereals in the world, belongs to the main food for the majority of the population of our planet. This is an annual plant, a family of monocotyledonous cereals.

general information

This cereal has a fibrous root system, with air-borne cavities that provide air access to the flooded soil. Rice is a bush consisting of nodular stems, the thickness of which is about 3-5 mm, and the height - from 38 cm, it is also a height of 3-5 m (deep water forms). The stems are mostly erect, but there are uplifting and stilts. The leaf is lanceolate, the inflorescence is a panicle, the length of which is 10-30 cm. The panicle is compressed or spreader, poviloy or upright depending on the type of rice. On it there is a large number of single-flowered spikelets on short legs. The whole, ordinary grain of rice consists of a rigid shell, beneath which is a brownish grain. Under the skin - endosperm, the most nutritious part of the grain, it is it we see in the form of white rice, called polished or polished. About 94% of it contains starch, about 6-10% protein, but, unfortunately, it almost does not have B vitamins and minerals. Grinded rice is prepared faster, easier to digest by the body. In a hot, humid climate, the product is stored longer.

Rice breeding

There are 3 types of fields on which this cereal is grown: dry-bottomed, checks and liminary. In the fields of checks, the technology of growing rice is to grow with constant flooding until the crop ripens, then drain the water and start harvesting. This kind of harvesting is the most common, so collect about 90% of the world's rice production. The dryfields are located in areas where a large amount of precipitation falls, so they do not require artificial irrigation. On those and other fields you can grow rice of the same varieties, but the yields in the fields are higher. The lemon paddy field is mainly located in the river floodplains and is cultivated in the flood period. In this case, rice of a special kind is used, with a rather fast growing stem, the panicles of which float on the water. Compared with rice cultivation in other fields, this method produces much less harvest, but it is more traditional for those regions where cereal is the most important element of nutrition for the population, for example, in Asian countries.

Types of rice

There are thousands of different varieties of rice in the world. For example, in Asia each field gives its own variety of this culture. It is classified according to the length of the grain, the kind of processing, color, flavor. By degree of processing, the cereal is divided into white rice, brown and steamed.

There are the following types of rice:

1. Paddy: Untreated rice, just brought from the field, can be stored for several years.
2. Rice husk - removing it from the grain is the first stage of processing, used as animal feed and as fertilizer.
3. Otrane shell: it is obtained in the process of grinding grains, is used for ready-made breakfasts and animal feed.
4. Grinded white rice: the most common. There are round-grained, medium-grained and long-grain rice, photos of which can be seen in the article.
5. Steamed rice: Untreated rice is pre-soaked in water, and then processed by steam under pressure.
6. Brown or not polished. There is a medium-grained and long-grain rice, the price of which is not too different from the price of grinded rice, but is considered much more useful than white rice.
7. Broken rice: when processed, rice grains break down, large pieces are used for confectionery and breakfast, small pieces for rice flour.
8. And also such kinds of rice as jasmine, basmati, Egyptian and wild are common.

History and distribution

Approximately 7 thousand years a person uses and grows rice. Photos showing this can be found in the ancient manuscripts of China and India. Even then, the rice fields used a system of canals for irrigation of this crop. Where he appeared for the first time - not established, but some scholars agree that his homeland is considered to be India. According to other sources, it is known that the rice fields in China appeared as early as the 5th millennium BC and approximately in 500 BC already settled in Southeast and South Asia, China and India. Spreading, this cereal has adapted to different weather conditions, for example, in South Asia it was necessary to have a large amount of water and heat for a year, and in Japan, Korea and central China, varieties that bear the cold and need a little water. In Asia, rice is collected and planted, still by hand, has been grown for centuries on mountain plateaus, slopes of hills and small scraps of land. In the 13th century rice fields appeared in Sicily, in North America it appeared together with the French, English and Japanese. In South America, rice brought the Portuguese and the Spaniards. Rice growing in Russia began more than 300 years ago.

Rice in Russia

In the Russian Empire, the first rice field appeared in the times of Ivan the Terrible. A decree was issued to the Astrakhan Voivode on the cultivation of "Saracen millet", that's what rice was called then. In the lower reaches of the Volga there are fields, but the result of the experiment, unfortunately, remained unknown.

Under the reign of Peter the Great, "Saracen millet" reappeared in Russia, sowed it in the delta of the Terek River, and the fate of the crop was again lost among the urgent state needs. And only in 1786 rice appeared again on the territory of Russia - it was brought by the Kuban Cossacks. Rice fields are located in the floodplains of the Kuban River, and after receiving a good harvest rice fields and originated in Russia.

Consumption of rice in the world

There are 2 approaches to the consumption of this cereal: "Western" - is typical for the countries of America and Europe, and "eastern" - for the countries of Asia. In the eastern countries, rice refers to daily food, in Europe rice got its fame later, and initially it belonged to exotic plants and was prepared exclusively for the festive menu. Over time, rice has also become one of their main food products, but, unlike in Asia, in Europe rice began to be cooked with poultry, meat, seafood and spice additives.

The need for rice culture

Annually about 350 million tons of rice are produced on Earth. More than half of the people on the planet use it 3 times a day. And in Japan, 78% of peasant farms are directed to rice cultivation, for example, although the prime cost of rice here is much higher. The rate of consumption of this cereal per person in Asia is 150 kg per year, and in Europe - 2 kg per year. About 12-13 million tons is the annual volume of world imports and exports, that is, about 4% of the entire crop on Earth. South America and Asia are the main exporters of rice, and Europe - the importer.

Sowing rice

For the cleaning of seeds, special sorting-separators are used, then the seeds are checked for germination, with indicators less than 90% of the grain considered unsuitable. 5-8 days before sowing, seeds are dried in the sun, soaked in warm water for 2-3 days, after swelling dried to flowability and begins to sow in pre-heated soil depth of 10 cm. The best way to sow rice is considered narrow-row disc seeders With flanges or ordinary private. Good results are also obtained from the cross-diagonal way of sowing rice. On flooded soils, scattered crops from the aircraft are used, so you can sow about 150 hectares a day with the help of one airplane. Rice can also be grown from seedlings. This way they use in Vietnam, China, Japan and other countries. The seed culture in the CIS countries is found in Azerbaijan.

The irrigation and care of rice culture

There are 3 ways to irrigate rice culture:

• Flooding is constant - water on the field is located throughout the entire vegetation;
• Shortened flooding - at the beginning and at the end of the vegetation there is no layer of water;
• Intermittent flooding - the water level is maintained by certain periods.

In the CIS countries use mostly shortened flooding. On soils that are not strongly saline and relatively pure from weeds, watering is carried out after sowing and before emergence. After the shoots, the rice field is poured, and not a very large layer of water is left during tillering - about 5 cm. Then gradually the layer of water is increased to 15 cm, and at this level the water is up to the wax ripeness of the plants. Over time, the water supply is slightly reduced, so that the land is dried to maturity, and it was possible to start harvesting. To destroy algae, chemical control of weeds or airing the soil, the rice field is dried. A photo of this procedure can be found in many recommendations on irrigation and rice care.

Technologies of rice cultivation

All-Union Rice Research Institute has developed a technology for rice cultivation, due to which it is possible to obtain from 4 to 6 tons of grain from 1 hectare. The technology is designed taking into account the specificity of soils, climate features, varieties.

For the southern regions and the Krasnodar Territory, eight variants of the technology for the production of rice culture have been developed:

1. Basic technology, which includes 66 operations, is accompanied by high rice yields, high fuel consumption and high labor intensity.
2. The technology in which seeds are sown to a depth of 4 or 5 cm, and includes 49 operations. Here, preliminary soil preparation is used: autumn planning and early plowing.
3. Technology, which combines soil processing operations: alignment of the microrelief, the use of mineral fertilizers and herbicides, sowing, sealing the surface.
4. The technology, which provides for minimal tillage: it does not include such operations as plowing, disking, chilling, operational planning, plowing.
5. Technology, specialized on checks flooded with water, that is, where the rice field is not possible to dry in the spring and autumn, as well as in rainy time during planting and soil preparation.
6. Bezherbitsidnaya technology, allowing agrotechnical techniques to combat weeds, diseases and pests.
7. Technology without the use of pesticides, for the cultivation of dietary rice.
8. Technology, where all energy-consuming and labor-intensive technological processes are performed by KFS-3,6 and KFG-3,6 units and rotary plow PR-2,4. A distinctive feature of the method is smooth plowing.