By mid-May, farmers in 18 districts of the Angara region have begun mass sowing of grain crops and potatoes.
Cold Spring
According to the chief agronomist of one of the farms of the Irkutsk region, Alexander Edakov, the sowing campaign was delayed by 10-14 days due to weather conditions.
“By mid-May, in previous years, we had already finished sowing barley, rapeseed, oats, and now only 30% of the area has been sown,” commented Alexander. - And potatoes began to be planted only on May 13. The land is still "unripe": a soil temperature of 5-6 degrees is not enough. The normal temperature is 10 degrees, but it is not, and it rains every day.
According to the Minister of Agriculture of the Irkutsk Region Ilya Sumarokov, this year, in the first ten days of May, one and a half rainfall fell. Therefore, in some areas, there is waterlogging of the soil. The air temperature is also 2-4 degrees below average long-term values.
At the same time, agricultural producers are pleased with the fact that moisture reserves in 98% of all fields in the region are assessed as good and excellent. “If all the technologies are followed, you can eventually get a good harvest,” the minister is sure.
However, the farmers themselves are not so sure about the future harvest volumes.
- If autumn gives us a head start and good weather lasts September and at least part of October, then we will cope with the task. And if autumn turns out to be unfavorable, like last year, when in mid-September there were already the first frosts and even snow fell ... It was very difficult, especially to dig potatoes, - say the farmers.
Ambitious plans
Nevertheless, the region's agrarians face a serious task: in 2021 to produce 900 thousand tons of grain (+34,9 thousand tons to the level of 2020), 106,0 thousand tons of oilseeds (+38,6 thousand tons). tons), 350,8 thousand tons of potatoes (+6,2 thousand tons), 102,8 thousand tons of vegetables (+ 2,9 thousand tons).
To increase the yield, according to Ilya Sumarokov, it is planned, inter alia, by increasing the acreage. So, last year, the region's agrarians put into circulation over 22 thousand hectares of fallow lands.
- The main focus and a serious increase in the sown area - by almost 36% - this year we are focusing on export-oriented oilseeds, - said the minister. - We have set ambitious plans for the industry to produce over 2021 thousand tons of oilseeds in 100, in particular, rapeseed and camelina.
Modern technologies and new varieties make it possible, even in our conditions, to obtain a rapeseed yield of up to 40-50 centners per hectare. In this respect, we can well compete with the leading enterprises of the Russian Federation.
In addition, farmers in the Angara region are trying to expand the list of crops cultivated in the region. For example, this year spring garlic has been planted in the Irkutsk region on an area of about 2 hectares.
“This culture is not at all typical for Siberia,” said farmer Vladimir Skornyakov. - But if it takes root, we will be able to compete with this Chinese-made product.
