Vitebsk region will begin the mass harvesting of winter cereals in the coming days
Vitebsk region will begin the mass harvesting of winter cereals in the coming days. This was announced at a meeting of the regional executive committee by Ivan Fedorov, Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee's Committee for Agriculture and Food.
According to Ivan Fedorov, 17 districts of the region have started harvesting cereals. Work has not yet begun in Liozno, Dubrovno, Rossony, and Ushachi districts. As of the morning of July 26, 9.5 thousand hectares, or 3% of the area, have been harvested. 27.7 thousand tons of grain have been threshed with an average yield of 29.5 centners per hectare.
"According to expert estimates, this year the gross grain harvest in bunker weight in the region's farms is expected to be 10-15% higher than last year. The mass harvesting of cereals will begin in the coming days. First of all, farms have started harvesting winter rye and wheat. Spring cereals are not yet ready. They need at least another 10-15 days to ripen, so we still have time to maneuver," the committee chairman noted.
With favorable weather conditions, the technical capabilities allow the region's farmers to complete the grain harvest in 20-22 days. The seasonal load per combine will be 222 hectares. The issue of a shortage of machine operators (950 people were lacking) has been resolved by attracting personnel from industrial enterprises and educational institutions. In addition, the villagers are preparing for the sowing of winter crops, which will start on August 5 with the sowing of winter rapeseed. This work is planned to be completed in two weeks (by August 20), and from August 25, the sowing of winter cereals will begin. The latter should be sown by September 20.
This year, it is planned to sow winter cereals on an area of at least 200 thousand hectares for grain, another 50 thousand hectares for green fodder, and 60 thousand hectares of winter rapeseed in the region. The Minister of Agriculture and Food of Belarus, Leonid Zayats, took part in the meeting. He drew the attention of all heads of local authorities to the fact that 9% of combines, or 130 units, and 30 grain drying complexes are not yet ready for harvesting in the region. Scales have not yet been checked everywhere to ensure the primary accounting of grain. A significant number of combines have not passed technical inspection.
"There is very little time left and
"all shortcomings must be eliminated within two to three days," the minister emphasized. Leonid Zayats noted that the weather conditions of the current year had the least impact on the crop formation in the farms of the Vitebsk region. Here, it is planned to harvest 1.1 million tons of grain in barn weight. "Now the main task is to seize every favorable minute and ensure the efficiency of production per combine, the safety of the harvest, and avoid losses. We must ensure the harvest and its preservation with dignity," the minister concluded.