WHEAT & RICE (history,introduction,insects pests,their management,cultivation &harvesting)

History of Wheat Production in India 

The production and productivity of Wheat crop were quite low, when India became independent in 1947.

The productivity was merely 663 kg per hectare during 1950-51, which was not sufficient to feed the Indian population.

The Country used to import Wheat in large quantities for fulfilling the needs of our people from many countries like USA.

 Reasons of low production and productivity of Wheat at that time was:- 

Higher susceptibility to diseases. The higher sensitivity to thermo & photo

variations, etc.

Several policy decisions and actions were taken by Government of India from time to time to increase production and productivity in the country.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Govt. of India launched and implemented various Centrally Sponsored/ Central Sector Schemes, namely, IADP(intensive agriculture district programme) (1960-61), High Yielding Varieties Programme.

Classification –Kingdom: Plantae (Plants)

Division: Magnoliophyta ( Flowering plants )

Class: Liliopsida (Monocotyledons)

Order: Cyperales

Family: Poaceae (Grass family) 

Genus: Triticum (wheat) 

Species: Triticum aestivum - common wheat

Wheat is the second most produced cereal in the world.

Provides a large fraction of the dietary protein and total food supply, and is grown all throughout the world.

In India,wheat is grown as rabi crop (refers to agricultural crops sown in winter and harvested in the spring).

The normal National productivity is about 2703 kg/ha.

Major Wheat producing States are Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar, Maharashtra, Gujarat.

These States contribute about 99.5% of total Wheat production in the country.

Wheat (Gehoon)

Introduction

Composition of Wheat An average composition of wheat is –

Starch 68%

Albuminoids 13.5%

Water 12.5%

Oil 1.2%

fibres 2.7%

Ash 1.7%

Diploid (having 7 pairs of chromosomes)

Tetraploid (having 14 pairs of chromosomes)

Hexaploid (having 21 pairs of chromosomes)

Einkorn wheat (T.monococcum)- Also called one grained wheat.it is one of the oldest wheats.  It is not used much for baking but primarily for animal feed.

• Triticum dicoccum- also called starch wheat or two grained wheat.

• Cultivated in spain,Italy,germany,India.

Club wheat (T.compactum) –Also known as dwarf or hedgehog wheat).Plants are well adapted to poor soil.Commonly grown in central Europe,turkey,Ethiopia.

Polish Wheat(T.polonicum) - grown in spain,Italy,turkey.

Spelt Wheat(T.spelta)-Grown in spain &U.S.A.Grown as food for livestock.

Poulard wheat(T.turgidum) –Also known as English wheat.Have no commercial use.

Common wheat (triticum aestivum)A chief source of bread.Cultivated in india mainly.

Durum Wheat(T.durum)-Plants have thick head with long stiff beards &very hard,red grains,which are rich in gluten.Also known as macaroni wheat.

Classification of wheat on the basis of their chromosomal numbers-:

Important varieties of wheat

Famous traditional varieties of wheat are –

Sarbati

Sehore (also known as Lahandosh or Chandoshi),

Bansi

Bakshi

khapli

All these varieties perform well under organic management and have excellent chapatti making quality.

Insect-pest of wheat &their Management Termites

Termites can damage the crop at any stage of crop growth. Problem is more predominant in rainfed areas than irrigated ones.

Use of undecomposed FYM under un-irrigated conditions can also increase the chances of termite attack.

Use of Neem leaf manure or Neem seed manure in the soil at the time of sowing can prevent termite attack.

Gujhia Weevil Gujhia weevil attack germinating seedlings, resulting into high seedling

mortality.

Neem leaf/seed manure can prevent their attack.

Army Worm:-

This insect feed on plants during the night and hide during the day time. They also damage leaves .

Spraying Neem leaf extract (5 kg Neem leaves crushed in boiled water and diluted to 100 liter) can effectively reduce the attack.

Brown Wheat Mite, Aphids and Jassids

Intercropping of wheat with mustard and safflower (100 gm seed of each mixed with 100kg wheat at the time of sowing) can effectively check the spread of mites.

Gujhia weevil Armyworm destroying wheat crop

Aphide destroying wheat crop

Rusts - Rusts are caused by three different species of the fungi, Puccinia.

Brown Rust The small, round-oval spots (called

pustules) of brown rust (caused by Puccinia recondita tritici) develop mainly on the leaves but under severe attack, appear on sheath and stem as well.

Bright orange spots appear either in small clusters or irregularly scattered spreads very fast during warm and humid environmental conditions.

This rust is most widespread in the country and generally the most damaging in many areas.

Diseases of Wheat Crop &their management

Brown rust on wheat stem

Yellow Rust :- This rust is caused by the fungus, Puccinia

strciformis. Yellow spots develop mainly on the leaves. The spots are oval in shape and lemon-

yellow in colour and are formed in long streaks or rows, and smaller than those of brown rust.

Appearance of lemon-yellow pustules in rows is characteristic feature of yellow rust.

Yellow rust is predominant in hills and north-western part of the country where the temperatures are low. In plains it does not cause much damage.

Yellow rust on leaf

Black Rust:- Black rust of wheat is caused by

Puccinia graminis tritici. The spots occur on stem, leaf

sheath, leaves but the stem is often most severely affected.

The spots are reddish-brown in colour and elongated in shape. It spreads fast under relatively warmer and humid climate.

As the crop matures, dark, black, elongated spots are formed.

Black rust on wheat stem

Management of Rusts

Most effective method for control of rust, is to grow rust-resistant varieties.

To protect the crop from rust infection, spray 5 liters of sour buttermilk mixed with 200 litre of water.

Amaranth (chaulai or lal bhaji – a common green leaf vegetable or Pudina leaf dust can also be used as fine spray (25- 30 gm dry leaf powder per lit of water) to prevent the infection of rusts.

Foliar spray of dry leaf extract of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis (China rose) can also prevent the rust infection.

Bunt Kernal bunt is a common problem in northern

India. This disease is caused by fungus Neovossia indica. The disease can be recognized only after the

grains have developed. A portion of the grain along its groove is converted into a black powdery mass, which gives a foul smell.

Flour prepared from wheat with more than 3 % infected grains smells fishy and is unsafe for consumption.

Control Measures-1. Use disease free seeds.

2. Growing resistant varieties is best option.

3. Avoid continuous cropping of wheat in the same field.

4. Use of Mustard flour 1 kg and milk 5 liters mixed with 100 liter water as foliar spray.

Leaf Blight Caused by Alternaria triticina. Symptoms are Small oval or elliptical  lesions

surrounded by yellow halo appear and subsequently they enlarge becoming irregular in shape, the chlorotic borders of the lesions may become diffused and turn light to dark brown in colour.

Control measures :- Use of certified seeds. Seeds Should be treated before sowing with

Vitavax 75 WP or Bavistin( 2.5gm /kg seed).

Cultivation of Wheat Wheat is an annual grass cultivated mostly in all

moderately dry temperature climates.

It requires comparatively cool,moist,spring having 10 degree Celsius temperature at the time of sowing,warm &bright days at the time of sprouting &dry harvest periods.

Wheat is grown best in areas having 35cm to 60cm annual rainfall.

The best soils for wheat are clay &loams.

The best fertilizer used is barnyard manure.

In India,wheat is grown as rabi crop.The fields are cleared and then ploughed 4-5 times before sowing.

Healthy &ripe seeds are sown in slightly moist soil.Sowing generally starts in October & continuous upto middle of November.

NPK fertilizer is added for better yield.

The crop is harvested when the grains become hard and the straw becomes yellow, dry and brittle.

In india,wheat is harvested between mid January to june.

Indian farmers use hooks,scythes &reaping machines for cutting the culms & threshing machines for separating the grains.

In some states like Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh etc. harvesting & threshing is done by combine harvester at a large scale.

The maturity time of the crop differs from zone to zone and so is the harvesting.

Harvesting of Wheat

Use of hooks for cutting

Tools &machines used for harvesting of wheat

Man using scythe in wheat field

Combine harvester used for harvesting of wheat

Products made of Wheat

WHEAT USES

Industrial use of wheat

Skin care products such as moisturizers, lotions, skin care serums and anti aging creams contain hydrolyzed wheat protein to effectively preserve or improve skin moisture.

Hair care products on the other hand also improve their quality with hydrolyzed wheat protein as an ingredient. This increases the overall strength of the hair right up to the roots; it makes hair more manageable .

Rice (Chawal,dhaan)

Botanical name – Oryza sativa

panicle

• Rice is a kharif crop(Kharif crop,  refers to the planting, cultivation and harvesting of any domesticated plant sown in the rainy (monsoon)season.

•  Rice plant are annual grasses that attain a height of about 2-4 feet.

A mature rice plant consists of :- PANICLE TILLERS STEM LEAVES ROOTS

Each grain is sorrounded by a husk.

Grains are detached from the plant along with the brown husk &this grain with husk is called paddy.

Rice varieties in India

Bala Cauvery JaggannathBasmatiJamunaPadmaJaya

In India,there are about 1107 varieties of rice.they differ in color,shape,size,flavour &other characteristics.Some of these varieties are given below-

Kanch Kannagi Krishna Pankaj Ratna Sabarmati vijaya

Composition of Rice

Crabohydrates(mainly starch)

84-90%

Proteins 7.6%

Fats 0.3%

The other substances found in rice include vitamin B,sugars,fibers,hemicellulose,fatty acid,phosphorus,pigments &nucleic acids.

Insects/pests causing damage to rice plants

Examples of root feeders are termites (order Isoptera) and the rice water weevil.

Adult water weevil feeds on the leaves and causes little damage while the larvae feed on the roots and severely reduce the root system. Plants with reduced root systems grow poorly and have low yield.

Use of insecticides can kill the root feeders.

ROOT FEEDERS

The stem borers, generally considered the most serious pests of rice worldwide, occur and infest plants from seedling stage to maturity.

Fifty species in three families-Pyralidae, Lepidoptera, and Diopsidae (Diptera)—are known to attack the rice crop

Diopsis have been recorded as rice stem borers.

Feeding in the stem during the vegetative growth stage of the plant (seedling to stem elongation) causes death of the plant.

Damaged shoots do not produce a panicle, and thus, produce no grain.

Stem Borers

Diopsis –a stem borer

Leafhoppers and Planthoppers

The leafhoppers attack all aerial parts of the plant whereas the planthoppers attack the basal portions .

The leafhoppers and planthoppers (order Hemiptera) are sucking insects which remove plant sap from the xylem and phloem tissues of the plant.

These insects are severe pests in Asia.where they not only cause direct damage, by removing plant sap, but are also vectors of serious rice virus diseases, such as rice tungro virus transmitted by the green leafhopper & grassy stunt virus transmitted by the brown planthopper,Nilaparvata lugens.

Planthoppers on stem of rice

plant

leafhoppers

Defoliators

Defoliation reduces the photosynthetic capacity of the rice plant and thereby decreases yields.

A large group of insects belonging to several insect orders feed on rice leaves. Most common are the larvae and adults of beetles (order Coleoptera) and grasshoppers (order Orthoptera).

Control Measures

Foliar sprays, which act on the larvae and on the adult moths and eggs, also come into greater contact with natural enemies of the stem borer.

Most biological control of stem borers in tropical Asia and Africa comes from indigenous predators, parasites. The conservation of these valuable organisms is the key to development of stable and successful integrated pest management (IPM) systems.

Numerous parasitoids have been reported attacking the eggs, larvae and pupae of the rice leaffolder.

judicious use of selective insecticides in rice is necessary.

Developing Insect Resistant Rice Varieties.

Diseases of rice plant

Rice Cultivation & harvesting Rice grows best in hot moist tropics&requires an average

temperature of 20-25 degree Celsius,a warm &bright sun,an average rain fall of 120-150 cm &damp soil which can easily be flooded.

Before plantation the field is prepared by ploughing it thoroughly.

The rice seeds are grown in seed beds. About 9-10 inches tall seedlings are

planted in mud in rows. The mature plants turns yellow. Fully mature plants with ripened seeds

are harvested by cutting their stalks. The stacks of stocks are then allowed

to dry. Grains remain protected inside the

husk,known as dhaan or paddy. The husk is removed only before use.

Uses

1. Main staple food of a large section of world population.

2. Rice bran is used as salad oil,for the preparation of soaps,cosmetics,rust resistene oil& as anticorrosive lubricant.

3. Husk is used as fuel,bedding material for animals.

4. Husk is also used for preparation of activated carbon,sodium silicate & silicon.

5. Straw is used for the preparation of hats,shoes & other articles.