January frosts in Ukraine did not affect winter crops - scientists
Kyiv • UNN
Winter crops in Ukraine are in satisfactory condition despite severe frosts, but experts emphasize the need to continue monitoring due to weather instability.
The weather conditions, including severe frosts, in Ukraine in the first ten days of January did not adversely affect winter crops, which are in satisfactory condition, experts of the National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine said in a report dated January 12, which was published by the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, UNN reports.
Details
The beginning of the first ten days of January was reportedly characterized by warm weather for this time of year. In the second half of the ten-day period, there was a sharp drop in air temperature to sub-zero values. Precipitation, at the beginning of the ten-day period in the form of rain, sleet, and later (before the onset of frost) snow, fell throughout the country.
"Such weather conditions have no negative impact on wintering of winter crops. As of today, winter crops are in satisfactory condition," the report says.
As noted, the precipitation will significantly replenish the moisture reserves of the upper soil layer in the future. "However, unstable weather conditions, such as alternating changes in air temperature from minus to plus values and vice versa, snowmelt and snow cover formation, localized ice crust, reduce winter hardiness, in particular, the frost resistance of winter crops. Therefore, control over its overwintering should remain on the agenda," the experts emphasized.
The report also notes that this year there is "a significant number of mouse-like rodents in Kherson, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, and Sumy regions, especially in unmixed and untreated fields, on perennial grasses, and on fields with surface tillage using the No-till or Mini-till system." "The survey of crops shows that almost all of them are infested with mouse-like rodents, with 3 to 5 live colonies per hectare. The sharp cold snap that has occurred may somewhat reduce the number of rodents, but it is necessary to systematically conduct surveys to determine the population of crops in order to protect crops from them in a timely and effective manner," the report says.
Addendum
Ukrainian farmers sowed almost 4.2 million hectares of winter wheat for the 2024 harvest .
