In India, oats constitute a significant fodder and cereal crop. You can grow it in temperate or subtropical areas, where you can also flourish. It provides health benefits, such as fibre. It’s pretty popular among farmers because of its protein and fibre content. Here are some of the advantages of oats:
- Build a healthy and robust immune system
- Maintain blood pressure
- Help in weight loss
Aside from that, eating it for breakfast might help you stay fit and healthy. You may have heard about them at your local gym, on television, in the newspaper, or through other sources. So, let’s see how to grow oats.
Oats Cultivation: A Step-by-Step Guide
To cultivate this crop, you must meet some of its demands and prerequisites. So, let’s take a look at these prerequisites and needs.
Climate Requirement
Temperatures between 20 to 30°C are required for optimal oat development. You can also sow the seeds at a 20 to 25 degrees Celsius temperature. In addition, 80 to 100 mm of rainfall is required for optimal germination and productivity. Finally, it would help if you guaranteed that the crop is harvested at a temperature of 25 to 30°C. Aside from that, the weather has a significant impact on crop growth. As a result, double-cultivate the crop in the climate conditions mentioned above.
Soil Requirement
Oats may be grown in a range of soils. And it would be best if you grew it in well-drained loamy soil with plenty of organic matter for the best results. The ideal pH range for growing oats on the ground is 5 to 6.6. Land preparation should be completed with high-quality tractors such as the Powertrac euro 47 and others. It is possible to avoid using groundwater.
Popular Yielding Varieties
There are different oats varieties available in the farming sector, with the maximum yield. Let’s see a few of them.
- Weston-11- Released in 1978
- OS-6 – 210 QTL per acre
- Bundel Jai 851 – 188 QTL per acre
- Kent – 210 QTL per acre
- OL-10 – 270 QTL per acre
- Brunker-10 – Punjab, Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh
- OL-9 – 230 QTL per acre
- HFO-114 – 7-8 QTL per acre
- OL 11 – 245 QTL per acre
- Algerian – For irrigated areas
Preparation of Land
You must plough the field in order to rid it of weeds. In addition, the terrain is adequately prepared for this type of cultivation. To generate a more healthy harvest, you must plough the area 6 to 8 times. This crop has a higher pH tolerance than barley and wheat. When using low-quality tractors, land preparation can be difficult and costly. Therefore, you must employ high-quality, high-mileage tractors such as the Powertrac 439 and others for land preparation.
Sowing
The second week of October to the last week of October is the best time for sowing activities. You can easily receive a more significant yield if you sow seeds during this period. You must maintain a row spacing of 25-30 cm for this farming. In addition, the sowing depth should be between 3 and 4 cm. Furthermore, the drilling and zero tillage drill methods are two seeding methods for this crop.
Seed Rate
One acre of land can be shown with 25 kg of oats seeds. However, it would help if you treated the seeds with Captan or Thiram @3 gm/kg to prevent them from certain fungal diseases. Adequate germination may be due to the correct seed rate. As a result, sow the recommended quantity of seeds per acre of land.
Irrigation
The rainfed crop is oats. If you’re growing it as an irrigated crop, you’ll need to give it two irrigations 25-28 days apart after sowing.
Protection of Plants
It would be best to safeguard your crop from insects and diseases when it comes to planting protection. So, first and foremost, we shall learn about insect infestations.
Pest and Their Management
- Aphid: Aphids are a significant pest in this crop. To prevent aphid infestation, apply Dimethoate 30EC @0.03 per cent.
Disease and Their Management
- Leaf Blotch: It has the potential to destroy the entire crop in a short period. To avoid this illness, full seed treatment is required.
- It can spread root parasites and cause root rot. To protect crops from this disease, you must treat the seeds properly before sowing.
Harvesting
After 4 to 5 months of seeding, the oats are fully ripe, and it’s time to harvest the field. Furthermore, to reduce grain shedding, harvesting can be done in early April.
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