What is triticale, what it looks like and where it is used

The science of breeding embodies in practice the dreams of mankind about universal, unpretentious, most useful products that require minimal care and give the maximum yield. An example of such a dream come true is triticale, a viable and prolific hybrid of rye and wheat.

What triticale looks like, what are its features, benefits and applications - you will find all this in our article.

Triticale - what is it

Triticale is a hybrid plant (amphidiploid) obtained by crossing representatives of two different genera of cereal plants - wheat and rye. This culture has no analogues in nature and combines the best qualities of parental forms.

reference... Amphidiploid is a prolific hybrid organism that combines the complete chromosome sets of both parental species. Amphidiploids differ from ordinary hybrids by their ability to reproduce while retaining their unique properties.

Triticale is used primarily as a forage crop, but has excellent prospects for obtaining bread flour from grain.

What does it look like

The plant has all the morphological features of cereals: straight large leaves, inflorescence-ear and fruit-weevil.

Botanical description

The plant is separated into a separate genus. The name Triticale comes from the Latin Triticum (wheat) and Secale (rye).

The genus includes three types of triticale:

• two-species octoploid obtained by crossing rye and soft wheat;
• two-species hexaploid - a hybrid of rye and durum wheat;
• trispecific hexaploid - the result of combining rye, durum and soft wheat.

The roots are fibrous, they penetrate 1.5 m or more into the soil.

Stem with 5-7 internodes, hollow, sometimes pubescent under the ear. The height of grain varieties is 70-120 cm, fodder varieties - from 120 to 180 cm. The thick stem at the base provides resistance to lodging even for tall varieties.

The leaves are lanceolate, up to 35 cm long, up to 3 cm wide. The color is dark green or gray, with a waxy bloom. The foliage forms earlier than that of wheat, and remains green longer, which improves the nutrition of the ear with photosynthetic products.

The inflorescence is a complex spike of a complete type (with an apical spikelet). 30-40 spikelets are formed on the spikelet. Each of them contains three developed flowers, from which three grains are formed. An ear up to 15 cm long has a spindle-shaped or cylindrical shape. The plant is self-pollinated.

The fruit of triticale is a yellowish brown caryopsis. Ripe grain does not fall off. Fruit size is 10-12 mm in length and about 3 mm in width. The surface is wrinkled, with a groove in the center and a pronounced tuft at the top. The mass of a thousand grains is 40-60 g.

Brief history of appearance

Breeders have long dreamed of combining the nutritional value of wheat grain and the unpretentiousness of rye.

Work on crossing wheat and rye began at the end of the 19th century. The first hybrid was obtained in 1875 by Wilson, but the plant turned out to be sterile. Further work made it possible to grow lines that were split in the second generation on the basis of parental forms.

Only in 1888 did the German scientist W. Rimpau bred a new species of cereal capable of reproduction.

In the USSR, wheat-rye hybrids began to be received starting in 1920.

By 2018, 85 triticale varieties were registered in the State Register of Breeding Achievements in Russia.

Plant characteristics

The new crop has enormous potential for productivity, resistance to adverse weather conditions, diseases and pests. The main characteristics of the plant:

1. Frost resistance... Wheat-rye hybrid is not heat demanding. Sprouts appear at + 1-2 ° C. Seedlings tolerate a drop in temperature to minus 3-6 ° C. Winter forms survive at temperatures of minus 18-20 ° C in the tillering node zone (2-3 cm deep into the soil).
2. Drought tolerance... The need for moisture is less than that of wheat. Only during the period of intensive growth is there a need for irrigation. The culture can withstand temperature rise up to 40 ° C.
3. Attitude towards light. Triticale is a long-day plant. In combination with sufficient humidity, it responds to sunny weather with an increased yield. Leaves and grains store more nutrients and sugars.
4. Soil requirements. The hybrid gives high yields on poor soils. It is successfully cultivated on woody-podzolic, gray, forest, light loamy and sandy loam soils.
5. Resistance to pests and diseases.The hybrid is less susceptible to common diseases of cereals (fusarium, septoria, leaf rust). Triticale grain does not undergo "potato disease", since rye genes provide resistance to pathogenic microflora.
6. Yield... With good agricultural technology, the yield of grain varieties is 50-80 c / ha, fodder - up to 60 c / ha. Fodder varieties yield 500-600 centners of green mass per hectare, and even more with irrigation. For comparison, the average wheat yield is 22.5 c / ha. The increased yield of triticale at lower seeding rates is due to the tendency to tillering, which it inherited from rye.

Growing features

Triticale is grown mainly in Poland, Germany and Belarus. In Russia, the area under crops of this cereal occupies about 500 thousand hectares.

Implementation is slow. This is believed to be due to the difficulty in handling the product. The main difficulty lies in grain processing. Due to biological features, it is difficult to separate the membranes from the endosperm.

Innovative cultivation technologies

For growing triticale, podzolic or soddy soils with an acidity of 5.5-6.5 pH are suitable. This crop does not tolerate excess moisture, so it is not recommended to sow it in heavy, poorly drained soils. The content of the main nutrients, potassium and phosphorus, should not be 150 mg / kg.

Soil preparation is no different from wheat and rye cultivation technology. Organic fertilizers are applied at the rate of 30 tons per hectare, nitrogenous - 80-90 kg per hectare. Cultivation is carried out before sowing.

They are planted with standard row crops with a row spacing of 8-15 cm.

Sowing of winter varieties in the northern regions begins in mid - late August, in the southern ones - at the end of September. Spring forms are planted 3-8 days after the soil has completely thawed. According to intensive technology, the seeding depth is 2-3 cm.

The best predecessors of triticale arecorn, potatoes, forage grasses, buckwheat. Not recommended to be planted after wheat and other grains.

A few weeks before sowing, seeds are treated against diseases. In this case, the moisture content of the seeds should not exceed 14%. Use seed with a mass of at least 40 g per 1000 seeds.

Herbicides are used to control weeds. Processing is carried out 1-2 days after sowing and before emergence.

For diseases and parasites (snow mold, aphids, swedish flies), pesticides are used. The type of chemicals applied depends on the type of weeds and pests.

Harvesting of triticale for commercial purposes is carried out at a grain moisture content of 24-26%, for seed purposes - less than 20%. Considering that the triticale grain is prone to germination on the vine, the crop is harvested first.

Important... The cereal grain is larger than that of wheat and rye. Therefore, during threshing, the equipment settings are changed to avoid grain crushing.

Varieties of triticale

Depending on the purpose, the hybrid is divided into three groups: grain, grain-fodder, fodder. According to the sowing dates, winter and spring crops are distinguished.

Examples of varieties of the grain group:

1. Altayskaya 5 - winter variety recommended for cultivation in the West Siberian region. The average grain yield in the region is 32.6 c / ha, the maximum is 70 c / ha. The height of the bushes is 105-139 cm, the resistance to lodging is above average. Resistant to stem rust, powdery mildew, hard and dusty smut, snow mold.
2. Amphidiploid 256 - winter triticale, recommended for the North Caucasus region. Average yield - 43.6 kg / ha. Resistant to lodging, shedding and drought. The grain is suitable for the food industry.
3. Yarilo - a spring form of grain fodder, suitable for growing in the North Caucasus District. Productivity - 25 kg / ha. It is resistant to lodging and is immune to fusarium blight, hard smut, powdery mildew and other diseases.

Forage varieties are characterized by a high stem (up to 170 cm), large leaves, late heading. The green mass has high fodder qualities. This group includes varieties:

1. Argo - a winter variety for producing green mass, making hay and hay. Approved for cultivation in the Central, Volgo-Vyatka, Central Black Earth, North Caucasus and Lower Volga regions. The maximum yield of greenery is 180 kg / ha. It is not affected by brown rust, septoria, viral spotting.
2. Tornado - winter variety. It is cultivated in the Volga-Vyatka, Central Black Earth, North Caucasian, Middle Volga districts. Plant height - 120-157 cm, dry matter yield - 60 c / ha. Weakly affected by powdery mildew and septoria, susceptible to snow mold.
   Seeds of triticale varieties can be harvested independently, from generation to generation they will retain their properties.

Chemical properties of grain

The qualitative composition of triticale grain does not differ from wheat and rye grains. But the protein in the hybrid is 1.5% more than that of wheat and 3-4% more than that of rye.

The gluten content is the same as wheat, about 28%, but it is less elastic and stretchable.

Of the essential amino acids, arginine, lysine, tryptophan, phenylalanine can be noted.

Triticale grain contains vitamins B1, B5, B9, PP, E.

The composition includes calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, sodium, iron, manganese.

The nutritional value

Nutrient content per 100 g of grain:

• proteins - 12-13 g;
• fats - 2 g;
• carbohydrates - 68 g.

Energy value 274-293 kcal.

Benefit and harm

Foods containing triticale have increased nutritional value. The combination of nutritional value and rich vitamin and mineral composition allows the use of triticale for dietary nutrition.

Due to its high gluten content, triticale is contraindicated in people allergic to cereal protein.

Read also:

An exotic vegetable with an amazing look - black corn.

What are the varieties of corn and how to choose the best one for yourself.

How to pickle corn for the winter at home.

Application

The main area of ​​application of triticale is still animal husbandry. It serves as an excellent feed for cattle, pigs and poultry. Green mass contains 2% more protein than rye and wheat.

The limited use in flour-grinding production is explained by the difficulty of separating grain casings from endosperm. However, flour from a rye-wheat hybrid is already used in confectionery. Due to the characteristics of gluten, muffins, gingerbread, cookies do not stale longer and taste good.

Triticale grain is a promising raw material for the production of ethyl alcohol and biofuel.

Conclusion

Triticale is a wheat-rye hybrid that combines the nutritional value of wheat with the unpretentiousness of rye. The culture is separated into a separate type of Triticale.

Grain is successfully cultivated in many countries of the world, since it is not picky about the composition of the soil, heat, moisture, and its yield exceeds that of wheat.

The high protein content in the green mass makes the hybrid a valuable forage crop. Application in the milling industry is limited due to the difficulty of processing grain (the shells are dense and difficult to separate from the core). The use of cereal in alcohol production and biofuel production is promising.

Triticale will not soon displace wheat from the fields. But the potential of the hybrid is high, and who knows what wonderful properties it will acquire as a result of further selection?