"There is everything to ensure that the result will not be long in coming." How spring sowing is going in the Kopyl district

News of the topic Farmers are currently concentrating their efforts on spring field work: it is important not to miss the optimal sowing dates, but other agrotechnical measures are no less important. Therefore, the result of the overall work depends on the competent organization of labor. BELTA correspondents learned how the Kopyl District of MINSK Oblast is coping with urgent spring tasks.  

Not only grain crops

"Almost all farms in our district have started sowing; we must sow more than 36 thousand hectares of various crops. Taking into account winter grain crops, the total area will be 85.9 thousand hectares, which is 200 hectares more than last year," said Vitaly Rakevich, HEAD of the Kopyl District Executive Committee's Agriculture and Food Department.
The winter crop wedge in Kopyl region is more than 27 thousand hectares. According to the head of the department, the harvest prospects are good, since after winter the crops show a high degree of preservation - they are currently actively developing.

"As for winter rapeseed, which occupies more than 8 thousand hectares, this crop has also survived the cold season well. If last year crops perished on an area of ​​​​a thousand hectares, then this year the losses are insignificant, up to 300 hectares maximum," noted Vitaly Rakevich.

Kopyl region farmers are busy not only with sowing: having completed the first fertilization of winter grain crops and rapeseed with nitrogen fertilizers, they have begun the second. They are actively introducing organic matter - this year they will take at least one million tons to the fields.

"22 units of equipment are involved in applying nitrogen, we process up to 2.2 thousand hectares of crops daily," said the head of the department.

As for spring crops, their structure in the region looks like this: grain and leguminous crops - 2.8 thousand hectares, 750 hectares - buckwheat, 480 hectares - millet.

The area under spring barley, which does not give the desired results, has been reduced in the district, relying on the winter grain wedge. Farms are also working with SUGAR beet, for which 6.5 thousand hectares have been allocated this year.

"We have also expanded the area under corn to 23 thousand hectares, more than 7 thousand hectares of which will be harvested for grain. The seeds have been delivered, nothing will prevent the sowing of the crop in the optimal time frame," noted Vitaly Rakevich. There

is a lot of work on the farms, so third-party organizations are also helping them. Thus, 12 units of equipment from the district agroservice are busy applying organic matter, plowing, the local vehicle fleet, forestry and others are helping.
"There will be more equipment in the district this year. The farms will receive more than 20 energy-saturated tractors, a forage harvesting complex," the head said.

In the largest farm,

UP "PIK-Lesnoye" during the reform period accepted three lagging farms into its structure and now in Kopyl region it is not only one of the largest, but also one of the most economically efficient agricultural enterprises.He told us how spring field work is organized here.DIRECTOR Leonid Butevich.

"In total, we have more than 13 thousand hectares of land, about 7 thousand - cattle . Gross MILK production per day is 55 tons, while we started with 14.5 thousand. Gross grain production was 12.7 thousand tons, last year the loaf pulled 18.4 thousand tons together with corn. We are developing dynamically, gradually changing the structure of crop areas, understanding that one of the main tasks is to create a forage base for the livestock industry," he noted.

The lightest soils, on which there is no proper return from grain, according to the development strategy in "Lesnoy" were allocated for grass and corn.
"Winter crops have been sown on 3.4 thousand hectares, where 1.8 thousand hectares are occupied by wheat, 317 hectares by rye, 500 hectares by triticale, and the rest is allocated for barley. The spring grain wedge is only 200 hectares, 3 thousand hectares are planned for corn, and 800 hectares for sugar beet," said Leonid Butevich.

The farm is currently collecting stones, for which seasonal workers have been hired, and adding organic and mineral fertilizers.

"We have enough of our own equipment, last year we seriously updated our fleet. We bought 6 combines, 2 KVKs, 5 MAZs, 2 sprayers. There are plans to update this year as well. However, we have encountered the problem of a shortage of machine operators. In order to close the issue during the busy season, we transfer people from other areas. In general, in terms of personnel renewal, we are actively working with educational institutions of the country. Last year alone, 13 young specialists came to work for us. Not all of them stay, but those who want to work on the land are retained, especially since we support them in every possible way, both with wages and social benefits. For example, we provide a dormitory and apartments," the director shared. This spring, the farm is expecting reinforcements - six young machine operators will come from colleges.

"It's difficult, but someone has to feed the people..."

According to Leonid Butevich, he is not a supporter of too long work shifts. The working day for machine operators during spring field work lasts from eight in the morning until seven in the evening.
"If the loads are too high, then the quality will also suffer. If we talk about agricultural work in general, then it is difficult. But you can live without a good machine, without a cottage too, but no one can do without food. Therefore, our main task is to feed people," the director shared.

Machine operator Ivan Logash, who operates a high-power K-744 with a seeder, is busy sowing spring barley.
"I'm used to the load, I've been working on the land for a long time. Well, spring, summer and autumn are the time of good earnings. Everyone has a family. For example, I am a father of three children, my brother has six. Everyone needs to be fed and clothed. I sow about 30 hectares a day, I would do twice as much with rapeseed. I finish the grain, I will start corn. And in the summer I will harvest what I sowed with a combine. Every season I thresh two thousand tons," he said.

The farm is supported not only by experienced farmers, young workers also contribute to the business of growing grain. Thus, Pavel Krukovsky, a native of Kopyl, works as an agronomist. "My task is to organize the work. If you do it right, then everything will go according to plan. The harvest prospects are good, which means the work was not in vain," he notes.
His colleague in the plant growing industry, Sergei Pulinovich, adds: "The farm is large, there is a lot of work, but the mood is also good, because there is everything so that the result will not take long to come."

Elena KHAREVICH,
photo by Tatyana MATUSEVICH,
BELTA.