Samara farmers have begun spring work in the fields – harrowing plowed land, fertilizing winter and perennial grasses, and sowing of spring crops has begun in some areas in a number of municipal districts. The farms have stocked up on fuel and lubricants, delivered the required amount of mineral fertilizers, prepared equipment and other agricultural equipment, and seeds.
Photo: Andrey Savelyev
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Samara Region, as of April 25, 2024, more than 1 million hectares were harrowed, winter crops were fed on an area of 370 thousand hectares, and the first 20 thousand hectares were sown. In total, winter crops were sown on 523.5 thousand hectares for this year’s harvest. It is planned that by the end of April sowing will begin in almost all farms in the region.
Ensuring food security is a primary task for the region’s agro-industrial complex, as outlined by the Governor of the Samara Region, Dmitry Azarov. He repeatedly emphasized that Samara farmers make a significant contribution to the food sovereignty of the region and the country as a whole, and the agricultural sector in the region is actively and dynamically developing.
In 2024, the area under agricultural crops in the region will remain at the previous level. They plan to sow spring crops on an area of more than 1.6 million hectares. Almost 60% of the total grain wedge will be winter and spring wheat. The largest area in the group of industrial crops will traditionally be occupied by sunflower, but at the same time the province plans to increase the sowing of soybeans and mustard.
In the Samara region, more than 40 areas of state support are provided for the effective work of local agricultural producers, including within the framework of the national projects “Small and Medium Enterprises” and “International Cooperation and Export”, the implementation of which is carried out by decision of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
In 2024, more than 3.4 billion rubles are allocated from the regional and federal budgets to support the industry, more than 1 billion of them are planned to be spent on crop production. Thus, this year, agrotechnological work (per-hectare support), support for elite seed production, production and sale of grain crops, planting and care of perennial plantings and crop insurance will be subsidized. Moreover, starting from this year, an advance mechanism is being used to support elite seed production, planting and caring for perennial plantings and a number of other areas.
In addition, since 2024, the ministry has been implementing new measures of state support for citizens running private farms and applying the special tax regime “Professional Income Tax”. They are reimbursed for part of the costs of producing potatoes and open-ground vegetables.
The complex of sowing and pre-sowing cultivation of fields is in full swing in the Bolsheglunitsky district. The sown area in the municipality is 188 thousand hectares of land, 140 thousand hectares fall under spring cultivation, of which 31 thousand are winter wheat. The head of the district agriculture department, Sergei Gladkov, states that the crops overwintered well, and crop farms are handling the upcoming campaign responsibly.
– Every spring is different. This year, one might say, it didn’t exist – we immediately stepped from winter into summer. This, on the one hand, is not bad: the harvest will ripen earlier, we will harvest it before the autumn rains. The main thing is that there should be no return of cold weather that could damage the winter crops, as happened last year,” notes Nikolai Zolotov, general director of the local agricultural enterprise.
Spring work has also started in the fields of the Volga region. Local farmers know that the most important thing is to prepare well for the sowing season. As the chief agronomist of one of the enterprises, Nikolai Khvostov, said, there are no problems with fuels, lubricants and fertilizers, everything was purchased in advance and is waiting to be used.
– Every season we develop, develop new areas, and put them into circulation. Our fields in the Volga region are more than 18 thousand hectares of arable land. We also have land in other municipal areas. The farm is fully equipped with high-performance machinery and modern equipment. Winter crops are sown on 5.2 thousand hectares, sunflower will be grown on 4.9 thousand hectares, and oilseed flax on 2 thousand. Some of the land was left fallow,” says Khvostov. – There was a sharp rise in temperature up to thirty degrees, and the wet soil immediately baked. The result was the effect of a clay pot in the oven. But in general, everything is going according to plan, we are doing everything in time and counting on high yields.
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Oleg Bystrov
