Winter hardiness in winter rye: problems and solutions
High winter hardiness is an advantage of winter rye over other cereals. This trait is determined by a number of parameters: biological and genetic properties, weather conditions and technological features. The main reasons of failure of winter rye sowings in North-East of European Russia are frost-killing and asphyxiation. Frost-killing is characteristic for beginning of winter with low snow cover and for cold spell in spring. The critical situation with frost damage in the region was recorded in 2009-2010 when soil temperature at the depth of tillering zone site continuously kept at -18 °С day and night. The depth of soil freezing was more than a meter. Winter wheat and triticale were almost completely winterkilled in Kirov region. The failure rate of winter rye Falenskaya 4 in Federal Agricultural Scientific Center of North-East was equal to 17%. Annual damage of rye production in the region is caused by asphyxiation and affection by snow mold (M nivale). On the average damage caused by this disease is 15-20% and in some years even more. Other unfavorable factors of overwintering are shell ice, damping-off and pushing-out of crops. Stability of winter rye production depends on observing the cultivation technology and breeding of highly winter-hardy varieties. Thus, winter resistance is one of the key priorities of breeding programs in North-East of European Russia. The development of such varieties depends on improvement the breeding methods and use of sources of winter hardiness corresponded to region conditions.