When to Plant Buckwheat? Buckwheat Planting Time and Key Technical Points

Buckwheat is a fairly well-known cash crop, and it is currently distributed in many countries around the world. Many people grow buckwheat today, and many are wanting to grow it as well. Before planting, however, everyone surely wants to have a full understanding of its planting methods and planting time. Let's take a look below!

When to Plant Buckwheat

In China, buckwheat is sown in all four seasons: spring sowing, summer sowing, autumn sowing and winter sowing, also called spring buckwheat, summer buckwheat, autumn buckwheat and winter buckwheat. (Note: spring sowing is from late March to early May; autumn sowing must be completed from late July to early August, and autumn sowing should be done earlier rather than delayed.) The specific suitable sowing date for each production area should be based on the maturity (growth period) of the variety, the local frost-free period and the effective accumulated temperature above 10°C, so that the full flowering period of buckwheat avoids the local high-temperature period (above 26°C), while ensuring maturity before frost as the basic principle.

Buckwheat Planting Techniques

1. Choose good varieties. It is advisable to choose buckwheat varieties with a growth period of 70-80 days and strong stress resistance, such as Tianqiao No. 1, Tianqiao No. 2, Xiaohonghua tartary buckwheat, etc. It is best to use new seeds harvested in the current year.

2. Seed treatment. Before sowing, sun the seeds for 2-3 days, then use the warm-water soaking method for seed selection, that is, soak the seeds in warm water at 40°C for 10-15 minutes, remove the floating shriveled grains, and scoop out the plump grains that sink to the bottom and dry them. In areas with severe pests and diseases, seed dressing with chemicals may be carried out. In order to shorten the time from sowing to emergence, the seeds can be kept covered for 1-2 days after warm-water soaking, and sown immediately once the seeds begin to germinate.

3. Fine land preparation. Buckwheat seedlings have poor soil-piercing ability and weak root development, and they have relatively high requirements for land preparation, so the step of tilling and preparing the land should be done as well as possible.

4. Sowing methods. Buckwheat sowing methods mainly include broadcasting, dibbling and drilling. Broadcasting can be further divided into two types: plowing first and then scattering the seeds, and scattering the seeds first and then plowing. Dibbling generally involves 5000-6000 holes per mu, with 10-15 seeds per hole. The sowing depth is generally 3-4 cm; the seeding rate for drilling is generally 2.5-3 kg per mu, and about 5 kg per mu for broadcasting.

Field Management of Buckwheat

1. First, remove waterlogging and prevent drought. When sowing, ditches should be opened for drainage to prevent waterlogging from killing the seedlings. If drought occurs during the emergence period, timely furrow irrigation should be used to moisten the soil, or diluted manure water should be splashed on in the morning and evening before emergence.

2. Second, timely intertillage and weeding. If it rains after sowing, the hardened soil layer should be broken up in time. Also, intertill and weed twice, when the seedlings are 6-8 cm tall and before flowering.

3. Third, supplement fertilizer to prevent decline. From flowering to the seed-setting stage, use 0.5 kg of urea and 200 g of potassium dihydrogen phosphate per mu, diluted with 60 kg of water, and spray 1-2 times.

4. Fourth, supplementary pollination. The natural pollination and seed-setting rate of buckwheat is low, so artificial supplementary pollination should be carried out during the flowering period. Bees can be released for pollination, or from 8-10 a.m. a rope or thin bamboo pole can be used to gently pull back and forth over the upper layer of the plants, for 2-3 times (at intervals of 3-5 days). Fifth, prevent and control pests, diseases, rodents and damage, and be careful to use low-toxicity pesticides.

Common Buckwheat Diseases and Their Control

1. For ring spot, spray with 0.5% Bordeaux mixture, or 65% zineb wettable powder at 600 times dilution, or 40% carbendazim suspension concentrate at 500-800 times dilution.

2. For downy mildew, at the early stage of the disease, spray with 25% metalaxyl wettable powder at 800-1000 times dilution, or spray with 65% zineb at 600-800 times dilution.

3. For brown spot, spray with fungicides such as 75% mancozeb wettable powder or 65% zineb at 500-800 times dilution.

Buckwheat is a crop that can be planted in all four seasons, and when planting, the time must be chosen according to the actual local conditions. After planting, management work needs to be done well; watering, fertilizing, disease control, pollination and other tasks all need to be carried out properly.