Tutorial on High-Yield Buckwheat Cultivation Techniques: A Detailed Guide to the Latest Methods

Buckwheat is an annual herbaceous plant of the genus Fagopyrum in the Polygonaceae family. It originated in China, has a very long history of cultivation, and there is also a wealth of growing experience. The earliest physical buckwheat specimen was unearthed from Tomb No. 4 of the Han Dynasty at Yangjiawan in Xianyang, Shaanxi, dating back more than 2,000 years. In addition, physical specimens from the Former Han and Later Han periods have also been unearthed at Maquan in Xianyang, Shaanxi, and Mozuizi in Wuwei, Gansu. Now let us take a look together at high-yield buckwheat cultivation techniques!

Growth Habits of Buckwheat

1. Temperature: Buckwheat prefers cool and humid conditions, is not tolerant of high temperatures and dry winds, and fears frost. An accumulated temperature of 1000-1500°C is sufficient to meet its heat requirements. Seeds can germinate in about 4-5 days when the soil temperature is above 16°C. The most suitable temperature for flowering and fruiting is 26-30°C. When the temperature is -1°C, the flowers die; at -2°C, the leaves and even the entire plant die.

2. Sunlight: Buckwheat is a short-day crop. When the day length decreases from 15-16 hours to 12-14 hours, the growth period shortens. Late-maturing varieties are more sensitive than mid- and early-maturing varieties. Each plant can produce more than 2,000 flowers, but the seed-setting rate is very low, only about 10%. In addition, the leaves have weak assimilation capacity, and flower and fruit drop is severe.

3. Water: Buckwheat is a crop that requires a relatively large amount of water. During seed germination, it needs to absorb about 50% of its own dry weight in water. During the flowering and fruiting period, it consumes a large amount of water, with peak water demand at full bloom. Its transpiration coefficient is generally 450-630, and the relative air humidity should not be lower than 30-40%.

4. Soil: Buckwheat has low soil requirements. Its root system is weak, and the seed's ability to push through the soil is poor, so loose soil is required to facilitate seedling emergence and promote root development. Reproductive growth is rapid and nutrient uptake is strong, making it suitable for newly reclaimed land. The required soil acidity is pH 6-7. Soils that are relatively alkaline are not suitable for cultivation.

5. Fertilizer: Buckwheat is a crop sensitive to fertilizer. With adequate fertilization, the stems can produce a large number of branches. Phosphorus fertilizer can promote grain formation and increase nectar gland secretion. Using bees to assist pollination can thereby increase yield. The demand for potassium fertilizer is relatively high, but chlorine-containing potassium salts can easily cause leaf spot disease.

Cultivated Varieties of Buckwheat

1. Common buckwheat: Common buckwheat, also known as sweet buckwheat, has no mycorrhizae, slender stems that are often ribbed, and a pale red color. The achenes are relatively large, triangular in shape, with smooth surfaces and edges, and good quality. It is one of the more widely cultivated types in China.

2. Tartary buckwheat: Tartary buckwheat has mycorrhizae, stems that are often smooth and green, and smaller achenes that are triangular with inconspicuous ridges, sometimes wavy, and rough surfaces. It is more widely cultivated in the southwestern region of China.

3. Winged buckwheat: Winged buckwheat has pale red stems and large leaves, and is mostly self-pollinating. The achene ridges are thin and wing-shaped, and the quality is relatively poor. It is cultivated in small amounts in both northern and southwestern China.

4. Rice buckwheat: Rice buckwheat is distributed in almost all major buckwheat-producing areas of China. Its achenes resemble those of common buckwheat, plump and nearly splitting between the two ridges, but smooth without deep concave lines, with blunt ridges and wrinkled skin. It gets its name because the seed coat easily bursts open.

Sowing Techniques for Buckwheat

1. Crop rotation selection: Buckwheat is not strict about the preceding crop and can grow after any preceding crop, but continuous cropping is avoided. To achieve high buckwheat yields, it is best to choose a good preceding crop in the rotation. Better preceding crops are legumes and potatoes, which are soil-improving crops. Next are corn, wheat, and vegetable plot preceding crops, which are soil-depleting crops.

2. Land preparation: Buckwheat has relatively strong adaptability to soil. As long as the climate is suitable, it can be planted in any soil, including poor land and newly reclaimed land unsuitable for other cereal crops. However, soil rich in organic matter, with good structure, sufficient nutrients, strong water retention, and good aeration can produce high-quality, high-yield buckwheat.

3. Sowing: Terrain, soil quality, and cropping systems vary greatly from place to place, so sowing methods also differ. The main methods are drilling, dibbling, and broadcasting. Scientific buckwheat cultivation should advocate drilling. Broadcasting results in uneven seed distribution, uneven seedling emergence, and poor ventilation and light penetration, leading to low yields. Dibbling is too labor-intensive. Drilling provides high sowing quality and is conducive to comprehensively coordinated development, thereby increasing tartary buckwheat yield.

① Drilling: For drilling, beds are made 167-200 cm wide with a sowing width of 13-17 cm. The advantages are consistent depth, uniform seed distribution, and neat seedling emergence. In cases of severe spring drought and poor soil moisture, deep-moisture sowing and timely sowing ensure full stands, and it also facilitates intertillage, weeding, and topdressing.

② Dibbling: Dibbling makes it difficult to control the amount of seed and also difficult to manage the number of holes per mu, and it is relatively labor-intensive. Beds are made 167-200 cm wide, with row spacing of 27-30 cm and hole spacing of 17-20 cm. 8-10 seeds are sown per hole, and after emergence, 5-7 plants are retained per hole.

③ Broadcasting: In some areas, after wheat harvest, the land is first plowed and then seeds are broadcast. Because broadcasting has no distinction of plant and row spacing, density is difficult to control, the field population structure is unreasonable, dense areas form clumps, and sparse areas show no seedlings. Field management is also difficult, and yields are generally lower.

Field Management of Buckwheat

1. Seedling stage management: After sowing buckwheat, active measures should be taken to protect seedlings. If drought occurs at sowing, timely compaction and firming of the soil should be carried out to reduce gaps, making the soil tillage layer loose on top and firm below, which helps groundwater rise and promotes seed germination and seedling emergence. If rain occurs after sowing or soil moisture content is high, surface crusting may occur. Buckwheat cotyledons are large and have poor soil-pushing ability, so surface crusting will affect seedling emergence. A nail rake can be used to break the crust and loosen the surface.

2. Reasonable close planting: The factors that make up buckwheat yield are mainly the number of plants per mu, the number of grains per plant, and the 1000-grain weight, all three of which are related to density. Reasonable close planting means fully and effectively utilizing light, water, air, heat, and nutrients, coordinating the contradiction between the population and individual plants, and ensuring healthy individual growth and development under the premise of maximum population development, so that the number of grains per plant and grain weight per unit area are maximized to achieve high yield.

3. Reasonable fertilization: Buckwheat is a crop that requires relatively large amounts of fertilizer. To achieve high yield, sufficient fertilizer must be supplied. For arid, poor land and high-cold mountainous land, increasing fertilizer application, especially nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer, is the foundation for high buckwheat yield. Fertilization should be based mainly on base fertilizer, supplemented by seed fertilizer, with topdressing as a supplement; organic fertilizer as the main type, with inorganic fertilizer as a supplement. The application rate should be scientifically determined according to the soil fertility base, yield target, fertilizer quality, and climatic characteristics of cultivation.

3. Intertillage and weeding: Intertillage loosens the soil, increases soil permeability, stores water and preserves moisture, raises soil temperature, promotes seedling growth, and also eliminates weed damage. The number and timing of intertillage and weeding depend on the region, soil, seedling condition, and amount of weeds. The first intertillage and weeding is carried out when seedlings are 6-7 cm tall, combined with thinning and spacing of seedlings. The second intertillage is carried out before buckwheat rows close, combined with topdressing and earthing up, with an intertillage depth of 3-5 cm.

4. Irrigation and watering: Buckwheat is a typical dryland crop, but its drought resistance during growth is relatively weak, with the greatest water demand during the flowering and grain-filling period. Spring buckwheat in China is mostly planted on dry slopes lacking irrigation conditions, and buckwheat growth depends on natural precipitation. In spring buckwheat areas with irrigation conditions, if drought occurs during the flowering and grain-filling period, water should be applied to meet buckwheat's water requirements to ensure high yield.

5. Flowering period management: Common buckwheat is a cross-pollinated crop and also has bisexual flowers. Its seed-setting rate is low, only 10-15%, which is the main factor in low yield. The way to improve the seed-setting rate of common buckwheat is to create pollination conditions. Common buckwheat is an insect-pollinated crop, and insects can increase its pollination and seed-setting rate. Bee-assisted pollination is carried out during the full bloom period of buckwheat. 2-3 days before buckwheat flowering, 1-3 bee hives are placed per mu of buckwheat field.