A Detailed Guide to Selecting and Growing Ratgrass Seeds

Ratgrass is a herbaceous green manure plant that tolerates severe cold but not high temperatures, and has the function of preventing soil erosion and replenishing organic matter in the soil. Many farmers plant ratgrass in their orchards. Planting ratgrass in orchards can suppress the growth of various weeds and maintain good soil aeration. So how do you select ratgrass seeds? What seedling-growing methods are there? Let's take a look together below.

1. How to select ratgrass seeds

Ratgrass seeds are relatively light and small. Choose mold-free, plump ratgrass seeds. When sowing the grass seed, it will be rather difficult. You can mix the ratgrass seeds evenly with sand so that they are spread more evenly; be sure to choose fine sand. It is worth noting that if you choose to sow mixed with sand, it is best to sow the next day, mixing it the night before. The sand's moisture should be around 40%-50%, with a damp feel. After the seeds are mixed in, they will take on a swollen state, and this way they will sprout one day earlier.

2. What seedling-growing methods are there for ratgrass?

1. Sowing and seedling growing, and pre-sowing work

(1) Before sowing, clear the weeds in the orchard thoroughly. Use a rotary tiller to till the soil about 10cm, level and fine-tune the ground, and sow promptly according to the soil moisture conditions.

(2) The suitable relative soil moisture content for ratgrass emergence is 65%-85%. If the moisture condition is poor, water promptly to soak the ground, ensuring sowing on schedule.

(3) Sowing method: manual broadcasting is advocated; for drilling, the row spacing is 30cm. Of course, it should also be adapted to local conditions and can be determined according to the actual situation of the orchard.

(4) Sowing should be done on a windless day. Before sowing, mix the ratgrass seeds and fine sand thoroughly at a ratio of 1:10. After sowing, lightly rake over it once with an iron rake; the soil covering the surface should be thin, the same as with wheat, and roll it with a roller to ensure the seeds are in close contact with the soil. Otherwise, the emergence rate will be affected.

2. Seedling-stage management

After the ratgrass emerges, water it for winter together with the fruit trees. Water again in the following spring, and apply 15 kg of nitrogen fertilizer (urea) per mu, generally during the green-up period in March-April.

3. Points to note

(1) First, cleanly remove the weeds from the ground (herbicides, tillage, and weeding).

(2) Strictly observe the sowing period (mid-September to mid-October), and choose a windless day before rain.

(3) Sow evenly and in an appropriate amount (1.5-2.0kg/mu).

(4) Do not cover with soil (do not sow deeply).

The above is an introduction to ratgrass. Ratgrass is one of the high-quality green manure grass species. Ratgrass has wide ecological adaptability and can be planted in many regions. It is mainly distributed in the southern Yunnan region of China, as well as in Shaanxi, Gansu, Henan, southern Jiangxi and the southwestern region.

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