Care for spring rice during heading and panicle formation period

During the spring crop sowing period, the cold weather caused difficulties. However, from March onwards, the weather has been relatively favorable, with light rain and drizzle alternating with warm sunny days, creating favorable conditions for rice to grow and develop well. Currently, most of the rice area has entered the stage of standing and forming panicles.

4 sao of rice of Mrs. Luu Thi Xuan's family, Cay Tho hamlet, Duc Ninh commune (Ham Yen) is doing very well. According to Mrs. Xuan, the rice is in the standing stage, the waist is tight, and the rice is expected to start heading at the end of April. Compared to last year's spring crop, the beginning of the crop was difficult due to prolonged cold, which affected the rooting process of the young rice.

From March until now, the weather has been relatively favorable, the water source for irrigation has been provided sufficiently, especially the two "golden" rains at the end of March and the beginning of April have helped the rice plants to grow visibly. Ms. Xuan shared that the rice is in the standing stage (forming and nurturing panicles) and needs to be supplemented with nutrients. With the experience of a farmer , she combined the right amount of 3 types of fertilizer including nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. According to Ms. Xuan, combined fertilization will make the rice flowers firmer, the plants will be stronger and less likely to fall when encountering rains accompanied by strong winds in late April and May.

People in Oang village, Dao Vien commune (Yen Son) spray pesticides to prevent rice blast disease on spring rice.

Farmers in localities in the province are also actively visiting their fields, focusing on care and waiting for the spring rice crop. Mr. Nguyen Thanh Long, Oang village, Phu Thinh commune (Yen Son) shared that rice is in the earing stage and is very sensitive to the weather as well as pests and diseases. To protect spring rice, Mr. Long regularly visits the fields to closely monitor the growth and development of the rice plants, promptly handling pests and diseases when they are detected. According to Mr. Long, spring rice is growing very well, but there are also scattered rice buds and leaves showing signs of blast disease. To prevent the risk of disease spreading, Mr. Long proactively uses special medicine and sprays to prevent it.

Comrade Nguyen Thanh Long, Deputy Head of the Provincial Department of Cultivation and Plant Protection, said: Through actual inspection, the main spring rice area is in the stage of standing and heading, with the late rice crop in the final stage of rapid growth and standing. This is an important and necessary time for caring for and fertilizing rice plants, because fertilizing at this time will ensure adequate nutrition from the beginning for both the female and the young shoots during the process of panicle differentiation and panicle growth. Moreover, fertilizing determines most of the rice yield because this is the period that determines the number of grains/flower.

To ensure a bumper crop, the provincial Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection has issued an official dispatch directing specialized departments to closely coordinate with local authorities to guide farmers to focus on weeding rice, maintaining a sufficient and stable water level in the fields; applying fertilizer to prepare for panicle initiation with 2 - 3 kg of potassium and about 0.5 - 1 kg of urea/sao. If the rice grows and develops poorly, farmers need to add about 0.5 - 1 kg of nitrogen.

In addition to fertilizing, farmers should pay attention to cleaning the grass banks to limit pests from hiding and causing harm to rice because the weather is changing seasons, cloudy sky, few hours of sunshine are the ideal environment for pests and diseases such as: Bacterial stripe spot, thrips, leaf rollers, stem borers, brown planthoppers... to develop and cause harm. The Department has investigated the fields and found that the pests: shoot flies, small leaf rollers, stem borers, brown planthoppers and white-backed planthoppers, blast disease, brown spot... have appeared sporadically, even in some areas there has been a high density with pests from 3 - 5 individuals/m ² , diseases are 3 - 5%m ² .

Particularly with blast and sheath blight, there have been localized rice infections with 10-20% disease/m2 in Ham Yen and Yen Son districts. While blast is the most dangerous disease for rice plants during the heading stage, if preventive measures are not taken immediately, it will spread rapidly, seriously affecting rice yield and output.

To prevent rice blast disease, the Provincial Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection recommends that farmers closely monitor the disease progression on rice plants and immediately spray the following pesticides: Golden Rice 20 WP, Trizole 20WP, Nativo750 WG... For other pests such as thrips, leaf rollers, stem borers, and brown planthoppers, farmers use the following pesticides: Regent 800WG, Actara 25WG, Padan 95SP, and Oturs 5SC... The use of pesticides must comply with the instructions on the packaging and ensure appropriate quarantine time to avoid waste and protect the environment.

At this time, people need to regularly visit the fields, closely monitor the growth and development of rice; follow the recommendations of experts, take care, and effectively prevent diseases, ensuring a successful spring crop.

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