Belarus crops almost 4 million tonnes of grain

As of early August 1 gross grain yield made up 3 million 895 thousand tonnes, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Foodstuffs Vasily Pavlovsky told BelTA. As of August 1 last year the country gathered in over 1,5 million tonnes. The Minsk oblast is a leader. The agricultural organizations of the oblast were first to reach 1 million tonne of grain and by August 1 they harvested 1 million 63,6 thousand tonnes of grain. the Grodno oblast threshed 765,3 thousand tonnes, Brest – 652,8 thousand tonnes, Gomel – 535,8 thousand tonnes, Mogilev – over 500 thousand tonnes and Vitebsk – 377 thousand tonnes of grain. The Grodno oblast reports a record high crop capacity, over 36 centners per hectare.The Mogilev oblast exceeded last year’s figures, 32 centners per hectare. Agricultural organizations of the Minsk oblast harvest 31 centners per hectare. The harvesting campaign has lately gathered pace due to good weather. Some 1.3 million hectares has been harvested, or 57% of the total sown areas. Yesterday 67 thousand hectares were harvested, or about 3%, which is much more comparing with 1.5%. The Gomel oblast has already harvested nearly 68% of the sown areas, Brest – 67%, Grodno – 64%, Minsk – 57%, Mogilev and Vitebsk oblasts 49.4% and 37% respectively. “It is necessary to speed up the harvesting up to 5-7% a day to complete it by August 15. For this purpose we should use the whole fleet of highly effective combine harvesters and work in two or three shifts,” Vasily Pavlovsky said. According to him, at present it is urgent to accelerate the straw harvesting and fertilize the fields with glyphosate-intensive compounds that bring long-lived weeds under control and prepare the soil for the winter sowing. At present some 147,9 thousand hectares /58% of the plan/ have been prepared for the winter rape sowing.

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