Rice, an essential food crop for humans, has a rich history of cultivation and consumption. Currently, half of the world's population relies on rice as a staple food, particularly in Asia, southern Europe, and parts of tropical America and Africa.
While autumn is commonly associated with the harvest season, whether wheat is harvested in the fall depends on factors such as the planting area and the variety of wheat. Wheat, belonging to the genus Triticum in the family Poaceae, is one of the earliest crops cultivated globally.
Over time, it has become one of the most widely grown, highest-yielding, and nutritionally valuable food crops. Wheat is extensively traded and plays a crucial role in feeding populations worldwide.
Wheat is typically categorized into two types based on the season and region of planting: spring wheat and winter wheat.
Spring wheat exhibits exceptional drought resistance, featuring short spikes and a shorter growing period. It is ideally suited for spring sowing, but its flour quality may not be as superior as that of winter wheat.
In general, spring wheat is planted around the time of the Spring Festival and harvested in the fall. On the other hand, winter wheat is planted during winter and harvested in the subsequent summer. Therefore, autumn is the designated time for harvesting spring wheat, while winter wheat cannot be harvested during this season.
Compared to winter wheat, spring wheat has a shorter growing cycle but slightly less desirable taste. Winter wheat takes approximately 200 days to mature, while spring wheat matures in around 100 days. The choice of wheat variety should align with the specific regional environment and conditions.
The growth and development of wheat encompass several stages, starting from seed germination, seedling emergence, rooting, leaf growth, nodulation, gestation, tasseling, flowering, fruiting, and seed production. This lifecycle, known as the fertility period, typically lasts between 230 and 270 days.
To facilitate cultivation management, the wheat lifecycle can be divided into twelve fertility periods, including seedling, three leaves, tillering, overwintering, greening, initiation, elongation, ear emergence, spike formation, flowering, grain filling, and maturity. The grain filling stage further consists of seed formation, milk stage, dough stage, and ripening.
To summarize, wheat's growth stages can be broadly categorized into three phases:
Seedling stage: This stage spans from emergence to initiation, primarily focusing on nutritional growth, such as root and leaf development, as well as the formation of tillers.
Middle stage: This phase encompasses growth from emergence to the flowering stage. It involves a balance between nutritional and reproductive growth, including root, stem, and spike differentiation and development.
Late stage: From flowering to maturity, this phase is also known as the seed formation stage, primarily characterized by reproductive growth.
Mature wheat is distinguished by a predominantly waxy endosperm, hardened seeds, yellowing wheat ears and spike nodes, and the highest grain weight. Harvesting times vary depending on the variety, with spring varieties typically harvested from late May to early June and semi-winter varieties harvested from late June to early July.
Wheat and rice, two remarkable crops, hold immense significance in global agriculture and food security. Rice, widely consumed across Asia, southern Europe, and tropical regions, sustains half of the world's population.
Meanwhile, wheat, cultivated for centuries, has become a vital staple worldwide, with its extensive distribution, high production, and nutritional value. Harvesting practices for wheat differ based on the variety, such as spring wheat harvested in autumn and winter wheat harvested in the following summer.
