Various factors affecting the cereal crop production.

1. FACTORS AFFECTING
CEREAL CROPS
PRODUCTION AND IT’S
MANAGEMENT ISSUES
KUSHAL GC
BSC.AG
AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY UNIVERSITY,RAMPUR

2. INTRODUCTION
• A cereal is generally defined as a grass grown for its
small, edible seed.
• All cereals are angiosperms, monocots, and members
of the grass family Gramineae.
• Cereal crops are : Rice, maize, Wheat, Barley etc
• Cereal crops are called grain crops.
• Cereals are cultivated in huge amounts, and are used
as a staple food in most of the developing countries
as they provide more energy. Rice is the staple food in
the context of Nepal.

3. CEREAL CROPS PRODUCTION
• Crop Production is a complex process either it may be cereal
or other crops.
• Its success depends on crop, environmental factors and
methods of cultivation.
• Several factors affect the crop production.
• These factors are to be taken into consideration by a farmer
during crop planting and crop production.

4. FACTORS AFFECTING THE CEREAL CROPS
PRODUCTION
• Genetic Factors
• Environmental Factors
1. Temperature
2. Rainfall
3. Light
4. Soil
5. Relative Humidity
6. Biotic factors (Weeds)

5. • Methods/Practices
of Cultivation
1. Seed Selection
2. Time of Sowing
3. Depth of Sowing

6. GENETIC FACTORS
• Genetics can be known with development and introduction of new varieties and
hybrid of crops.
• Because of this, there has been a big jump in the production and productivity of
crops.
• High crop yields produced with modern hybrid crop varieties require more plant
nutrients than that of low yielding traditional crops.
• Under low fertility condition a new high yielding variety cannot develop to its full
yield potential.
• Some of the hybrid modern varieties of cereals crops are:
• Rice: Ghaiya-3, Hardinath-4, Hardinath-5, Hardinath-6, Khumal Basmati-16 etc.
• Wheat: Bheri-Ganga, Himganga, Khumal-Shakti, Borlaug 2020 etc.
• Maize: Rampur composite, Poshilo Makai -1, Mankamana- 3 etc.

7. ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS
1. TEMPERATURE
• Temperature affects the grain yield by affecting tillering, spikelet formation, ripening,cob
formation and other stages of cereal crop.
• For rice, optimum temperature for germination-25 ∘C
optimum temperature for ripening-26 ∘C
• For wheat, optimum temperature for germination-20-25 ∘C
optimum temperature for ripening- 14-15 ∘C
• For maize, optimum temperature for germination- 21 ∘C
optimum temperature for growth - 32 ∘C

8. 2. Rainfall
• For rice cultivation rainfall is the limiting factor. 65% of rice in Nepal is cultivated
under rainfed condition. Rainfall deficit condition affects panicle initiation stage to
heading stage hampering the yield.
• For wheat, rain just after sowing hamper germination.( Helimenthosporium sativum
fungus causes leaf spot diseases). Areas with warm and damp climate not suited for
wheat growing.
• For maize, 600 mm rainfall is required throughout its growth period.

9. 3. LIGHT
• Rice is short day plant requiring day length of about 10 hrs.
Higher solar radiation, greater the yield of rice.
• Wheat is a long day plant and require 13-14 light hrs for
flowering.
• Maize is a C4 plant so, it is photosynthetically more efficient
and need bright sunny days for acceleration of
photosynthesis.

10. 4.. RELATIVE HUMIDITY
Higher humidity- incidence of disease causing pathogen.
Humid- reduce rate of transpiration – reduce rate of CO2
• For rice, Optimum RH- 50-60%
• For maize, optimum RH is 80-90% for growth and development.

11. 5. Soil
• for rice, soil with good water holding capacity with good amount of
clay and organic matter is required. Suitable pH range of soil is 5.5-
6.5.
• for wheat, clay loam to loamy soil with moderate water holding
capacity and neutral soil is suitable.
• for maize, well drained sandy loam to silty loam soil of pH 6.5-7.5 is
suitable.

12. 6. BIOTIC FACTORS
• Many biotic factors like weeds can limit plant growth by competing for water and food
and cause hazard to farming operation and pose a potential threat to reduce crop yield.
• Weeds compete with crops for nutrients,water and space.
• Major weeds of
• Rice: Sama, Mothe,Jwane etc.
• Wheat: Bethe, Bhang , Ragate Jhar etc.
• Maize: Kade latte,Sama etc.

13. METHODS /PRACTICE OF CULTIVATION
1. SEED SELECTION
• for higher yield, the used seed should be healthy and recommended
variety for particular area.
• Some hybrid seeds varieties recommended for particular area in
Nepal includes
• for rice, VARIETY Suitable area for growing
Hardinath-1 Terai, Inner Terai and Valley
Khumal-2 Midhill
Radha-4 Mid western and Far Western
Manjushree-2 Kathmandu valley

14. • for wheat,
• for maize,
Variety Suitable area for growing
Annapurna-1,Annapurna-2 Mid and high hills
Lumbini, Siddhartha, Triveni Terai, tars and lower valleys
Pasang Lhamu, Kanti Mid and high hills
Binayak, Bhrikuti, Rohini Terai, tars and lower valleys
Variety Suitable area for growing
Rampur Hybrid- 2 Terai and Inner Terai
Manakamana-4/5/6 Mid Hill
Makalu-2 Mid to hill hill
Rampur yellow Terai, Inner terai and tar.

15. 2. Time of Sowing
• It brings changes in weather parameters such as temperature, solar radiation, humidity
during crop season which responsible for changes in morphology, plant physiology and
molecular level of plants.
• Planting date has prime importance for crop production due to its variation in weather.
• For rice,
• Ideal time of sowing is end of June to first week of July
• For wheat,
• Terai- Mid. November
• Hill- Mid. October
• Mountain- Early October
• Delay sowing especially in terai reduces grain yield by increasing sterility.

16. • For maize,
• With the availability of thermo and photosensitive varieties, maize can be sown in expect
December to January due to low temperature.
• Kharif- End of May to first week of July.
• Rabi- Mid October to mid November.
• Spring- February to mid March.

17. 3. Depth of Sowing
• Optimum depth of sowing is needed for better availability of moisture, avoidance of bird
damage and quick and uniform germination of seeds.
• For rice,
• Optimum depth of sowing 3-4 cm.
• For maize,
• Optimum depth of sowing 5-7 cm to ensure plenty of moisture for germination.
• For wheat,
• Dwarf wheat- 5cm
• Traditional wheat – 6-8 cm.

18. • MANAGEMENT ISSUES OF FACTOR AFFECTING CEREAL CROP
PRODUCTION
• Weed Management Issues
• Fertilizer Management Issues
• Water Management Issues
• Nutrient Management Isuues

19. WEED MANAGEMENT ISSUES
• Weeds compete with cereals for water, light, nutrients and
space, causing reductions to yield quality and quantity. They
can also be host to pests and diseases, and create a bridge
for these to be carried over from one crop to the next.
• The timing of operations, including herbicide treatments,
cultivations, drilling date and the length of rotations,
determines their effectiveness as weed control mechanisms.

20. FERTILIZER MANAGEMENT ISSUES
• Getting down to the task of fertilizing, the first step must be to know the soil conditions and analyse
them. The use of fertilizers for cereal crops covers a number of macronutrients (nitrogen,
phosphorus, potassium - NPK) and micronutrients (magnesium, zinc, iron, calcium).
• Nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium are three of the most important elements for the correct
fertilizing of wheat and barley.
• Nitrogen is a highly mobile element and large quantities are easily lost through leaching or runoff. It
is important to know exactly how much of the element the crop needs and utilize fertilizer
accordingly.

21. WATER MANAGEMENT ISSUES
• With proper combination of water and soil nutrients the crop yields can be
boosted manifold under irrigated agriculture.
• Water is a costly input when canals supply it misuse of water leads to water
logging, salt imbalance etc.
• As we know that Nepalese agriculture is dependent on rain water only as there is
problem in construction of irrigation canals because of difficult topography. So,this is
one of the major management issue for production of cereal crops.

22. NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT ISSUES
• The nutritional requirement of a crop is determined by its productivity, whereas
the nutrient rate to be applied to the crop must be contrasted with the soil
natural nutrient supply ability.
• Nutrient management is important for wheat production before planting and in
late winter. Soil pH, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, and magnesium need to be
adequate before planting. A common problem with direct seed or no-till wheat
production is low soil pH in the top 2-3 inches of soil.

23. IN THE CONTEXT OF NEPAL
• The major problems before the cultivation of cereal crops were found to be
unavailability of hybrid seeds, weeds and grass problems, irrigation problems,
labors and mechanization problems, and fertilizers and manures problems, etc.
• Different problems during cultivation of cereal crops were found to be irrigation
problems, labor problems weeds, fertilizers, insects, pests, and disease.
• Similarly, the problems of storage house, storage insects, climate change, and
weather condition and threshing problems, etc., were found to be the post-
harvest problems in cereal crops cultivation.
• They require large amount of investment in terms of fertilizer, irrigation, labor-
force and plant protection chemicals. Only 54 percent of the total cultivated land
is irrigated, among which only 33 percent of land has over the year irrigation
facilities. Such a situation makes Nepalese cereal production system highly
monsoon dependent.

24. POLICIES/ACT TO OVERCOME MANAGEMENT
ISSUES
Seeds Act, 1988 (first amendment, 2012)
• The Seeds Act was enacted in Nepal in 1988 and amended in 2012. The main
objective of the Seeds Act was to promote and regulate the increased production and
distribution of high-quality plant seeds and to ensure the interest of seed
entrepreneurs and farming communities (the consumers of such seeds).
National fertilizer Policy 2058
• The main objective of this policy is to make easy access of fertilizers to farmers,
create suitable environment for the private and cooperative sector to engage in
fertilizer business sector and to reduce the negative impacts caused in environment
due to chemical fertilizers.

25. POLICIES/ACT TO OVERCOME MANAGEMENT
ISSUES
Irrigation Policy, 2060
• To provide round the year irrigation facility to the irrigation suitable land by
effective utilization of the current water resources of the country.
• To develop institutional capability of Water Users for sustainable management of
existing system.
• To enhance the knowledge, skill and institutional working capability of technical
human resources, water users and non-governmental association / organization
relating to development of irrigation sector.

26. THANK YOU
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