Barbarea (winter cress or yellow rocket), also Barbarea, is an edible and fodder oilseed crop, also refers to the technical non-agricultural crops of the crop rotation, in many ways similar to rapeseed. In the world practice of agriculture rapeseed and Barbarea are often considered as one crop under the common name “rapeseed”.
Economic importance
The oil content in the seeds of Barbarea is 32 to 50%, protein – up to 20-23% protein, carbohydrates – up to 17%. Spring and winter forms of Barbarea are used in agricultural production.
Oil of Barbarea refers to semi-drying and is used for food and technical purposes.
Barbarea can be grown as a fodder crop for green mass, silage, haylage, grass meal. For this purpose it can be cultivated as the main crop, in intercrops and after haying. Fodder value is similar to that of rapeseed: 100 kg of green mass is 16 fodder units and contains 3 kg of protein or 190 g per 1 fodder unit. Green mass is well eaten by animals, the digestibility coefficient is 70-80%.
Barbarea can also serve as a green fertilizer.
It is a good honeycomb.
Oilcake and meal of winter Barbarea (varieties with a reduced content of erucic acid and glycosinolates) are considered good concentrated feed for livestock. Cake and meal from seeds of common varieties can also be fed to animals, but in small quantities. 1 kg of cake corresponds to 1 feed unit.
Crop history
Originating in the Mediterranean.
Cultivation areas and yield
Originating in the Mediterranean.
Areas of cultivation and yields
As a fodder crop, Barbarea is cultivated in Eastern and Western Siberia, in the Central Black Earth and Non-Black Earth zones of Russia, as well as in the north of Kazakhstan, Ukraine and the Baltic countries.
In terms of seed yield, Barbarea is inferior to rapeseed, but in Siberian conditions it steadily matures, unlike rapeseed.
The yield of spring Barbarea seeds can reach 1.7-2.0 t/ha if all the complex of technological methods are followed and all the factors are taken into account, which ensures high and stable yields with the use of modern varieties, plant protection means and machinery system.
Yield of green mass when used for fodder purposes reaches 25-40 t/ha.
Botanical description
Spring Barbarea (Brassica tara L. ssp. oleifera campestris) and winter Barbarea (Brassica tara L. ssp. oleifera automnalis) are annual herbaceous plants in the cabbage family (Brassicaceae).
In addition, hybrids have been bred that may be of great interest for agricultural production. The perko hybrid is a polyploid hybrid of winter Barbarea and Beijing cabbage (Brassica chinensis L.). The tifon hybrid is a hybrid of winter Barbarea and turnip.
Tap root, well developed, poorly branched, penetrates into the soil to the depth of 1.5-2 m.
Stem is erect, branched, blue with dense waxy bloom, pubescent underneath.
The plant height is 100-170 cm.
Rosemary leaves are lyre-like, feathery-incised, with sparse hard pubescence without waxy bloom. Middle leaves are elongate spike-shaped. Upper leaves are oblong-lanceolate. Cauline leaves are sessile, covering the stem in its lower part entirely.
Inflorescence is scutellum; fruits have a longer beak than in rape.
Weight of 1,000 seeds 1.6-3.5 g.
Biological features
Barbarea is a long-day plant.
Seeds begin to germinate at a temperature of 1-3°C. Sprouts can tolerate frosts down to -3 … -5 °C. Plants are able to vegetate at 2-3°C and survive autumn frosts as low as -8°C.
Sharp temperature