On February 2, Minsk /Nadezhda Radivon - BELTA/. Scientists assess the condition of winter crops in Belarus as satisfactory. This was reported to BELTA correspondent by Fyodor Privalov, Doctor of Agricultural Sciences, General Director of the Scientific and Practical Centre for Agriculture of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus. He participated in a meeting of the board of the Committee for Agriculture and Food of the Minsk Regional Executive Committee. Crop monitoring is carried out constantly; there is no danger to winter crops yet, and the snow cover protects them from frost. "There is an old proverb about this: much snow means much bread. The greatest danger is spring frosts. When the snow melts and the plant starts growing, frosts can severely damage the root system. Currently, the condition of winter crops can be rated as four plus on a five-point scale," said Fyodor Privalov, adding that in autumn, most of the work, particularly in the Minsk region, was carried out within optimal agro-technical terms, and seeds and soil were well prepared. Fyodor Privalov noted that science plays a significant role in the development of Belarusian agriculture. For example, while twenty years ago rapeseed was practically not grown in Belarus, it now occupies over 400,000 hectares. The Republic is self-sufficient in rapeseed oil, oilseeds, etc. The same situation applies to corn seeds (70% of the sown area is now planted with Belarusian selection seeds), etc. Fyodor Privalov also attributed self-sufficiency in wheat for baking and malting barley to the most significant achievements of scientists. Over the past five-year period, scientists of the Scientific and Practical Centre have created 170 plant varieties and 66 technological developments. Many developments by Belarusian scientists have received prestigious awards at international exhibitions. Domestic varieties surpass foreign ones in productivity and resistance to natural disasters in most regions of the country. "Serious tasks have also been set for this five-year period, which scientists and farmers will have to solve together," emphasized Fyodor Privalov. -0-

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