Growers are advised to re-think their cereal agronomy strategies and use of seed treatments, to ensure the best possible establishment and vigour of crops this autumn, as a result of the neonicotinoid bans.
Exciting additions to the ‘recommended list’ have raised the bar this year, in terms of both yield and disease resistance, making autumn seeds robust and plentiful.
KWS Extase has rightly been grabbing the majority of the headlines with its fantastic septoria tritici and extremely high untreated yield.
There has been such a great response to it, that there won’t be enough supply to meet demand this year.
We are facing unprecedented times, and farming along with other industries are having to ensure their businesses are as well positioned as they can be to manage the impact our withdrawal from the EU in whatever form that might be, will have.
The engine room and lifeblood of any farm is the soil, an element that has the potential to impact greatly on farm profitability. Knowing the fertility of your soils is key in determining the most efficient and cost-effective choices that should be made when using both fertilisers and manures.
A key factor in producing quality forage is a carefully planned reseeding programme revolving around the core principle that you should aim to reseed 15% of the farm each year.
It is estimated that reseeding costs £250/ acre, making it a major investment, which requires attention to detail throughout the process. The starting point to this is selecting the right grass seed mixture which will suit your end requirements.
As you would expect, the spell of exceptionally good weather that we saw during February has prompted a high demand for fertiliser throughout the month, and leading into March as people take advantage of windows of opportunity as they appear.
Maize is a high value cropping choice for dairy and beef producers with its high starch and fermentable energy content. However, it can be relatively costly to grow so it pays to consider all the elements required for a successful crop, ahead of planting. If you are growing maize this year careful planning is the key to ensure the best possible return on investment.
We are encouraging our growers to make spring seed decisions early, as popular varieties are likely to be in short supply.
Delayed drilling due to the ‘Beast from the East’ and little rainfall from May to August last year has impacted seed availability for 2019.
Wynnstay have launched a new range of fertilisers within the established TopCrop brand. PotashPlus offers an ideal combination of four nutrients in one single fertiliser.
Correct management of an autumn reseed throughout the growing season will be rewarded with an uplift in production from home-grown forage.
Whatever the use and however much maize is going to be fed in the ration, optimising dry matter, starch yield and fibre digestibility is the key. The latter of the two being more significant, yet harder to measure.
