Top considerations for spring crop varieties

Incorporation of spring varieties into rotations can enhance farm business resilience, especially in the face of increased input costs or weed burdens. When selecting the best variety for your farm business, end market, agronomic packages and consistency of performance are the most important factors to consider.

Autumn 2024 was a tough planting year, prolonged rainfall and waterlogged land in many areas led to delayed or even missed drilling. This spring brings the opportunity to sow fallow ground with spring cereals or pulses either as a cash crop or as feed. Or if you have opted for an overwintered cover crop such as SAM2/SW6, following with a spring cereal crop in the rotation can improve soil structure and nutrient retention. 

With SFI and CSS there seems like more choice than ever for crop selection. It is important to remember the benefits of traditional spring crops in the rotation. The potential for profit, yields, and weed control all make spring cereal crops viable options for 2025. 

• The yield gap between spring and autumn sown crops has narrowed.
• Spring varieties provide an opportunity to reduce input costs, as they require less fertiliser, fungicide, and herbicide applications
• Spring cereals provide a means to control grass weeds. 80% of blackgrass germinates in the autumn, so planting any spring crop provides the opportunity to deal with the autumn flush of grass weeds ahead of sowing.
• There are specific circumstances where a spring variety makes most sense within a rotation. For fields coming out of stubble turnips, or other late root crops, a spring sown cereal will generally be the best option, especially given the wet autumn conditions this year.

The yield gap between spring and autumn sown crops has narrowed, with spring varieties offering the benefit of reduced input costs, requiring less fertiliser, fungicide, and herbicide. Spring cereals are also effective for controlling grass weeds, as 80% of blackgrass germinates in the autumn, allowing farmers to tackle the autumn flush of weeds before sowing. In certain situations, such as fields following stubble turnips or late root crops, spring-sown cereals are often the best choice, especially in light of this year’s wet autumn conditions.

In 2024, a recommended list review by AHBD showed that pest and disease resistance scores were regarded as the most important factor when selecting a variety. Agronomic features, farm system yields, and fungicide-treated yields were also regarded as highly important by farmers when selecting a variety.

Other aspects such as the end market, regional performances, and Grain Quality should also be a consideration beyond that, it’s important to look at the annual treated yield for the last five years to indicate whether the variety has performed consistently. It’s also worth checking the maturity of spring crops and avoiding late-maturing varieties, as they can limit options in the autumn when it comes to what follows them in the rotation. 

End-use is the biggest driver when selecting spring barley varieties. Three strong varieties recommended by the Wynnstay seed team are:

• RGT Planet is an excellent all-round variety that can be sold for brewing or for feed. It has a robust disease package and strong straw.
• Laureate has multiple end uses, as it can go into the brewing, distilling, or feed markets. The high-yielding, consistent variety remains an excellent choice. 
• Skyway is a great choice for brewers. It was added to the Recommended List in 2021 and received P2 Approval for Brewing in spring 2022. This high-yielding variety has strong straw and good brackling resistance, making it a reliable option for your farm.

Spring milling wheats have been increasing in popularity in recent years because of the increased yield potential and it can be easier to achieve a higher protein content than with autumn. Wynnstay’s recommended varieties include:

• Everlong, is very high-yielding, with great disease scores, Everlong is an excellent feed wheat choice. 
• KWS Ladum is a UKFM Group 1 milling wheat, naturally offering the grain quality expected. Along with good disease scores and consistently good yields, KWS Ladum is great option.
• KWS Fixum is a consistently high-yielding group 4 option. It has a great disease package, strong and plentiful straw gives KWS Fixum the whole package.

There are also a few options for spring oats:

• WPS Isabel is a tried and tested well-regarded husked oat. With excellent specific weights, high yields 
• Merlin is a high-yielding and early-maturing spring oat option, with good resistance to mildew. Stiff straw and interest from the millers, Make Merlin perfect for growers looking to progress their crops.

In addition to cereals, spring beans, and peas provide an even greater opportunity to reduce input requirements and benefit from homegrown protein sources. Early maturing varieties are best, to avoid combining them late in the season and can spread the workload.   
This year we expect Lynx spring beans to continue to dominate the market share, they have proven to be consistent high yielders with great Downy Mildew resistance. 

Kactus Spring Pea Seeds and Carrington Spring Peas are both good choices for this growing season, Carrington boasts higher yields and longer straw whereas Kactus is earlier to mature with a higher protein content. Both have good standing ability at harvest which is arguably the most important factor when selecting a variety.