Crop Watch – Farmers Weekly
Crop Watch - Farmers Weekly ...
Conor Campbell, North (Northumberland)
An initial flurry of excitement mid-February which saw sprayers and fertiliser spreaders being brought out from retirement, has been halted by the reminder that spring has not fully sprung and the wintery weather isn’t behind us just yet. Thankfully, it hasn’t been the Beast from the East 2.0 that was threatened – if I had a pound for every time they got the forecast wrong, I’d be a very happy man.
Oilseed rape crops are picking up and many have received a small dose of nitrogen. Pigeons have done some damage over the winter, particularly around the more urban areas, where the noise of a gas gun doesn’t go unnoticed and complaints quickly flood in. Once the warmer weather returns these crops will begin to jump, especially where some early nitrogen was applied, so particular attention will be paid to the more forward crops, which may require a growth regulator to balance out the main stem and encourage some branching.
Winter barleys overall look well, albeit a touch yellow around the county. They will be grateful for their first dose of nitrogen when we can travel. Disease levels vary with variety, with some net blotch kicking around and brown rust in the usual culprits. This will be tidied up in the due course, where needed, along with some early nutrition.
Wheats look very well, particularly the early sown crops, which are very leggy. A milder winter and, until this week, a milder start to the spring will favour disease pressure. There are plenty of reports of yellow rust, and septoria isn’t hard to find. Autumn residuals have done a good job and we will be looking at grassweed herbicides in due course, careful to see some active growth and avoid any frosty weather.
This far north, spring drilling hasn’t begun yet. Spring beans will be first on the list once the conditions allow us to get on, followed shortly by spring barley. I pray for a sensible forecast over the next month and not one that turns dry in the blink of an eye.
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