Mustard agronomy – Farmers Weekly
Mustard is a lower input crop choice than oilseed rape and fulfils the same role as a break, providing a good entry for winter wheat ...
As with oilseed rape, the establishment stage is when things can go wrong, although the advent of winter-sown varieties has helped to remove some of that risk, says agronomist Rich Daubney of Farmacy.
Weed control
While the herbicide options for the mustard crop are limited, with no approval for either Kerb or Astrokerb (propyzamide with/without aminopyralid) in the autumn, Centurion Max (clethodim) has been cleared for use and provides some level of blackgrass control, he says.
Phoma is less of a concern with mustard, but the crop is susceptible to light leaf spot and can suffer from white blister and alternaria later on in the growing season. Fortunately, there are several fungicides cleared for use, including Amistar (azoxystrobin)-type products and azoles, reveals Mr Daubney.
Nitrogen rates are similar to those used in oilseed rape, he says, with a winter mustard receiving in the region of 160-180kg N/ha and a spring crop requiring 120-140kg N/ha.
The winter mustard crop is affected by frost in much the same way that oilseed rape is, although the white varieties seem to fare better than brown. “If there has been a kind autumn and there’s lots of soft growth, frost damage can look awful. Usually, crops will recover.”
Growers interested in producing mustard should alter their cover crop mixes accordingly and leave it out of those, he advises.
Harvesting can be done in several ways, from swathing to desiccating and direct combining, after which the crop needs to be looked after in storage.
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