Top picks for spring sowing – Agronomist & Arable Farmer

Spring barley remains the main spring crop option for many farmers, with AHDB figures showing that around 656,000ha of spring barley was grown in2022, albeit down 12% year-on-year, following an increase in the area of winter crops sown in autumn 2021. Malting varieties account for almost 60% of the total UK barley area.

Mr Bouch says LG Diablo, Laureate and RGT Planet have dominated the market in recent years, and with dual brewing and distilling approval, LG Diablo and Laureate are likely to remain popular, showing very little difference in yield or agronomics.

However, RGT Planet’s position in the brewing sector could be challenged by Skyway, which offers the greatest yield potential of all maltsters at 105, some 6% higher than RGT Planet, he says.

At the time of writing, Skyway is only provisionally approved for brewing though, and spring seed availability may be tight, he notes.

Of the feed varieties, Fairway is highest yielding, followed by newcomer Malvern, but he says both are 1-2% behind Skyway, which may still be the better option, even if not going into malting.

“Skyway has the yield and straw, and performs well across all regions, although perhaps suits eastern and western regions better.”

Spring milling wheat could be in demand in areas where winter sowing was incomplete, and of the Group 1s, newcomer KWS Ladum, and Mulika are lead contenders, Mr Bouch says.

“KWS Ladum is the highest yielding Group 1 at 102, representing a big step-up from old favourite Mulika (94), which has been around for 11 years. KWS Ladum also has sound disease resistance and grain quality.

“Of the Group 2s, KWS Cochise is still most widely grown, performing consistently in recent years.”

Group 4 spring wheats have also seen a step-change in yield, with the arrival of KWS Fixum (108) and WPB Escape (105) to the Recommended List.

However, Mr Bouch says seed availability for many newcomers may be tight given relatively small areas entered for harvest2022, so he encourages farmers to “get in early” if they want a particular variety.

Pulse options have seen some significant changes, with the recent arrival of two field peas promising big yield improvements, Mr Bouch says.

The large blue, Carrington, was recommended last year, and is 7% higher yielding than next-best on the list, Bluetime, and 15% better than Blueman, which has been widely grown, with decent quality, he says.

“There appears to be no agronomic penalty either, as like Bluetime, Carrington is strong against mildew, stands well with short straw, is resistant to pea wilt, and early to mature.

“Again, the challenge is seed supply, as the hot, dry summer created difficulties for harvesting and processing seed with low moisture content, plus there was only a relatively small amount of Carrington grown in 2022.”

Kameleon and Orchestra are the main white pea varieties to consider, both representing a decent yield improvement over previous varieties, such as Karpate. Orchestra is 4% better, while Chameleon yields 8% more, he adds.

For bean growers, Mr Bouch says Lynx tops the list for yield, with good agronomics. “It is slightly higher yielding and better against downy mildew than Ghengis, but otherwise little separates them.”

Ghengis is a BIPO variety, so he acknowledges that having to pay a £30/ha premium may deter some growers, even though the seed royalty is less than Lynx.

Juliet and Bingo remain Mr Bouch’s top two linseed varieties for spring sowing. “Juliet has been around since 2001, so has proven its yielding ability. It is latest to mature, although that is not usually an issue. Bingo is also a decent variety that proved popular last year.”

There has been little change among the favoured spring oat options too, with WPB Isabel remaining the preferred variety by end users, then Merlin and Canyon, he says.