Arable News

Murray winter oilseed rape was newly added to the AHDB Recommended List (RL) last autumn and went straight to the top of the East/West Region Only table. LS Plant Breeding are receiving positive reports from merchants and growers alike.

Emerging OSR varieties with improved genetics that keep plant stems healthy are offering growers increased resistance to yield-robbing diseases such as phoma, light leaf spot and verticillium, according to LSPB managing director Chris Guest.

Laurence J Betts Ltd (LJ Betts), grower of premium salads since 1930, has been acquired by the Regan family who are the owners of Hugh Lowe Farms Ltd, a neighbouring berry growing business in Kent, and of Blaise Plants Ltd, a plant propagator.

Maize crops stand to make big gains in cob quality and dry matter yield with Quantis for stress relief through the crucial pollen development stage at flowering, along with any subsequent heat events.

Two new hybrid winter feed barley varieties from Syngenta have become available for planting this autumn, offering enhanced defence against two of the major yield-robbing diseases alongside increased vigour and yields.

Results from the latest Planting and Variety Survey indicate that more barley and oilseed rape (OSR) are being sown in the UK at the expense of wheat, the area of which is estimated to decrease by 3% for harvest 2023.

Farmers, growers and buying co-operatives must brace for changes in the law which will require them to provide photo ID when purchasing ammonium nitrate (AN) fertilisers from October, the Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC) has warned.

A two-year feasibility study led by crop research organisation NIAB is set to explore the potential for domestic chickpea production, which could further reduce fertiliser reliance in the UK arable sector.

Farmers need to maximise efficacy and minimise resistance risks when using glyphosate to eliminate weeds ahead of drilling according to Matt Siggs of Bayer. Roundup (glyphosate) is a vital control tool on many farms, so a proactive approach is best to ensure long-term efficacy.

The UK’s only two-day on-farm regenerative agriculture conference, Groundswell, sold out for another year, attracting over 6,500 attendees, with 75% either directly farming or involved in a farming enterprise.   

Arable farmers are being advised to revise their blight strategies now to target Alternaria, as a cold and wet spring followed by weeks of hot and dry weather have made potato crops significantly more susceptible to infection.

AHDB has extended the deadline for levy payers to complete this year’s Planting and Variety Survey to Friday 21st July, in order to gain the best possible estimate of planted area for the upcoming harvest.