Harvest

It’s been a showery week, and while the windy and warm weather has helped keep moisture levels from creeping up too high, that wind has also been tossing crops around.

There are still bits of wheat to be cut, while the April-sown-spring barley harvest has started and is likely to go on for a few weeks. The weather outlook isn’t great for the coming week, but that could change.

Glyphosate

Spring crops are uneven and have plenty of green grains in the tramlines and bits of second growth. You cannot apply glyphosate to food-grade crops.

You cannot apply glyphosate pre-harvest unless the crop is for animal feed and has a grass weed problem. Spray drift over a ditch is enough to contaminate a sample of barley, which will result in rejection or a costly bill if that grain contaminates a grain store.

Oilseed rape

Now is the ideal time to plant oilseed rape. On this week’s tillage pages we have details on varieties and the advantages and disadvantages of planting the crop.

Importing straw and manure: In the news pages this week there are reports of straw being imported into the country. Keep an eye out for this straw and note where it is going.

You should not import any organic manures from these farms as they will come with a high risk of grass weeds.

It is good to import slurry onto farm and to work with livestock farmers to share organic manures, but it is not worth the risk of bringing blackgrass, canary grass or brome onto your farm.

The same goes for imports at home, but the risk is much higher from straw that you have no way to trace and is coming from an area where blackgrass is prevalent.

Beet

Some beet crops are due their second fungicide at this stage. Beet in general is doing well and might be worth that second application.

Research has shown that an application of Angle in July delivered almost 10t/ha more root yield than untreated crops, while an additional application in August added 14.5t/ha more than an untreated plot, or over 5t/ha more than one application in July.

Cover crops

If you are putting in cover crops then plant them as soon as possible as you will get them off to a better start in the longer and warmer days and hopefully have better yielding crops as a result. Prioritise crops for grazing.

The earlier they are sown the more nutrients they take up from the soil, the bigger roots they grow and the bigger plants they grow.

Photographs

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, take pictures when you are chopping and incorporating straw under the Straw Incorporation Measure and if baling under the Baling Assistance Payment to have for inspections.

The picture needs to be geo-tagged. You need to have the location turned on on your camera on your smart phone. It can also be a good idea to place a landmark in the picture.