Harvest: the winter barley harvest is set to kick off in a big way over the weekend and into next week, and it looks like there is going to be good weather for the job. Winter oats won’t be too far behind. With those high temperatures come safety risks. Make sure machines are cleaned down and serviced. Have sun cream and water in the cab. If you applied for the catch crop measure under the Farming for Water Scheme, acceptance letters are due in the coming days.

Winter oilseed rape: pre-harvest application of glyphosate on oilseed rape is no longer allowed under the product’s new registration. Glyphosate can be applied if there is a weed issue in the crop. Glyphosate can only be applied to non-food, cereal crops where there is a weed issue. It cannot be applied to bean crops in any circumstances.

Grass weeds: if grass weeds or broadleaved weeds are a problem on your farm and are not being controlled by herbicides, then you should collect some seeds and send them for testing to VJ Bhaskar in Teagasc Oak Park, Co Carlow.

Send them in a sealed envelope, with a phone number, details of the crop and what herbicides were applied during the season. Keep an eye out for weeds on the combine and note where they are. Clean machinery if there are weeds in a field to prevent them from spreading to the next field. Combines and balers are the biggest weed spreaders.

Stubble cultivations: most people are only kicking off their winter barley harvest and have plenty of crops to cut and straw to bale before stubbles are cultivated. Under nitrates rules you need to cultivate stubbles within 10 days of baling or chopping, and within 14 days of harvest. That’s easier said than done.

Remember that you do not need to cultivate stubbles where the field is going into winter cropping before 31 October. You can also leave 20-25% of stubbles uncultivated. You only need to cultivate stubbles if you are in Cork, Waterford, Tipperary and Leinster, apart from Longford.

Straw: straw is valuable. It can improve soil health, increase microbial activity in the soil and give back phosphorus, potassium and carbon when incorporated back to the soil. Do not sell it below its value. You can get €250/ha (€100/ac) under the Straw Incorporation Measure (SIM), so you should be getting at least this from your customers.

The Farm and Forestry Contractors of Ireland price guide for 2025 places baling at €7-8/bale (4x4 and 5x4). An 8x4x3 bale is priced at €12.50-15/bale.

No one wants to see livestock farmers or other customers left without straw, but if they are not willing to pay a minimum price then it makes sense to chop the straw.

If you have found a market for your straw and it is in the SIM you can take it out of the scheme by emailing tillage@agriculture.gov.ie or phoning 057-8674422. You will need to know the parcel numbers. You can also swap parcels under the measure which are the same or a greater size.