Nicholas Ryan,
Clonmel, Co Tipperary
Nicholas has been planting spring barley this week, as the weather provided good conditions. He said that while it is very late for planting spring barley in his area, it has become a trend in recent years. The varieties are LG Mermaid and Hurler, and they were planted at a seed rate of 188kg/ha.
Fertiliser was broadcast onto the seedbed. The compound was 10:10:20 and urea was also applied to the seedbed to bring the total nitrogen rate up to 117kg N/ha. Nicholas noted that the addition of autosteer to the tractor is making planting a lot easier. He will assess the barley yellow dwarf virus risk as the weeks progress and the crop emerges.
The rye is growing quickly. Since we chatted to Nicholas last, it has received Medax Max (0.7kg/ha) for growth regulation. Delaro Forte was applied for disease control at a rate of 1.2l/ha.
Nicholas Ryan was busy sowing spring barley this week.
The oats look clean and are growing well. It received 0.9l/ha of Macfare Xpro and 0.3l/ha of Flexity for disease, 1l/ha of Steffes CeCeCe, 0.2l/ha of Sonis for growth regulation.
The winter wheat is heading for the T1 fungicide spray. It got a T0 spray of LS Pyrac at 0.5l/ha and sulphur.
Shepherd was applied to the oilseed rape, which is in full flower at the minute. Fertiliser application is finished on the rye and the oats, while the wheat will get 30kg N/ha this week.
Nicholas also runs a trials business on the farm and has planted heritage grain, while a soil crates trial will start when microbial bio-stimulants and gypsum are applied to spring barley over the next 10 days.
Conor Callan, Ardee, Co Louth
Conor was busy spraying winter wheat this week when we chatted to him. He was applying a T0 for a customer, but his own wheat will need a T1 next week.
So far, the Graham winter wheat received Pacifica Plus, Biopower, Karate, K2, Comet and Zephyr. Conor is happy enough with the crop and noted it is paler in the wetter patches.
The Tardis winter barley is starting to jump. Conor said it is a thick crop with a good green colour and has received all of its nitrogen fertiliser. It is up to date on sprays. It will receive a plant growth regulator and some fungicide next week.
In recent weeks, it received Variano Xpro, Zypar, Nova 4 for nutrition and Axial Pro for wild oats control. It had received K2 to help to thicken out the crop. Conor commented that the tramlines in the winter cereals are “an absolute mess”. However, he said they are getting away with travelling on them and crops look good, so he will take the good with the bad.
He has forage rye to cut in early May, but he said the heads are struggling on the crop. Maize will follow the rye. Conor was getting some ploughing done ahead of maize this week. He is putting in more maize this year, as he saw no great market for oats. P8200 will be drilled under film and this will hopefully go in at the weekend.
Conor is very busy applying liquid nitrogen and spraying for himself and for hire work these days.
Shaun Diver, Tullamore Demonstration Farm,
Co Offaly
Shaun has been busy preparing land to sow over the passed few days in the middle of an already busy time on the farm, with sheep lambing and cows calving.
He plans to drill spring barley this week in fields coming out of ley and after forage rape.
The variety is Hurler and Shaun said he will be glad to have the spring barley in as it will give him some of his straw supply, which he thinks will be in demand, as he has already been asked to put in his order for harvest 2026.
Some farmyard manure has gone onto the fields. Phosphorus and potassium levels are very low and so high rates of bagged fertiliser are needed, but nitrogen levels will be low as the fields are coming out of or are not long after grass.
A protein/cereal mix crop will hopefully be planted next week and only requires phosphorus and potassium. Shaun really likes this on the farm and finds it has reduced his bought in feed.
He is conscious of reducing animal feed costs in the midst of the current fuel and fertiliser price hikes. He has a nice bit of silage in the pit still and has bought-in some silage at a reasonable cost to feed to cows. He also purchased baled maize silage.
Shaun has some ploughing done and has more to do on Tullamore Farm.
The forage rye will be harvested shortly and put into the silage pit before it is sealed back up. It was planted on 5 September and was grazed twice, but Shaun said there was really only one good grazing from the crop, along with this cut of silage. The crop did not grow well in the wetter patches of the field, but gave a good return on investment.
The field was planted with spring barley last April, then the rye and will be planted back into grass once the rye is harvested.
Having tillage crops on the farm is working well for feed and straw supplies as well as preparing ground for reseeding. Shaun hopes some docks will be controlled in the ley being ploughed this week.
Nicholas Ryan,
Clonmel, Co Tipperary
Nicholas has been planting spring barley this week, as the weather provided good conditions. He said that while it is very late for planting spring barley in his area, it has become a trend in recent years. The varieties are LG Mermaid and Hurler, and they were planted at a seed rate of 188kg/ha.
Fertiliser was broadcast onto the seedbed. The compound was 10:10:20 and urea was also applied to the seedbed to bring the total nitrogen rate up to 117kg N/ha. Nicholas noted that the addition of autosteer to the tractor is making planting a lot easier. He will assess the barley yellow dwarf virus risk as the weeks progress and the crop emerges.
The rye is growing quickly. Since we chatted to Nicholas last, it has received Medax Max (0.7kg/ha) for growth regulation. Delaro Forte was applied for disease control at a rate of 1.2l/ha.
Nicholas Ryan was busy sowing spring barley this week.
The oats look clean and are growing well. It received 0.9l/ha of Macfare Xpro and 0.3l/ha of Flexity for disease, 1l/ha of Steffes CeCeCe, 0.2l/ha of Sonis for growth regulation.
The winter wheat is heading for the T1 fungicide spray. It got a T0 spray of LS Pyrac at 0.5l/ha and sulphur.
Shepherd was applied to the oilseed rape, which is in full flower at the minute. Fertiliser application is finished on the rye and the oats, while the wheat will get 30kg N/ha this week.
Nicholas also runs a trials business on the farm and has planted heritage grain, while a soil crates trial will start when microbial bio-stimulants and gypsum are applied to spring barley over the next 10 days.
Conor Callan, Ardee, Co Louth
Conor was busy spraying winter wheat this week when we chatted to him. He was applying a T0 for a customer, but his own wheat will need a T1 next week.
So far, the Graham winter wheat received Pacifica Plus, Biopower, Karate, K2, Comet and Zephyr. Conor is happy enough with the crop and noted it is paler in the wetter patches.
The Tardis winter barley is starting to jump. Conor said it is a thick crop with a good green colour and has received all of its nitrogen fertiliser. It is up to date on sprays. It will receive a plant growth regulator and some fungicide next week.
In recent weeks, it received Variano Xpro, Zypar, Nova 4 for nutrition and Axial Pro for wild oats control. It had received K2 to help to thicken out the crop. Conor commented that the tramlines in the winter cereals are “an absolute mess”. However, he said they are getting away with travelling on them and crops look good, so he will take the good with the bad.
He has forage rye to cut in early May, but he said the heads are struggling on the crop. Maize will follow the rye. Conor was getting some ploughing done ahead of maize this week. He is putting in more maize this year, as he saw no great market for oats. P8200 will be drilled under film and this will hopefully go in at the weekend.
Conor is very busy applying liquid nitrogen and spraying for himself and for hire work these days.
Shaun Diver, Tullamore Demonstration Farm,
Co Offaly
Shaun has been busy preparing land to sow over the passed few days in the middle of an already busy time on the farm, with sheep lambing and cows calving.
He plans to drill spring barley this week in fields coming out of ley and after forage rape.
The variety is Hurler and Shaun said he will be glad to have the spring barley in as it will give him some of his straw supply, which he thinks will be in demand, as he has already been asked to put in his order for harvest 2026.
Some farmyard manure has gone onto the fields. Phosphorus and potassium levels are very low and so high rates of bagged fertiliser are needed, but nitrogen levels will be low as the fields are coming out of or are not long after grass.
A protein/cereal mix crop will hopefully be planted next week and only requires phosphorus and potassium. Shaun really likes this on the farm and finds it has reduced his bought in feed.
He is conscious of reducing animal feed costs in the midst of the current fuel and fertiliser price hikes. He has a nice bit of silage in the pit still and has bought-in some silage at a reasonable cost to feed to cows. He also purchased baled maize silage.
Shaun has some ploughing done and has more to do on Tullamore Farm.
The forage rye will be harvested shortly and put into the silage pit before it is sealed back up. It was planted on 5 September and was grazed twice, but Shaun said there was really only one good grazing from the crop, along with this cut of silage. The crop did not grow well in the wetter patches of the field, but gave a good return on investment.
The field was planted with spring barley last April, then the rye and will be planted back into grass once the rye is harvested.
Having tillage crops on the farm is working well for feed and straw supplies as well as preparing ground for reseeding. Shaun hopes some docks will be controlled in the ley being ploughed this week.
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