So the world’s biggest selling herbicide, Roundup, is 40 years old this year. Now, I can’t claim to have used Roundup since its inception in 1974 but I have made up for it over the past 30 years. Prior to its introduction, scutch grass was a huge problem and Roundup was the first product to offer control.

However, it was ridiculously expensive back then. There were men with scutchy fields who had to choose between a week in Bundoran with the wife and kids or saving up to buy a couple of gallons of Roundup. And as soon as you’d carefully pour it into the Allman sprayer, a big ugly black cloud would appear on the horizon.

Roundup and rainfall don’t go well together. They still don’t but then you needed it dry for at least a day after.

There was a whole ritual associated with spraying Roundup back then. It was common practice to mix it with sulphate of ammonia to aid its uptake and to save on the amount needed.

Dissolving a hundredweight of lumpy fertilizer in a bucket of cold water with the Roundup was a desperate job which took hours and, by which time, it would be raining.

Others used to throw a couple of gallons of red diesel into the mix to act as an adjuvant.

But relief was at hand when Roundup came off patent in 2001. Others entered the lucrative market and, happily, the price of the active ingredient, glyphosate, tumbled. But Monsanto, the maker of Roundup, fought fiercely to hold onto its share and, with marketing brilliance, continued to develop and brand the product. Now, 40 years later, its product is bigger than ever which is more than can be said for most things.

The gate has been closed for some crops on the farm. The winter barley has received its final fungicide (Amistar Opti/Opus). It doesn’t look particularly exciting and it has cost a fortune to grow.

Other than providing an early start to the harvest, it will offer little else over a good crop of spring barley. But bear in mind that I’m not a fan of winter barley and anything over 3t/acre is brilliant in my book.

The winter rape is almost finished flowering and I think the gate is closed. It looks very well podded and would appear to have huge potential. As to whether that potential is realised depends greatly on the weather from here on in, as it does with all the crops. Late May and June are critical in determining yield and lots of dry bright weather is essential for grain fill.

The T2 spray (Librax/Opus/Bravo) went on the wheat just as the flag leaves were emerging. In an ideal world, I should have waited for another few days but the forecast was iffy to say the least. I’d rather be covered than leave the crops vulnerable to infection. The wheat looks well though and there is also great potential.

Oilseed rape

The spring oilseed rape establishment is only okay and not really thick enough to keep weeds suppressed. We never do broadleaf weed control in the spring rape so it’s a bit of a gamble. One field of spring beans also looks dirty, despite the Stomp/Lingo mix.

As I sign off, there’s the roar of a forage harvester in the distance. The harvest season of 2014 has already begun. Before we know it, we’ll be out with that most useful of all glyphosate applications – the pre-harvest Roundup. It presents a brilliant opportunity for clean stubbles. It’ll be needed soon this year too – there’s annual meadow grass in the winter barley. Of course.