Naas,
Co Kildare
It’s been around two weeks since Tim’s farm has seen any significant rainfall and while his spring barley crops would welcome some moisture, everything else appears to be holding up very well.
Tim brought his spring barley feed crops, Gangway and Arderin, up to 157kg N/ha and his Planet malting barley crops up to 137kg N/ha.
Tim top dressing late winter barley with 125kg N/ha.
In general, the crops that were established using a Claydon drill look better than those established using a plough-based system. On 28 April, Tim applied manganese (1l/ha) and Phylgreen (1l/ha). He followed up 10 days later with a herbicide application of Boudha (17g/ha), Binder (0.7l/ha), as well as the aphicide Markate 50 (100ml/ha). The crop is currently in mid-tillering and may receive a fungicide this week.
Tim spotted bean weevils in his spring bean crops and applied Ravane (150ml/ha) in response. He added Claw 100 into the tank to knock out volunteers and grassweeds. Tim is also growing a small amount of spring peas for the first time. The crop is coming along well.
His Husky spring oats seed crop is also coming along well and has been brought to 162kg N/ha.
The crop has now been brought up to 253kg N/ha
The crop is very lush however, so Tim is applying a robust PGR regime this year. On 28 April, the crop received CCC (0.25l/ha), as well as manganese and Phylgreen. This week, the crop will receive Boudha (17g/ha), Binder (0.7l/ha), Ceraide (1.25l/ha) and Talius (0.25l/ha).
His winter wheat crops received a T1 on 6 May of Spirodor (1l/ha) and Venture Extra (1.25l/ha). The crop has now been brought up to 253kg N/ha.
Crops remain very clean and will be due a T2 next week. Care will be taken to match each fungicide programme to disease pressure.
Tim’s winter barley crops are thin however, and he has dialled back nitrogen rates to around 205kg N/ha in both his two-row and hybrid varieties.
The crop will receive a head spray this week of Elatus Plus (0.73l/ha), Bravo (1l/ha) and Protendo (0.73l/ha). His winter oats are looking very well.
On 28 April, the crop received Ceraide (0.96l/ha), Freeze (0.1l/ha), Talius (0.2l/ha), Opera (0.48l/ha) and manganese at 1.5l/ha.
Lifford,
Co Donegal
Hugh saw a marked change in his crops over the weekend, thanks to 11mm of rainfall. Until then, minimal rain had fallen over the past month. Lack of moisture became a real issue for Hugh when he was sowing his wild bird cover for GLAS last week. His first attempt to establish his oat and linseed mix failed, as conditions were too dry for germination and the seed was ravaged by crows.
Hugh had to resow his wild bird cover last week.
The second attempt last week saw Hugh’s contractor, Thomas Meehan, replant oats at 200kg/ha and linseed at 16.7kg/ha into better conditions. He is keeping a close eye on crows and intends to re-roll the crop with a flat roller this week.
His spring barley crops came under pressure from leatherjackets earlier this month. They have come through this and despite the dry conditions, are looking well.
All of his spring barley crops have been brought to 135kg N/ha
Manganese is proving to be an issue, however. Like many farms in east Donegal, manganese deficiency is an inherent trait of his soil type. Hugh treated his seed with a dressing and applied a manganese trace element spray (Mantrac Pro at 0.7l/ha) at the four-leaved stage.
The crop is at mid-tillering and this week he will apply a herbicide application of Zypar (0.61l/ha) and Cameo Max (20g/ha).
All of his spring barley crops have been brought to 135kg N/ha. He didn’t apply an aphicide last year and thinks he’ll do the same this season, as pressure is generally low in his area.
The flag leaf is 50% out in Hugh’s winter wheat crop, which was brought to 221kg N/ha last week. Around three weeks ago, the crop received a T1 of Lentyma (1.5l/ha), CT500 (1l/ha) and CCC (1l/ha).
His winter oats are looking very healthy
He plans to apply a T2 of Adexar and CT500 at the end of the week. Disease pressure remains very low, he explains. While the crop is thin in places, Hugh says there is a high amount of grain sites on heads, which he hopes will compensate for this.
His winter oats are looking very healthy. Two weeks ago, the crop received an application of Medax Max (0.3kg/ha), Jenton (1l/ha), Cameo Max (60g/ha) and manganese at 0.7l/ha.
Ballyragget,
Co Kilkenny
Around 20mm of rain has fallen on James’ farm since mid-April. While some crops could do with some moisture, they aren’t under serious pressure.
Much of James’ farm has been in minimum tillage for nearly 20 years and is heavy, meaning it can handle drier conditions.
James applying a T2 on his winter wheat crops this week.
He uses a 30m Horsch Leeb sprayer and aims to spray at speeds of up to 22kph when field conditions allow. Going well, he aims to cover 500ac per day.
The flag leaf is fully out in James’ winter wheat crops and he will be applying a T2 this week.
This year, he is trialling Corteva’s new Inatreq-based product Questar (2l/ha) and Turret (metconazole at 1.33l/ha). He intends on adding Bravo (1l/ha) and Epsom salts into the tank. He applied the final split of nitrogen on to these crops last week, ahead of anticipated rain.
Wheat following oilseed rape was brought up to 206kg N/ha, while crops following oats were brought up to 230kg N/ha. He uses a Yara N-Sensor ALS 2, which alters application rates depending on the crop’s nitrogen requirements.
He keeps a tight eye on input spend and this head spray will cost just under €35/ha
James’ Belfry hybrid winter barley received Bravo (1l/ha) and Moddus (0.3l/ha) around three weeks ago and remain very clean. They are due a head spray this week of Splice (0.85l/ha), Bravo (1l/ha) and Epsom salts.
Based on his experiences, James believes the addition of Epsom salts with the head spray on barley improves straw strength slightly and delays brackling.
He keeps a tight eye on input spend and this head spray will cost just under €35/ha.
His winter oats also remain very clean and will be due a head spray this week. His winter oilseed rape received a sclerotinia spray of Filan (300g/ha) a number of weeks ago.
At the three-leaf stage, James’ spring oats received an application of manganese (2kg/ha), Epsom salts (2kg/ha), as well as Karis (50ml/ha). Coming up to GS30 now, the crop will receive Moddus (0.15l/ha) and CCC (1l/ha) this week.
While market and weather conditions remain challenging, James notes that the sectors designation as an essential service has meant business has been relatively uninterrupted compared to others during this pandemic.
Naas,
Co Kildare
It’s been around two weeks since Tim’s farm has seen any significant rainfall and while his spring barley crops would welcome some moisture, everything else appears to be holding up very well.
Tim brought his spring barley feed crops, Gangway and Arderin, up to 157kg N/ha and his Planet malting barley crops up to 137kg N/ha.
Tim top dressing late winter barley with 125kg N/ha.
In general, the crops that were established using a Claydon drill look better than those established using a plough-based system. On 28 April, Tim applied manganese (1l/ha) and Phylgreen (1l/ha). He followed up 10 days later with a herbicide application of Boudha (17g/ha), Binder (0.7l/ha), as well as the aphicide Markate 50 (100ml/ha). The crop is currently in mid-tillering and may receive a fungicide this week.
Tim spotted bean weevils in his spring bean crops and applied Ravane (150ml/ha) in response. He added Claw 100 into the tank to knock out volunteers and grassweeds. Tim is also growing a small amount of spring peas for the first time. The crop is coming along well.
His Husky spring oats seed crop is also coming along well and has been brought to 162kg N/ha.
The crop has now been brought up to 253kg N/ha
The crop is very lush however, so Tim is applying a robust PGR regime this year. On 28 April, the crop received CCC (0.25l/ha), as well as manganese and Phylgreen. This week, the crop will receive Boudha (17g/ha), Binder (0.7l/ha), Ceraide (1.25l/ha) and Talius (0.25l/ha).
His winter wheat crops received a T1 on 6 May of Spirodor (1l/ha) and Venture Extra (1.25l/ha). The crop has now been brought up to 253kg N/ha.
Crops remain very clean and will be due a T2 next week. Care will be taken to match each fungicide programme to disease pressure.
Tim’s winter barley crops are thin however, and he has dialled back nitrogen rates to around 205kg N/ha in both his two-row and hybrid varieties.
The crop will receive a head spray this week of Elatus Plus (0.73l/ha), Bravo (1l/ha) and Protendo (0.73l/ha). His winter oats are looking very well.
On 28 April, the crop received Ceraide (0.96l/ha), Freeze (0.1l/ha), Talius (0.2l/ha), Opera (0.48l/ha) and manganese at 1.5l/ha.
Lifford,
Co Donegal
Hugh saw a marked change in his crops over the weekend, thanks to 11mm of rainfall. Until then, minimal rain had fallen over the past month. Lack of moisture became a real issue for Hugh when he was sowing his wild bird cover for GLAS last week. His first attempt to establish his oat and linseed mix failed, as conditions were too dry for germination and the seed was ravaged by crows.
Hugh had to resow his wild bird cover last week.
The second attempt last week saw Hugh’s contractor, Thomas Meehan, replant oats at 200kg/ha and linseed at 16.7kg/ha into better conditions. He is keeping a close eye on crows and intends to re-roll the crop with a flat roller this week.
His spring barley crops came under pressure from leatherjackets earlier this month. They have come through this and despite the dry conditions, are looking well.
All of his spring barley crops have been brought to 135kg N/ha
Manganese is proving to be an issue, however. Like many farms in east Donegal, manganese deficiency is an inherent trait of his soil type. Hugh treated his seed with a dressing and applied a manganese trace element spray (Mantrac Pro at 0.7l/ha) at the four-leaved stage.
The crop is at mid-tillering and this week he will apply a herbicide application of Zypar (0.61l/ha) and Cameo Max (20g/ha).
All of his spring barley crops have been brought to 135kg N/ha. He didn’t apply an aphicide last year and thinks he’ll do the same this season, as pressure is generally low in his area.
The flag leaf is 50% out in Hugh’s winter wheat crop, which was brought to 221kg N/ha last week. Around three weeks ago, the crop received a T1 of Lentyma (1.5l/ha), CT500 (1l/ha) and CCC (1l/ha).
His winter oats are looking very healthy
He plans to apply a T2 of Adexar and CT500 at the end of the week. Disease pressure remains very low, he explains. While the crop is thin in places, Hugh says there is a high amount of grain sites on heads, which he hopes will compensate for this.
His winter oats are looking very healthy. Two weeks ago, the crop received an application of Medax Max (0.3kg/ha), Jenton (1l/ha), Cameo Max (60g/ha) and manganese at 0.7l/ha.
Ballyragget,
Co Kilkenny
Around 20mm of rain has fallen on James’ farm since mid-April. While some crops could do with some moisture, they aren’t under serious pressure.
Much of James’ farm has been in minimum tillage for nearly 20 years and is heavy, meaning it can handle drier conditions.
James applying a T2 on his winter wheat crops this week.
He uses a 30m Horsch Leeb sprayer and aims to spray at speeds of up to 22kph when field conditions allow. Going well, he aims to cover 500ac per day.
The flag leaf is fully out in James’ winter wheat crops and he will be applying a T2 this week.
This year, he is trialling Corteva’s new Inatreq-based product Questar (2l/ha) and Turret (metconazole at 1.33l/ha). He intends on adding Bravo (1l/ha) and Epsom salts into the tank. He applied the final split of nitrogen on to these crops last week, ahead of anticipated rain.
Wheat following oilseed rape was brought up to 206kg N/ha, while crops following oats were brought up to 230kg N/ha. He uses a Yara N-Sensor ALS 2, which alters application rates depending on the crop’s nitrogen requirements.
He keeps a tight eye on input spend and this head spray will cost just under €35/ha
James’ Belfry hybrid winter barley received Bravo (1l/ha) and Moddus (0.3l/ha) around three weeks ago and remain very clean. They are due a head spray this week of Splice (0.85l/ha), Bravo (1l/ha) and Epsom salts.
Based on his experiences, James believes the addition of Epsom salts with the head spray on barley improves straw strength slightly and delays brackling.
He keeps a tight eye on input spend and this head spray will cost just under €35/ha.
His winter oats also remain very clean and will be due a head spray this week. His winter oilseed rape received a sclerotinia spray of Filan (300g/ha) a number of weeks ago.
At the three-leaf stage, James’ spring oats received an application of manganese (2kg/ha), Epsom salts (2kg/ha), as well as Karis (50ml/ha). Coming up to GS30 now, the crop will receive Moddus (0.15l/ha) and CCC (1l/ha) this week.
While market and weather conditions remain challenging, James notes that the sectors designation as an essential service has meant business has been relatively uninterrupted compared to others during this pandemic.
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