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The weather remains very changeable with wet conditions frequently giving way to frost and frozen ground.
While this is seasonal, it does present a real concern given that we have so many crops planted late this year.
The low temperature itself may not be sufficient to damage crop plants, even winter-sown spring oats, but frost heave is a real concern given the amount of water about.
Having water on the soil surface enables a sheet of soil and ice to form and as this freezes and thaws the expansion will often force it to burst up in places.
As the rows of plants create the weakest point in the frozen sheet, the ice will often rise along the rows.
As the ice cracks, expands and rises along the plant row it can lift the plants out of the ground. And it is obviously easier to do this with late sown plants as they have a smaller root system to resist the pull.
The result can be rows of plants pulled out of the ground and lying on the surface.
Many plants will appear to recover but they will be permanently damaged. Spring oat varieties would be worst affected but late sown wheat and barley can also be lifted.
That said, a prolonged spell of dry cold would be useful to help kill bugs and slow disease development.
Frozen ground might also allow the application of potash or lime ahead of the fertiliser deadline this weekend.
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