Winter is with us: The weather at the weekend and early this week had a Baltic feel, which brings any prospect of further planting to an end.

The cold might be regarded as welcome for the tillage sector as that frost and bitter cold will slow, if not knock back, any disease infection in winter crops. It may also be useful with regards to disease infection on stubbles and on volunteer cereals in catch crops.

The cold snap may also herald an end to the risk of BYDV spread, but those aphids are resilient. They will go down into the ground to survive the frost and could come back up and multiply within a crop if the weather gets mild again. So you cannot ignore the risk in very high pressure areas that have not been well covered with aphicide already.

Soil temperatures are now generally between 2°C and 5°C across the tillage areas but these may pick up again slightly. However, growth is likely to be slow at best, making crops prone to pest attack when the frost passes. However, take a good walk around all your crops before you close down completely for Christmas.

Pay particular attention to any weeds still present and have a plan in place to deal with them in spring, if necessary. Also watch for the presence of diseases and any signs of pest activity.

Quick checks: This is a good time to tick a few boxes for jobs that need to be done. Most are basic and routine, like antifreeze in the sprayer and all water-cooled engines. Visit sheds during high wind and listen for creaks that may be a result of a missing bolt or nail – a stitch in time saves nine. Pay particular attention to swinging, sliding and roller doors to ensure that they are solidly mounted.

In the sprayer, make sure the antifreeze is pumped through the pump and into all the boom sections, return hoses and pressure relief hoses, as well as filters, pressure control units etc. It cannot protect where it is not located.

Make sure that anything left around the yard is secure in the event of high winds. Check all rodent bait points and ensure that they are all baited. Pay particular attention to anywhere there are wiring looms located close to a source of food for rodents, especially on combines, tractors, seed drills, balers or anything else where there may have been grain spilled.

Essential records: Get all farm records up to date, especially for pesticides and fertilisers. Your pesticide record needs to be able to account for where all carryover stock and current year purchases were used.

We must be able to account for all products. Say you bought 85 litres of a product and sprayed it on 100ha. That is 0.85l/ha. But if you say you used it at 0.82 l/ha you should still have three litres in stock unless you used it on another crop or field.

It is a tedious task to ensure that your records are correct, but it is not rocket science.