Rain would be welcome

While some areas of the country continue to suffer badly from the dryness, many other areas are beginning to feel the pinch again too. Crops are heading out short and many now carry various shades of green due to different deficiencies, water being the main one. Patches are burning off on areas with shallow soil and over sand. Crops that had poor establishment still have lots of seeds waiting to germinate.

While there was some rain in places this week, the lesson of the year must be the importance of having soils in good physical condition and in building soil organic matter levels. Organic matter is key to helping to repair damaged soil structure to help germination in a difficult season. It also helps to increase moisture retention in the soil for growth.

With carbon storage payments moving on to the agenda, this is perhaps a good time for growers to contemplate what would be involved. To be paid to do something that would bring higher yields and lower climate risk is not an option you get every day. While there are no payments yet, knowing what to do and how to do it will be a big advantage when that time comes.

Winter crops

Keep an occasional eye on barley and oat crops in case late disease sneaks in to find a weakness in your fungicide. Crows seem agitated and could begin to attack winter barley shortly so be prepared.

Wheat has been developing rapidly, with ears visible in most crops and now flowering under way in some. If we get a spell of damp, cooler weather now, it could slow flowering and increase ear blight risk, so T3 fungicides will move from indifferent to important. Septoria levels remain relatively low, but these could increase if we get a few wet days. But the dry May was invaluable in helping keep this disease at bay.

Ear blight control is an important part of the T3, with yellow and brown rust important side targets. The final spray needs mixtures of triazoles to target both Fusarium and Microdochium species. Fungicide options include Prosaro, Gleam and Magnello. Robust rates are essential to achieve ear blight control. The addition of a strobilurin like Modem or Amistar would help against stress.

Spring crops

Drought stress is increasingly evident in many areas. Earlier-sown barley crops are at awns emerging and time for the final fungicide. Spray as awns are emerging rather than tips just visible. Final fungicide options include Bontima, Siltra, Fandango, Ceriax, Elatus Era, Revystar or other mixtures. Include folpet in all treatments for ramularia control.

Spring wheat and oats crops are generally between flag leaf emerging and booting. Spray wheat when the flag leaf is emerged with products like Elatus Era, Adexar, Ascra, Librax or perhaps just prothioconazole. If you get rain, an additional 35kg N/ha post flag leaf should help to drive yield.

In oats, the flag leaf spray could be a simple as straight epoxiconazole or tebuconazole or something more complex like Elatus Era or other mixes like Jenton.