Spring barley growers are advised to stay alert for the yield-zapping disease ramularia, as the dry start to the season could make the disease more apparent.

“We know ramularia starts to show itself in infected plants when crops are subject to stress factors,” explains Jason Tatnell, disease expert at crop breeder Syngenta.

 Many crops across the UK have already experienced several of these stress factors – including strong sunlight, lack of rain, and reduced uptake of nutrients.

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According to Jason, 2025 started kinder than 2024 in terms of spring barley drillings.

Early drilled crops went into well-prepared, moist seed-beds and showed promising yield potential, but looking ahead, there could be a significant risk from ramularia.

“The arrival of rainfall, while welcome for crop potential, adds a further stress factor – due to sudden nitrogen uptake from the newly wet soil and a spurt of growth that the crop isn’t prepared for,” he says.

This could further exacerbate ramularia problems. Rain will also increase later-season threats from other diseases, such as rhynchosporium and net blotch, he adds.

Late-season diseases, which include ramularia, affect grain-fill, which not only reduces yields but can also lead to increased screenings or small grains.

“This is important to remember if targeting markets where grain quality is important,” notes Jason.

“With limited fungicide options available against ramularia, it’s important to choose treatments carefully.

“As well as activity on rhynchosporium and net blotch, the twin-pack fungicide of Miravis Plus + Era (pydiflumetofen) has been shown to be strong against ramularia. It offers an all-round fungicide for barley.

A pydiflumetofen-based treatment has been shown to not only protect yield, but also reduce screenings and improve gross margin in malting barley in a ramularia situation, adds Jason.

“On the other hand, if dry conditions return or remain, we know that Miravis Era has shown a strong physiological benefit on the crop – reducing water usage per unit of growth, allowing it to use scarce water resources better, and helping to develop yield by keeping leaves green for longer.”