Winter barley and winter oilseed rape harvest is going “pretty well to date” for Nick Davidson in Peterhead, Aberdeenshire.

Winter barley has been “exceptional” this year, with yields averaging 10t/ha on 40ha of Scylla, Sequel and Regina. But he said quality was maybe down on average.

Winter oilseed rape has been disappointing for Mr Davidson, with Winner averaging 3.2t/ha. A third of his 36ha suffered from terrible clubroot, he said.

“It’s an increasing problem in Scotland. We need more clubroot resistant varieties as there is only one variety at the moment.”

He said yields were down 0.6t/ha on average which was possibly due to late frost damage and because the crop flowered for a very long period.

Mr Davidson has drilled 8ha less for next season as he said he only grows it as an entry for wheat. He added: “With the current prices, there are better things to grow.”

• Crop/Variety: Winter barley – Scylla, Sequel, Regina


• Area: 40ha


• Yield: 40ha


• Quality: N/A

• Crop/Variety: Winter oilseed rape


• Area: 36ha


• Yield: 3.2t/ha


• Quality: N/A