Farmer Focus: Early end to wheat drilling and OSR failures
Annabel Hamilton © Angus Findlay At the time of writing, we have just 11ha of wheat left to drill for a neighbour, following potatoes. Our own drilling campaign came to an end on 28 September, the earliest we have finished in recent memory.
Conditions have certainly been in our favour this autumn, and crops drilled across the board are getting off to a good start.
However, we have had to accept that 15% of our total oilseed rape area has failed to establish, and alternative cropping plans are now in place.
Sometimes it is better to pull the plug early and salvage what you can rather than cling to the hope that a struggling crop might miraculously recover. Winter barley, spring oats and malting spring barley will fill the gaps instead.
See also: How precision nutrition system can enhance potato yield
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The failure of the OSR can be attributed to several factors, but the main culprit has been cabbage stem flea beetle (CSFB), which seems to have been particularly rife across the Scottish Borders this season.
There are clearly improvements we can make to our OSR establishment to help combat the problem, and I am more than happy to admit that.
Progress on the hen shed is going well, with all the groundworks, drainage and foundations completed in dry weather. What a difference a dry site makes!
With just under 10,000t of stone brought onto site, it has been no small undertaking. By the time this article is read, steel deliveries will have begun, marking the point at which the real excitement starts.
As November approaches, I am looking forward to chairing the Merse Agricultural Discussion committee for the coming season. We kick off with How I Farm, with two excellent speakers lined up.
First up is Kate Rowell, former vet, farmer and chair of Quality Meat Scotland, alongside Henzell Enterprises, an agricultural contractor based in mid-Northumberland with a very impressive collection of farm machinery.
No doubt there will be plenty of us eyeing up their kit and quietly wondering how we might justify adding a few more toys to our own fleets.
What better way to spend a cold November evening than with a pint, a pie and a good blether about all things farming? Not much, I suspect.
