WATCH OUT if the weather is damp during flowering, pea growers have been warned. It can encourage diseases like ascochyta, botrytis and mycosphaerella which all hit yield and quality.

There is no forecasting system for any of them and growers need to apply fungicides quickly once they are spotted, said BASF’s Graham Hartwell.

In the firm’s newly approved Walabi (pyrimethanil + chlorothalonil), already said to be the established standard treatment in France, growers have the chance to save up to 0.84t/ha (2t/acre) that might be lost in untreated crops, he explained.

“In trials it has given over 90% control of mycosphaerella and close to 90% for ascochyta.

“In PGRO trials last year, Walabi gave a significantly better performance on botrytis than an azoxystrobin plus chlorothalonil programme or Ronilan FL treatment.

Walabi, which may be tank-mixed with several insecticides, can be applied to any combining pea variety at early flowering before diseases become active. A second treatment can follow provided there is a two week gap.

However, where rust is a problem Caramba (metconazole) would be the better option, suggested Mr Hartwell.