North: Harvest enters final straight
Harvest enters its final chapter with the last remnants being gathered up. A long and protracted affair best summed up as a curates egg, good in parts. Comments in the press about record harvest are a little optimistic, and although I feel we will be on the right side of average I don’t think a record crop is in store.
Commodity prices remain relatively strong for spot and future sales, giving more confidence nd the battle is now on to optimise winter plantings. Maximising wheat and rape acreages will be the goal but a wet, late harvest has already put us on the back foot.
Rape following barley is now up and away. Depending on type of establishment crops have either received a metazachlor-based product immediately after drilling or at expanded cotyledon. On min-tillage systems volunteer cereals have been targeted as well.
Wheat drilling has started and under the current conditions emergence should be rapid. The use of pre-emergence weed control is the goal for the majority of my clients and flufenacet will form the core for most programmes. Winter barley drilling will start in earnest next week and with limited post emergence grass weed options, pre- emergence applications are essential.
