FARMERS IN the north of England and Scotland should consider next year‘s wheat options carefully.

Earliness of maturity should be higher up farmers‘ lists of priorities, suggests Dalgety northern seeds manager George Doody.

One variety attracting his attention on that score is new group 2 variety Cordiale, which he believes to be 3-4 days ahead of Malacca in maturity, with very good sprouting resistance.

The earliest cut crop to date, according to data logged by the breeder, was combined on July 29.

All bar the northern crops were in the barn by mid-August, says CPB Twyford.

“In maturity tests at Thriplow in Cambridge, Cordiale reached 17% moisture on July 31, five days earlier ahead of other varieties such as Claire, Solstice and Einstein,” said the firm‘s Chris Tapsell.

The current official trials system doesn‘t pick up the true extent of maturity differences in varieties, he added.

“Where, for example, HGCA data says that a variety of wheat is one day earlier to mature than Claire, in practise it is at least five days.”