Archive Article: 2000/06/30
Jim Bullock
Jim Bullock farms 283ha
(700 acres) in partnership
with his parents and brother
at Mill Farm, Guarlford,
Malvern, Worcs. Two-thirds
is rented or contract farmed,
the rest owned. Cropping is
winter wheat, winter oilseed
rape and winter beans
JUNE has been spent making final plans for next seasons cropping. We will be sticking with a similar rotation, with just the addition of about 25ha (62 acres) of second wheat. Some of that will be no-till drilled into chopped straw – take note those who visited us last winter and wanted to see wheat established in this way. Despite the apparent lower profitability of oilseed rape and beans, their place here remains secure. Little of our land is suited to growing long runs of cereals and the average gross margin of a break crop and first wheat is better than a second wheat. Add in cultivation and storage costs and the wheat and break crop rotation wins hands down.
Looking at this years crops we will have to reduce the plant population of the beans and oilseed rape. Both are too thick as a result of the improved establishment using the Krause and Kuhn triple disc drills. Next autumn we will go for wider row-spacing, at 36cm (14ins), reduced seed rates and earlier drilling – mid-October for the winter beans. Wheat will probably get similar treatment as even where low seed rates were used we are still counting 600 ears/sq m, proving that 18cm (7in) row spacing does not detract from the crop yield potential.
At last the sprayer has been less active. Wheats had an Amistar/Silvacur (azoxystrobin/tebuconazole + triadimenol) earwash and most of the beans had a second chocolate spot and rust treatment of Folicur (tebuconazole) plus Bravo (chlorothalonil). The beans we left, taking a wait and see approach, now need spraying and at about 2.15m (7ft) tall a high clearance sprayer will be required to get through them.
Our spring beans have been treated for downy mildew and their growth over the past fortnight has been incredible with pods setting well. For once, weed control has been good, and the extra cost of Bullet (cyanazine + pendimethalin) added to a half rate of simazine has been money well spent.
Beans have been growing rapidly and pod-set seems good at Mill Farm, says Jim Bullock. Wider row-spacing and lower seed rates will be used next season.