Hope despite record sowing delays

22 March 2001



Hope despite record sowing delays

By Andrew Blake and Andrew Swallow

PERSISTING cold and wet conditions have brought most fieldwork to a virtual standstill throughout the UK.

Potatoes planting is at a halt, sugar beet drilling barely started, many combinable crops remain to be sown and grassweed control is slipping badly.

Its not a pretty picture, says John Garstang, national arable co-ordinator for ADAS. People were relying on getting in with spring barley early.

But the ground has been so cold and wet I cant see any way that total cereal production isnt going to be pegged back.

Many crops will not be sown until April and delays could see yields slip by 0.5t/ha, dashing hopes that spring barley yields would offset lower winter wheat production.

By contrast, sugar beet and potato specialists believe root crops have lost little yield potential, despite one of the slowest starts on record.

Potato planting is further behind than ever before, acknowledges Rob Burrow of the British Potato Council.

The total is only just over 1400ha and there has been very little progress in the past two weeks.

And Paul Bee of British Sugar said that less than 5% was drilled by last weekend, compared to 52% at the same date last year and 41% in 1998.

But all is not lost, insisted Mr Bee, as in 1999 only 7% was drilled by now and that still made a good crop.

Drill as soon as you can, as and when conditions allow, he said. Up to April10 there is every chance of getting a good crop.

Mr Burrow also advises waiting for reasonable conditions before planting potatoes. In a good week 20-25,000ha can go in. We can soon catch up.

But he admits that real progress is unlikely until early April, provided the weather improves. It does need a fair, drying period to get the thing going again.

Time is fast running out for good blackgrass control, especially in winter barley, says Steve Wolff, Banks Cargill crop protection director.

It is estimated that only 35-40% of winter cereals having received a herbicide,

The real problem is that farmers have so much work to do and foot-and-mouth isnt helping, said Mr Wolff.

Its straining our ability to get round and supply logistics could become a nightmare.