Hybrid wheat fills late slot
Hybrid wheat fills late slot
HYBRID wheat gets the thumbs up this winter from two root growers who have struggled to find varieties suited to the demands of late-drilling.
Lancashire farmer Jim Baxter of Wyke Thorn Farm, Southport normally uses winter and spring cereals as a break on his 546ha (1350-acre) potato and carrot enterprise, where up to 50% of potatoes are winrowed for over wintering and spring lifting.
Last year hybrid wheat was included in an attempt to lift yields from late drilling on the black peat fen-type soils.
"Drilling over-wintered potato land with spring wheat has been a way to get around the shorter working window and poorer autumn weather. But lower yields and a reduction in premiums for spring crops, coupled with pressure on labour during peak lifting of windrowed potatoes in April and May, has forced us to look for alternatives."
For two years, despite reasonable yields, spring wheat Samoa has failed to meet its quality promise. Last year Mr Baxter tried 6ha (15 acres) of hybrid variety Hyno Seha and is growing 7ha (17.5 acres) this year.
Last years crop was drilled as a first wheat after beans on Nov 12. "Our soils are not conducive to high yields, and serious winter kill in the conventional varieties resulted in only 40 acres out of 220 acres avoiding a redrill," he says.
"The hybrid looked thin, but survived and tillered well in the spring. Yields reflected the season with the Seha producing 3.7t/acre with a bushel weight of 83.4kg/hl, compared with 3.4t/acre for Riband first wheat. We are convinced a kinder season would have seen the hybrid break the 4t/acre mark. The Seha outperformed Riband by almost 10%."
Nitrogen fertiliser for the hybrid averaged only 112kg/ha (90 units/acre), 15% less than conventional wheat. Other agronomic inputs were similar.
Growers should not be put off by the extra hybrid seed costs, because much lower seed rates significantly reduce the differential, says Mr Baxter. "It also depends on whether royalties are being taken into account. Non-royalty seed such as Riband costs £150/t cleaned and dressed. At a rate of 100kg/acre compared with the hybrid at 36kg/acre, the cost difference is £17 in favour of Riband. But if this sum is taken off the gross output of Seha, the hybrid is still £6.70/acre ahead.