John Best
John Best
John Best farms 320ha
(791 acres) from Acton House
Farm, Pointspass, Co Down.
Wheat, conservation-grade
oats and potatoes are main
crops on his 220ha (544 acres)
of clay loam arable land
THE weather has caused some problems with sowing over the last week, but there was no problem as the sun shone down on Lansdowne Road a fortnight ago. Ireland gave England a comprehensive drilling on the rugby field and as the fields at home were waterlogged there was no question of missing the match.
That said, drilling has been progressing very well. Fine weather at the beginning of October allowed us to plant oats into some great seed-beds, which have now produced some excellent brairds. Most of the oat acreage is down to Gerald again this year, drilled at 130kg/ha (1cwt/acre) to give 230 seeds/sq m.
Some Millennium has also been planted, as I was impressed with the standing ability and yield potential of this variety last year. It has a large grain and will be suitable to roll for horse rations if the specific weight does not meet specification for milling.
The weather has reduced the last of the wheat drilling to a plough and drill operation, the drill following directly behind the plough. It is wonderful how dry the soil is turning up, even on a wet day. Changing my 3m front press for a 1.5m double front press has improved consolidation under the drill tractor, though I feel there is still room for further consolidation or some levelling of the seed-bed between the Trelleborg low ground pressure tyres.
As November approaches, I find the greatest threat to late-drilled crops is crows. In cold weather with scarce food supplies they can be very efficient at following the rows of emerging wheat seedlings pulling them out, one by one. But so far following an exceptionally mild month and rapid crop emergence, the rapid build-up of aphid numbers has been of more concern.
I have been very careful to keep my word count correct for this article – I would hate to give the editor any excuse to cut my reference to the Ireland v England rugby result. Well done boys, bring on the All Blacks. *