Quality good on the whole

21 August 2001



Quality good on the whole

A SIGNIFICANT number of samples passed through Centaur Grain, Andover on Monday (20 August).

Martin Parry is getting a better idea of the quality emerging in wheat – generally, it appears to be holding. He gives a good overall picture of harvest progress.

A grower in Wiltshire has combined Soissons with a yield of 7.5t/ha (3t/acre). “This was no worse than he thought it would be. It had 12% protein and the highest Hagberg this year at 430. The specific weight was 78kg/hl.”

They have also combined some Malacca at a wet weight of 11t/ha (4.5t/acre). This is more likely to be 9-10t/ha (3.6-4t/acre).

Another sample, from Oxfordshire, yielded 7.4t/ha (3t/acre) from Malacca. The quality was good with Hagberg over 300, 74kg/hl protein but protein was low at 12%. “This should be usable somewhere.”

He says that Malacca is tending to have consistently low specific weights. However one farmer from Northants got 78kg/hl from it, with 13.5% protein and 360 Hagberg. “There is huge variability from region to region, farm to farm.”

The worst sample they received today was from Herefordshire, with Rialto having 160 Hagberg. He estimates 40-50% of winter wheat is combined over southern England.

Spring barley is about 20% combined across Hampshire and Wiltshire. “Yields are slightly down and nitrogen is up by about 0.2%.

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