Getting on with fieldwork as quickly as possible is the key priority now confronting those tillage farmers with spring cereal crops in the ground.
This was one of the key themes addressed at the recent crops walk, hosted by Bertie and Martin Ennis on their north Dublin farm.
The list of jobs to tackle includes: Rolling; spraying for barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV); controlling weeds; applying nitrogen (N); applying trace elements; adding a plant growth regulator (PGR); controlling wild oats; and implementing a disease control programme.
“It all adds up to a lot of work to be completed within a very short period of time,” confirmed Teagasc tillage specialist, Shay Phelan.
Spring cereal crops
One of the points brought up at the event was the nitrogen requirement of spring barley crops grown from imported seed.
According to Shay Phelan, growers should err on the side of caution, where this matter is concerned.
“We don’t know how these varieties will react to Irish growing conditions, particularly from a lodging perspective,” Phelan said.
“So, it might be best to ease back on the total amount of nitrogen applied.”
It was confirmed at the event that magnesium deficiency has been identified on a number of spring crops drilled this year.
Growers are being advised to be on the lookout for this issue. It can be easily resolved by including epsom salts within a spray tank mix.
Controlling wild oats in spring cereals was another of the issues discussed at the farm walk. Tackling this matter at as early a stage as possible in the development of the crop was strongly advised.
Recently sown spring cereal crops are going through their growth stages very quickly at the present time.
And, again, this is another reason for tillage farmers to stay on top of the fieldwork required to manage these crops in the most efficient way possible.
Syngenta’s Frank McGauran attended the crop walk. He confirmed that wild oats should be tackled at the same time as the standard herbicide mix is applied.
“Some people suggest that the challenge of wild oats should be addressed once all plants have germinated,” McGauran said.
“But this could take forever, given the fact that some wild oats are germinating from very significant depths within the soil. The time to deal with wild oats is now.”
When mixed with sulfonyl urea herbicides, Axial PRO can be applied at a rate of 0.6L/ha to crops at growth stage 29/