Teagasc has confirmed the benefits of rolling spring barley and wheat crops and three factors come into play.
Rolling encourages tillering, while also putting down stones below ground level and conserving moisture.
Teagasc tillage specialist, Shay Phelan told Agriland: “I would not hesitate in rolling spring barley crops at the present time, assuming they are at the right growth stage.
“The process will act to restrict apical dominance within the main shoot and also allow more light to get in to the lower parts of the crop. This, in turn, encourages side tillers to develop.”
Phelan made these comments while attending a crops walk hosted by Bertie and Martin Ennis on their north Dublin farm in recent days.
Rolling spring barley and wheat
According to the Teagasc representative, the key factor to be considered when considering the option of rolling is the root structure of the growing plants.
“If the roots are strong enough then I would not hesitate. Growers should particularly check plants growing on headlands. These are the areas where the action of the roller could pull out young plants.
“There is not the same urgency, where spring wheat is concerned. But here, again, I would strongly urge growers to roll these crops, if ground conditions permit.
“The plants will bounce back up to the vertical within days. Rolling is an option in all crops prior to them reaching the stage of stem extension.”
Shay Phelan also pointed out that rolling spring barley can also have a form of plant growth regulator (PGR) effect on crops.
“It can be difficult to get PGR timings correct with spring barely crops. A number of earlier sown spring barley crops in the south of the country were rolled last week,” he explained.
“Plant counts in these crops are coming in at between 200 and 220/m².
“These are quite low. So rolling should act to give these crops their best possible yield opportunity. The target number should be in the region of 1,000 shoots/m².”
Phelan added that we are currently looking at a scenario of individual barley plants producing 4.5 tillers each and that they will not achieve this target naturally.
Tillering is equally important in spring wheat crops.
“Spring wheat produces quite short ears. So the target is to produce lots of tillers, in order to maximise yield potential,” Phelan continued.
“Rolling will help to achieve this. The aim is to produce a very thick crop which, in turn, will deliver the highest possible yields.”
Spring wheat planted by Bertie and Martin Ennis on April 19, had produced 250 plants/m² up to this point.
According to Shay Phelan, the potential to get between 750 to 800 total shoots per square metre, on the back of subsequent tillering, will be more than feasible.