With much of the cereal harvest completed, tillage farmers are being actively encouraged to develop an effective cropping plan for 2024/2025.
While it is still early in the planting season, the prospects for allowing this to happen are positive.
Met Éireann is predicting that high pressure may well dominate our weather over the coming fortnight.
Soils are already quite dry in many cases, so this should mean that actual planting conditions should remain more than acceptable right through until the middle of October… and possibly beyond.
Teagasc tillage specialist, Shay Phelan, said:
“There is still time to drill winter oilseed rape. From now on, however, hybrid varieties are the ones to choose to drill. Seed rate is normally 60-80 seeds/m2, but, as sowing date moves later, the higher end of this range is recommended.
“Weed control should still be carried out pre-emergence of the crop, as this gives control of the widest range of weeds. Some crops have already emerged and volunteer cereals are now starting to grow quite quickly.
“Over the next few weeks, an appropriate graminicide, e.g., Falcon, Fusilade Max, Stratos Ultra etc., should be applied to control these and any grass weeds that may have emerged.
“Where annual meadow grass is also a problem, Centurion Max will give better control.”
Effective cropping plan
According to the Teagasc tillage specialist, it is important to continue to watch out for signs of slug damage in new planted rape crops.
If there are any signs, then apply some pellets to reduce the damage.
Later-sown crops can also often be at risk from pigeons who have been known to pull entire seedlings out of the ground, so be aware.
Where winter cereal are concerned – barley, wheat and oats – all the relevant Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine (DAFM) recommended lists will be available over the coming days.
These should form the basis for all crop planning over the next few weeks. Growers should assess each variety and decide which are the most suitable for their farms.
“Don’t just look at the overall yield as the main factor in choosing a variety, but also look at other traits such as: disease susceptibility; straw characteristics; grain quality.
“In the case of winter barley, there are some varieties with BYDV tolerance which could be suitable, especially from an early drilling perspective.”
Significantly, Teagasc has also confirmed that the three-crop rule the three crop rule will again be in place for 2025, unless there are some unforeseen circumstances.