Farmers in parts of east Down sprayed-off crops of winter barley last week, in the expectation of having their earliest fields harvested by now.
The Ards Peninsula, for instance, is one of the earliest regions of Northern Ireland, where the growing of crops is concerned.
In the meantime, rain has returned, putting a stop to the prospect of any harvesting work taking place.
As a consequence, the actual start to the 2023 cereal harvest in Northern Ireland could become a race against time.
College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) crops development advisor, Leigh McClean, said: “Growers with early winter barley crops to cut are now actively looking for a window of opportunity to get on with the harvest.
“The hot, dry weather of recent weeks has brought six-row hybrid and some two-row barleys to full maturity. These crops would have been drilled last September and early October.”
According to McClean, crops of winter barley, oilseed rape, oats and wheat and are looking well at the present time.
“Some winter cereals got off to a challenging start, given the heavy rains and wet conditions that persisted for most of last autumn,” he added.
“Some bare batches in fields resulted. However, as the season progressed, crops got the rain and the sunshine they needed, as and when it was required.”
Winter barley harvest
However, it is the actual yields obtained at harvest that will tell the real story of the 2022/2023 growing season.
“Some winter barley yields were disappointing last year, despite crops looking well in the fields,” McClean further explained.
“Growers were attributing this fall-off in final yields to Barley Yellow Dwarf Virus. Weather conditions for aphids, the vector of the virus, had been very suitable the previous autumn.
“Sub-clinical take-all may also be an issue in winter barley. These are crops that are mainly grown as a second cereal within an arable rotation. Carryover issues relating to take-all can be an issue in this context.
“But the true determination of crop performance comes down to what comes of the combine. And, where winter barleys are concerned in 2023, we won’t have long to wait.”
The not-so-good news for cereal growers is that the changeable weather now looks likely to stay with us, until the weekend at least.