Arable Farming articles from February 2003

Arable Farming archives from February 2003

First glimpse of six-row harvester.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Beeting a path for the future? Arable Farming editor Dominic Kilburn brings you the first sighting in the UK of Grimme's brand new 6-row sugar beet harvester, clearing the last of a beet crop in Norfolk in late January. This 460hp turbocharged...

Impact of climate change.(Produce Studies Research commissions international study)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Market research company Produce Studies Research (PSR), is commissioning a major international study on weather forecasting and climate change. The study concerns weather monitoring systems, how they can enhance disease and pest control...

Royal seal for training scheme.(Prince of Wales gives support for new vocational training scheme)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The Prince of Wales has given his backing to a new vocational training scheme designed to help farmers on small to medium sized holdings to access wildlife-friendly farming grants. The launch of the Pathfinders Scheme, attended by Prince...

Strobilurin resistance is confirmed.(fungicide)
February 14, 2003... As Arable Farming went to press news was emerging that resistance to the strobilurin group of fungicides has been confirmed in Septoria tritici isolates collected from sites in the UK, Ireland, Germany, France and Denmark during 2002. Septoria...

Mid-term Review proposals centre on decoupling.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The EC put forward formal proposals from the mid-term review of Agenda 2000 to the Council of EU ministers on 22 January. The main thrust is the decoupling of farmer payments from production, thereby removing area aid and replacing it with one...

Bayer in the 'Big Three'.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The acquisition of Aventis by Bayer puts the new company, Bayer CropScience, in the top three global agro-chemical players in the world, holding a 22% market share of the fungicides sector, 14% of herbicides and 26% of insecticides. "We...

New NFU website.(National Farmers Union)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The NFU is to launch a new website nfuonline.com on February 18, replacing NFUnet. There will be regional and sector-specific information, a new market analysis service and an overview of UK and European agriculture policy. Also at...

Morley/ARC merger?(Morley Research Centre, Arable Research Centres)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Arable Research Centres and Morley Research Centre are discussing the possible merger of the two businesses. Both ARC and MRC have charitable status. If they merged, it would create the largest independent arable research and advisory...

Wodjil listed.(on United Kingdom National List)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Spring lupin Wodjil has been placed on the UK National List following official trials 2001-2002. Bred by AgWest Australia, commercial field- scale trials of Wodjil over the past two years have produced consistent yields and an average protein...

Organic fertility.(research project begins)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... A DEFRA-funded 3-year research project aims to help organic farmers make better informed decisions regarding the critically important issues of nitrogen management and the use of fertility building crops in their rotations. Managed by...

New spud sponsor.(Belchim Crop Protection)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... A new name in agrochemicals will be one of the sponsors of British Potato 2003, the BPC's 2-day event to be held on September 3-4 at the Newark Showground. Belchim Crop Protection was founded in 1987. Its existing potato business includes...

Hedge protection.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... A consultation paper produced by English Nature is being circulated that could result in hedgerows receiving a higher level of protection, strengthening legislation introduced in 1997. Hedges that are considered to contribute to special...

Amendment.(Correction Notice)
February 14, 2003... Page 19 of Arable Farming January 20th should have specified organic Nitrogen application. This rate does not apply to inorganic fertilisers which the NVZ regulations specify must be applied to crop requirements. Free initial advice on...

Root extensions.
February 14, 2003... The harvesting deadline for root crops on land going into set-aside has been extended from January 15 to February 28. Copyright: CMP Information Ltd.

SMITH'S SOAPBOX: Bad Budgeting.(Column)
February 14, 2003... I note the powers that be are urging us to take the Voluntary Initiative very seriously in order to avoid a pesticide tax. The argument is that if farmers can clean up their act and prove themselves responsible and judicious in the way we use...

SMITH'S SOAPBOX: Now it's trendy to welcome the sea.(Column)
February 14, 2003... Today most of my farm lies below high-tide level. Almost exactly 50 years ago it lay below several feet of sea-water. On the eve of Jan 31, 1953 a storm force northerly gale surged an enormous tide down the funnel that is the North Sea. Sea...

Danish dismay.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Interest in organic farming methods in Denmark appears to be waning. That is the only conclusion that can be drawn as only 65 farms are making the switch to organic production this year. This compares to the 100 Danish organic growers that have...

Bintje fan club.(tries to give variety better name)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Over 115 Dutch Bintje fans (growers, traders, contractors and chemical suppliers) have begun a campaign to try and give the variety a better name. Called Bintje.info, according to a spokesman, the variety has come up for criticism, not all of...

Ring rot prevention.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The German potato industry has just announced strict new rules in an attempt to prevent any further spread of the quarantine disease ring rot. These include the fact that growers need to store and transport their crop in sealed...

Organic sugar.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Dutch organic sugar beet growers harvested an average of 50t/ha this season with a sugar content of 15.7%. According to the Cosun sugar processing concern, the 300 hectares of organic beet grown in the country were good for 15,000 tonnes of...

Belgian potatoes.(gowers increase yield)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Belgian potato growers lifted 2.74 million tonnes last season, an increase of 7% over 2001. According to the Belgian ministry of agriculture, this was despite an area drop of 0.6% to just over 61,000 hectares. The increase was largely due...

What future malting barley?
February 14, 2003... Growers must learn to live with the new agenda in agriculture: No guarantee of profits, little support from government, assurance schemes and environmental audits, and dancing to the tune of an increasingly critical, disconnected and demanding...

Growing confidence in the future.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Essex farmer and chairman of Camgrain John Latham told the conference he was quietly optimistic about the future. Though he stressed that, had the farm not undergone radical restructuring to reduce fixed costs, he would not see the future so...

What's in store for this year's crop?
February 14, 2003... It may not be in the ground yet, but all malting barley growers are profoundly interested in hearing educated guesses as to what might happen to prices. This is notoriously difficult to call as many of the factors that influence price are...

E-club information launched.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... At the conference HGCA launched a new initiative to serve malting barley growers with vital information on price, research and agronomy, varieties and export news. The e-club will be a simple text-based document that will be sent on e-...

IACS: The threat of the two `D's.
February 14, 2003... Robert Gooch explains how IACS payments are under threat from `decoupling' and `degressivity'. Capping of IACS payments will no longer play a part in CAP reform, according to the European Commission's Mid-term Review proposals just...

Letter: Changes needed to link farmer and consumer.(Letter to the Editor)
February 14, 2003... Guy Smith made the comment (Arable Farming Dec 17) "Farmers are not welcome at Downing street". I and two other farmers spent two and half hours talking with policy advisors, ministers and the Prime Minister on December 12. The reason I...

Eyespot: don't be caught out in first wheat.
February 14, 2003... Fancy an extra 1.7 t/ha on top of an already-respectable 10 t/ha wheat yield? That's precisely what Harper Adams University College achieved, during the course of a three-year eyespot study. Most surprising, however, was that eyespot was by...

Cost-effective.(Illustration)
February 14, 2003... Dr Fiona Burnett at SAC also warns about eyespot risks in first wheat. Two years into a UK-wide, three-year HGCA project that aims to help growers better target fields that will give a cost-effective response to eyespot treatment, she says...

Improved metering accuracy.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... A new design of nematicide metering device that is claimed to radically improve the accuracy of Nemathorin applications is now available for Horstine Microband applicators. The one-piece Nemathorin Cartridge replaces the Microband's...

Nematicide best practice plan.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... A new nematicide stewardship programme from DuPont, manufacturer of Vydate, aims to help potato growers justify the use of nematicides and demonstrate good agricultural practice to end users. Launched in time for the coming season, the Vydate...

Tesco takes Temik off list.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Tesco has removed Temik 10G from its 2003 list of recommended products for the control of potato cyst nematode (PCN) in crops grown under the 'Nature's Choice' protocol. Explaining the grounds for its decision Tesco stated: "This fulfils...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
February 14, 2003... In the November 19, 2002 issue of Arable Farming we incorrectly stated that Temik is the only nematicide with approval for control of free- living nematodes. Dow AgroSciences has asked us to point out that Telone II also has approval for...

Planning for PCN control.
February 14, 2003... Management and control of PCN is as complex as the pest itself. A series of grower workshops hosted by Syngenta aimed to offer sound, practical advice. Teresa Rush reports. Once the presence of potato cyst nematode has been established the...

Sample now for yield benefit this harvest.
February 14, 2003... Almost 300 oilseed rape growers have taken advantage of the free Arable Farming/DuPont OSR disease assessment offer so far. If you haven't sent in a crop sample, it's not too late - look for the freepost envelope in this issue. Samples...

Strob strikes out against take-all.
February 14, 2003... Evidence has emerged that the strobilurin azoxystrobin applied as a foliar spray to winter wheat can give useful reductions in the severity of take-all on roots. Teresa Rush reports. Manufacturer Syngenta has issued advice for best use in a...

Wheat bulb fly warning.
February 14, 2003... Average wheat bulb fly egg counts are higher this year than last and growers are being advised to keep a watchful eye on the situation and be at the ready to spray in the limited windows available - especially in high risk situations. Joanna...

CONTRACTOR: Voluntary Initiative: What you can do.
February 14, 2003... NAAC crop spraying members attended a seminar on the Voluntary Initiative to see how it will affect them and how they can become involved in it. Dominic Kilburn reports. It is clear now that there are some serious targets to reach for...

CONTRACTOR: Self-assessment.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... A mechanism for year-on-year improvement is how the NFU's Chris Wise describes the VI's Crop Protection Management Plans - a framework in which the key environmental concerns of water quality protection and wildlife conservation can be assessed...

CONTRACTOR: National Sprayer Testing Scheme - update.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... * Half of sprayers tested to date under previous AEA scheme have needed repairs to achieve the required sprayer operating standard * Operator check sheets can be downloaded from: www.nsts.org.uk * Target of 5000 sprayers to be tested in...

CONTRACTOR: Time management.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Down-to-earth views on making `more from less' in crop establishment from leading independent tillage and soil husbandry consultant, Steve Townsend. `One-pass cultivation is what we need. A big new tractor and a heavy- duty piece of kit...

CONTRACTOR: Safe use of sulphuric acid.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Following hot on the heels of the NAAC's Code of Conduct for Members out at the end of last year, a Code of Best Practice for the `Safe use of Sulphuric Acid as an Agricultural Desiccant' has also been launched as part of the Voluntary...

CONTRACTOR: Wheat markets limited by variety choice.(Column)
February 14, 2003... Contractor Comment from our Norfolk-based farmer-contractor Kit Papworth of L. F. Papworth Ltd, Lower Farm, Tuttington, Norwich. Those of you have read these pages before will be aware that we have a sheep flock and that early-year articles...

CONTRACTOR: Massey to unveil CVT development at SIMA.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... AGCO has announced plans to display a Massey Ferguson development tractor at this month's SIMA event featuring CVT transmission and a `dual stage' suspended cab. The company says it hopes to gauge customer response at the Paris machinery event....

CONTRACTOR: Spotlight on cultivation at Continental shows.
February 14, 2003... This month all the very latest in cultivation developments will be on display at the SIMA show, one of the biggest machinery shows in Europe. While there is no doubt that this is the place to catch up on all the latest cultivation developments,...

CONTRACTOR: Netagco unveils prototype potato harvester.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Netagco used the RAI show to unveil the prototype of a new trailed two- row tanker-type potato harvester, which will eventually replace the Racer machines. Called the Spirit 8200, it is the result of all Netagco Group companies getting together...

CONTRACTOR: First three-wheeled Terra Gator.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Now part of Agco, Ag-Chem continues to seek ways to reduce the incidence of ground compaction with its huge self-propelled Terra Gators. With this in mind, the company unveiled its first three-wheeled Terra Gator. The company says the 8133...

CONTRACTOR: Twin roller system prevents blockages.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Crumbler rollers have a tendency to block in wet conditions. Not any more, says Dutch firm Cappon, which has developed a twin roller system. Linked by sprockets and a chain on the one side, this ensures that the two rollers, which turn inside...

NAAC launch six-month trial membership.(National Association of Agricultural Contractors)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The National Association of Agricultural Contractors (NAAC) has launched a six-month trial membership with an extra month free for land- based contractors, available until the end of February. NAAC Executive Officer Jill Hewitt said: "The...

Health and Safety Training.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The NAAC will launch a new Health and Safety package for members on March 18, at a John Deere-supported training day at Nottingham. The package will provide information aimed at land-based contractors, including how to write a safety...

Verified Seed Scheme.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The Assured Combinable Crops Scheme (ACCS) has written the NAAC Verified Seed Scheme - a quality standard for mobile seed processors - into their protocols. This is a major step forward as, if a farmer uses an NAAC verified seed processor,...

Keeping on top of grass weeds.
February 14, 2003... A very dry September may have cast doubt over the effectiveness of some autumn pre-emergence herbicide treatments, and persistently wet weather since mid-October may have seriously disrupted many winter cereal post- em programmes. But, unless...

Weeding them out.
February 14, 2003... Avoiding a build up of weeds is important, both to protect yields and to avoid grain contamination. This year, it doesn't get any easier, Alison Lea finds. If you are behind on herbicide programmes in cereals this year, don't be distracted...

Herbicide update.
February 14, 2003... Pea and bean growers must familiarise themselves with new herbicide 'Essential Use' approvals for the coming season. Teresa Rush reports. Several older pesticides have not been supported by manufacturers in Stages 2 and 3 of the programme...

Whole-farm anti-resistance strategies needed.
February 14, 2003... Herbicide resistance is now so common that all arable farmers should adopt strategies to manage and prevent the increase of herbicide resistance in black-grass and other weeds, says a leading herbicide resistance authority. Teresa Rush reports....

Tailor PGRs for tillering.
February 14, 2003... Alison Lea seeks advice on PGR programmes for this year's crop. Forget last year's advice on PGR application. It doesn't apply for this crop. Thanks to the weather, we are looking at a completely opposite picture. This is the headline...

CHINA: Country profile.
February 14, 2003... China is the world's most populous country and has emerged in recent years as one of the leading powers with a growing influence in the economic sphere. In the early 1980's it dismantled collective farming and again allowed private enterprise....

Talking Arable with South Devon-based organic farmer David Pearson.(Column)
February 14, 2003... JANUARY 29, 2003 As the days draw out and more daylight filters in, very little of it seems to cast itself across our policy makers. In order to understand anything about agriculture, it is fast becoming necessary to carry around a...

Talking Arable with our Borders-based farmer Guy Lee.(Column)
February 14, 2003... JANUARY 28, 2003 I have seen whole houses uplifted and moved by transporter as the owners decide they would like to live in the same house but in a different location. What I cannot find is a contractor who can provide the same service for...

LAMMA LINES: It's a push-over.(hydraulically-steered grain pusher)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Built for use on a telehandler, Fletcher's hydraulically-steered grain pusher has a heavy-duty ram which, operating via a mechanical elbow, enables it to be angled up to 65 degrees in either direction. It can be equipped with either metal wear...

LAMMA LINES: Weed wiper.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The weed wiper concept has been developed into the Weed Beet Swiper by Cleanacres Northern Machinery. It is a non-drip unit which increases or decreases the flow of chemical onto the pad, according to weed density and take-up. Beet Swipers...

LAMMA LINES: Self-load trailer.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... With labour cut-backs on farms, there is increased need for many jobs to become one-man operations. Rotherham-based fabricator Philip Watkins has developed a crane-trailer (above) which can self-load big fertiliser bags, straw bales and...

Drought sharpens the focus on costs.(Column)
February 14, 2003... Global Report from our Australian farmer columnist Neil Unger How time flies. It is six months since I last wrote, so no wonder I keep getting e-mails asking if I'm still alive and why don't I write in Arable Farming any more. The reason is...

GM beet can bring environmental gain.
February 14, 2003... A novel system of row-spraying herbicide tolerant sugar beet can bring a wide range of environmental benefits, reports Alison Lea. Scientists at Rothamsted Research's Broom's Barn in Suffolk have found that herbicide tolerant beet can...

LAMMA LINES: Designed for vegetables.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... There can be compromise and unnecessary complication when adapting potato harvesters to work in other root veg, says Jones Engineering. The paint was barely dry on the Doncaster firm's purpose-built veg harvester which is a combination of...

LAMMA LINES: Multi-use three-bed tiller.(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Doncaster grower George Moate has developed his own three-bed ridger/tiller to cut down the labour and tractor hours required for his 250 acres of potatoes. And the machine can be used for general cultivation work at other times of year....