Arable Farming articles from February 2005

Arable Farming archives from February 2005

Soil management rules `no problem' for beet growers.
February 14, 2005... Competent sugar beet growers should have no difficulty in meeting the cross compliance requirements for soil management, according to Matthew Ward of Strutt and Parker's East Midlands farm department. "Sugar beet is very responsive to good...

Group 1 wheat growers set to net good profits from 2005 harvest.
February 14, 2005... Group 1 wheat growers should still net healthy profits from the 2005 harvest - even if they take their Single Farm Payment out of the equation. But winter malting barley, winter rape and set-aside will drain money from the business and...

Compliance with fertiliser legislation will be monitored.
February 14, 2005... Improving fertiliser management can improve margins, as well as ensuring compliance with the new legislation and safeguarding single farm payments. Farmers need to be aware that legislation governing application of all manures and fertilisers...

Farmers praised for `tolerant' attitude to pink-foots.
February 14, 2005... The RSPB has praised Norfolk's sugar beet growers for their tolerant attitude towards pink-footed geese. Counts revealed a record number of 147,000 birds in the county this winter - about half the total world population. The count is well...

New pea herbicide.
February 14, 2005... A new pea herbicide will enable growers to control a broad spectrum of weeds with both pre- and post-emergence applications. Skirmish from Syngenta combines the active ingredients terbuthylazine and isoxaben in what is said to be an...

Early weed control boost.
February 14, 2005... Early spring control of cleavers and black-grass has been boosted with the approval of a Boxer/Atlantis (florasulam/iodosulfuron+mesosulfuron) tank mix. Florasulam shows efficacy at temperatures down to 2 degrees C, particularly when...

Tebuconazole supplies OK.
February 14, 2005... Concerns over the supply of the fungicide tebuconazole are unfounded, according to manufacturer Bayer CropScience. Growers can be reassured that demand for their tebuconazole product Folicur can be met for the forthcoming season says the...

Mycotoxin legislation.
February 14, 2005... Fusarium mycotoxin levels at harvest 2004 were the highest on record but the majority of UK wheat samples are well below maximum acceptable limits currently under discussion within the EC. The high levels were a consequence of wet weather...

Pesticide Guide.
February 14, 2005... The 2005 editions of The UK Pesticide Guide reference book and The e-UK Pesticide Guide, CD-ROM are now available from BCPC Publication Sales. The guides provide farmers, their advisors, spray operators and others involved in the use of...

Assurance schemes fall short - Defra.
February 14, 2005... Assurance scheme standards fall below or do not address the levels set for cross compliance, says Defra. But it says if schemes adopt compliance requirements, and their audited inspections are shown to be robust, they will demonstrate...

More drought.
February 14, 2005... Europe and many other parts of the world are increasingly being stricken by drought, new research from the US National Center for Atmospheric Research shows. The percentage of land area affected has doubled in the last 30 years. The...

Smith's Soapbox: Herons and lessons.
February 14, 2005... Much of the farm here is low-lying marshland that boasts an abundance of bird life. One of the most distinctive is the heron that fishes in the broad ditches that meander around the marsh full of lazy brackish water. In flight I find their gait...

Smith's Soapbox: A probe too far.
February 14, 2005... Last month's AF showed this picture of Peter Kendall demonstrating what he believed to be a soil sampling device provided by the Environment Agency. My unreliable sources tell me that it is no such thing and, in fact, it is a probe that...

SUGAR BEET: Scientists: GMHT beet can offer wildlife benefits.
February 14, 2005... Genetically-modified sugar beet crops can be managed for environmental benefits, according to a new report by scientists from Broom's Barn Research Station. Teresa Rush reports. In a report published by the Royal Society in January -...

SPRING WEED CONTROL: Tackling the brome menace.
February 14, 2005... UK cereal growers must place far more emphasis on tackling brome over the coming season if the massive upsurge in problems with the troublesome weed experienced across the country in the past two years is to be effectively brought under...

Wash-out improvement with new SUs.
February 14, 2005... Improvements in efficacy and time, together with reductions in water usage are promised with a new range of sulfonylurea herbicides introduced for the coming spring weed control season. The new `SX' formulations of Ally (metsulfuron),...

OILSEED RAPE: `Disease pressure is likely to increase'.
February 14, 2005... The combination of the largest-ever oilseed rape area now in the ground and a further increase in non-inverted tillage is likely to increase disease pressure, particularly from phoma and associated stem canker, according to Peter Riley,...

OILSEED RAPE: Points for reduced input systems?
February 14, 2005... Farmers involved with the Entry Level Schemes could be awarded points by Defra as part of a system to persuade them to grow varieties with characteristics that are advantageous to reduced input systems. This could be one of the outcomes of...

OILSEED RAPE: Variety choice can cut fungicide costs.
February 14, 2005... Oilseed rape growers could save at least one fungicide spray costing around #20/ha by growing a variety that has a high level of resistance to phoma/stem canker. This is the claim of Grainseed, the UK agent for Es Astrid, the first oilseed...

OILSEED RAPE: Survey reveals `worst case' phoma scenario.
February 14, 2005... Positive phoma samples arrived soon after the first distribution of the DuPont/Arable Farming oilseed rape disease survey envelopes last autumn, indicating disease on very small plants - "a worst case scenario", says DuPont's Mike Ashworth. ...

OILSEED RAPE: First strob for OSR offers growers greater pod set & fill.
February 14, 2005... The first strobilurin fungicide to gain official approval for use on oilseed rape will deliver growers an extra #50 a hectare, according to Syngenta. The official green light for use of Amistar (azoxystrobin) in oilseed rape is expected to...

FUNGICIDES: All-in-one T1 option for 2005.
February 14, 2005... Bayer CropScience has released details of its new triazole/strobilurin fungicides for the coming season. Teresa Rush reports. Stem-base disease targets including true and sharp eyespot and Fusarium foot rots, together with a broad spectrum...

FUNGICIDES: Balance must protect triazole chemistry.
February 14, 2005... Any fungicide application programme for wheat must be balanced to protect the 25-year-old chemistry of triazoles, says Syngenta's Matt Pickard, who adds that fungicides with multi-site activity are required to provide the protection. "We...

FUNGICIDES: Septoria resistance up to 100%.
February 14, 2005... Septoria tritici resistance in wheat has reached 100% in some parts of the UK, according to Syngenta. Dietrich Hermann of the company's Swiss research laboratories says the problem is linked to the use of strobilurins and triazoles, with the...

PESTS: Waging war on wireworm.
February 14, 2005... Pheromone traps that use sexual attractants to lure click beetles (the adult stage of wireworm) are available for the first time this season. The traps are designed to enable potato growers to predict wireworm damage and plan future cropping...

PESTS: Quantifying the wireworm threat.
February 14, 2005... Some of the country's established potato growing areas have witnessed a steady increase in the incidence of wireworm in recent years, leading growers to look for ways to counter the damage to marketable yield that these soil pests inflict. ...

Soil structure and assessment.
February 14, 2005... Good soil structure is fundamental to both profitable crop production but also environmental protection ensuring water, air, root and worm movement in the soil. With new cross compliance measures designed to protect this vital resource, in...

Talking Arable.
February 14, 2005... From our North Norfolk-based farmer Kit Papworth of L. F. Papworth Ltd, Lower Farm, Tuttington, Norwich. February 1 2005 A brief review reveals that my first article of the year is traditionally written from the lambing shed. It...

WATER: Whose water is it anyway?
February 14, 2005... Arable Farming deputy editor Alison Lea reports back from a thirsty South Africa, on the first stage of her Nuffield Farming Scholarship travels to look at how water policy issues are affecting farming. I arrived in Cape Town on December 11...

MACHINERY: Claydon Yieldometer.
February 14, 2005... Suffolk-based Claydon, a company more widely known as a manufacturer of direct drills has launched the Yieldometer - a simple device for automatically sampling grain as it is taken from the store and being loaded for transport. The...

MACHINERY: Netting protection.
February 14, 2005... With key insecticides becoming de-listed in the vegetable sector in the last few years, alternative methods for insect control, particularly for cabbage root fly, are now catching on fast. Scotland-based Wondermesh have been supplying...

MACHINERY: Low-dose grain insecticide.
February 14, 2005... Unusual though it was to have a plant breeder exhibiting at the event, Nickerson launched a low-dose grainstore insecticide called ProStore. Although new to the UK, the insecticide, manufactured by FMC, has been available on the Continent...

MACHINERY: Speed gauge.
February 14, 2005... To improve upon existing ground speed indicators required for in-field precision application, Farm-Tec have launched the `iSpeed' ground speed indicator. The iSpeed magnetically attaches to the roof of the tractor cab from where it reads a GPS...

MACHINERY: Dribble bar from Billericay Farm Services.
February 14, 2005... Billericay Farm Services took the overall `Best New Product or Innovation' trophy at the show with its new Dribble Bar for liquid fertiliser application. Fitted to standard nozzle holders on the spray boom, the dribble bars come in 0.5m...

MACHINERY: Post driver and spool system from Quickfencer.
February 14, 2005... Having introduced a net wire unrolling device and tensioner at last year's event Quickfencer has further developed this implement by adding a post driver and a spool system for taking 350m rolls. The latter needs to be lifted onto the frame...

MACHINERY: John Dale min-till drill.
February 14, 2005... Following on from the success of its Zero Till drills, John Dale has launched a min-till variant to give customers options aside from direct drilling. The new drill is currently available in a 4m width and the soil- engaging parts of the...

MACHINERY: Larrington Cushionlock prevents damage.
February 14, 2005... An extension of the Guardian Box Loader, the Elevator Cushionlock system from Richard Larrington offers potato growers damage prevention options when unloading the crop from the harvester into a trailer. Made of an aluminium frame to keep...

MACHINERY: Self-propelled from Brazil.
February 14, 2005... A low cost self-propelled sprayer with mechanical drive is being imported from Brazil by Gloucestershire-based Kellands Agricultural. The Jacto Uniport 2500 Plus is powered by 130hp Perkins engine coupled to a five-speed Eaton gearbox. One of...

MACHINERY: Entry level trailed sprayer.
February 14, 2005... An entry level trailed sprayer and simplified Triple Press cultivator were being exhibited by Knight Farm Machinery. The Viking range of trailed sprayers is offered in two sizes with 2,500 or 3,000 litre capacity tanks. The sprayers are...

OSR ESTABLISHMENT: Oilseed rape establishment costs are a key focus.
February 14, 2005... Versatility, reliability, even germination and cost of oilseed rape establishment were the three criteria on which Hertfordshire joint venture business Pelham Farming based its decision to switch from a combine-based seeding system, over to a...

CULTIVATIONS: Disc harrows to the fore!
February 14, 2005... British arable units should consider the use of more front-mounted kit. That is the message from a number of leading Danish cultivator makers, a couple of which used last month's Agromek show to reveal new front- mounted equipment. Steven Vale...

CULTIVATIONS: Compo 800 front packers.
February 14, 2005... Continuing the front-mounted theme, Danish-company Marsk Stig hopes that UK importer Ross Farm Machinery will evaluate one of its new Compo 800 front packers this season. Fitted with a 1.5m-wide packer to firm the land ahead of the...

CULTIVATIONS: New cultivation ideas from Danish show.
February 14, 2005... New cultivation techniques took pride of place at last month's Danish Agromek show. The list included a cultivator designed to bury stones, a new automatic height control system for both drills and cultivators, and a new high-speed shallow...

CULTIVATIONS: Cultivator designed to bury stones.
February 14, 2005... Kongskilde used Agromek to reveal a pre-production model of a cultivator designed to bury stones! Although the company already offers its Stone Bear cultivator, it suggests that not all growers are looking to remove stones completely from the...

Limited number of machines.
February 14, 2005... Danish-manufacturer He-Va Doublet used Agromek to unveil a prototype of its Sabre Seeder cultivator/drill. Described as a simple, low-cost machine, it is aimed at 200 to 300 hectare arable units looking to ditch the plough. A quick look at...

Attracting interest from conventional growers.
February 14, 2005... Although aimed at organic arable farms, this Kwik-Up cultivator is also starting to attract interest from conventional growers as a way to control weeds. Although the front part of the machine looks like any other cultivator, at the rear, a...

Tines can be quickly replaced.
February 14, 2005... More news from He-Va Doublet centres on the Mega-Dan MKII light cultivator and, in particular, the fact that it can be fitted with a new light duty subsoiler tine. He-Va maintains that although the soil in min-till regimes is generally...

High-speed shallow plough.
February 14, 2005... Many farms are interested in moving down the min-till route but afraid to ditch the plough. That is the view of Danish-company Scan-Agro, which is looking to offer growers a halfway stage - a high-speed shallow plough. Made by Spanish-firm...

Constant drilling depth.
February 14, 2005... Danish company Lykketronic says that a drawback with all current seed drills is that the depth of drilling is influenced by the amount of seed in the hopper. With this in mind, it has developed a device to automatically ensure that drills and...

Drill designed to operate directly onto stubbles.
February 14, 2005... German firm Rabe used Agromek to reveal the prototype of a new drill that is designed to operate directly onto stubbles. Called the RotorSeeder, and described as a smaller version of the 6m MegaDrill, a feature is the leading Corvex power...

Global Report: The unstoppable nightmare.
February 14, 2005... From our Australian farmer columnist Neil Unger In the early hours one morning at the end of last year, our Australian farmer/columnist Neil Unger was woken from his sleep by his wife screaming `Fire'. He ran out of the house to scan the...

Talking Arable with our Shropshire-based farmer Arthur Hill.
February 14, 2005... January 27 2005 Welcome to the brave new world of decoupled support and payments for environmental gain. This whole new ball game in which we will all find ourselves will take some comprehending and I am not sure that we are anywhere near...