Arable Farming articles from July 2003

Arable Farming archives from July 2003

The meaning of the euro.
July 15, 2003... Farmers for Europe launched a euro information campaign with the publication of 'What the euro means for you' at the Royal Show. Launching the leaflet, Lord Plumb, chairman of Farmers for Europe said, "Europe matters to UK farmers. More...

Give green fuel the go-ahead, says NFU.
July 15, 2003... Government must move its focus away from fossil fuels and explore the huge new fuel reserves that could be provided by refining farm crops in the UK, says NFU. NFU President Sir Ben Gill has told an inquiry by the EFRA Select Committee...

Bare bones of CAP reform set.
July 15, 2003... EU ministers reached agreement over CAP reform at the end of June, with the key concession that member states can choose, to a certain degree, their own level of decoupling. The UK has stated its intention to opt for the default level of...

New equipment awards.
July 15, 2003... In association with Arable Farming's sister publication, Farmers Guardian, the overall and general category winner of RASE's Royal Show new equipment award was JCB for its 520-40 Farm Special Loadall. Runner- up in the general category was...

Virtual marketplace.
July 15, 2003... NFU has launched its "virtual marketplace" NFU SourceDirect, to enable food buyers to locate and contact local and regional producers. The NFU SourceDirect website enables retailers and caterers to source wholesale produce from local and...

Next major investment.
July 15, 2003... A survey by the National Farm Research Unit (NFRU) reveals that over half of the 3,400 UK farmers interviewed are intending to buy a tractor, new or second hand, as their next major investment. This was followed by 20% of farmers intending to...

Signing up to the 15t club!
July 15, 2003... Fertiliser manufacturer Terra is supporting the 15 Tonne Initiative (15Ti), to provide crop nutrition support for the 250 or so growers expected to sign up to the scheme this year. Starting this autumn through the 2004 crop season, growers...

Valtra tractors up for sale.
July 15, 2003... Owner of Finnish company Valtra tractors, KONE has decided to concentrate on its interests in container and load handling. New owners are therefore being sought for its tractor and forestry machines. Valtra is the market leader in the...

Lupins - see for yourself.
July 15, 2003... Soya UK Ltd is running a series of "Headland Meetings" for growers to see crops of lupins in the field. Fifteen meetings, principally in the south, Midlands and east, are taking place in July, with a further series in the west, north and...

SMITH'S SOAPBOX: Silent spring?
July 15, 2003... Farming opinion from Essex-based Guy Smith Of all the media reaction to the latest CAP reform the comment that struck a chord with me most was by Tim Hirsch. Hirsch, BBC environmental correspondent, reported that from now on CAP money...

MARKETING: Growing grains.
July 15, 2003... Alison Lea reports on a grain marketing company that is growing rapidly in size and stature from small beginnings. Though not short of landmark occasions over the past year, Grainfarmers marked the beginning of July as a special occasion...

VARIETY CHOICE: Plotting the future.
July 15, 2003... NIAB variety plots at Cambridge provide an early look at promising new varieties. Alison Lea tours the site with farmer guests Phil Jarvis and David Felce. What caught their eye? Though NIAB's status in the production of the Recommended...

Fresh herbs cut out the middleman.
July 15, 2003... A diversification enterprise capitalises on the resources of a Suffolk family farm, and exploits consumer demand in the region. Alison Lea reports. A family farm in the Waveney valley on the Norfolk/Suffolk border. Forty years ago it was a...

OILSEED RAPE: Stand and deliver.
July 15, 2003... It's been a rocky ride for oilseed rape over the past decade, but it looks like things are coming good all at once. Alison Lea reports. It is not always easy to make a direct link between a profitable rotation and care for the environment,...

GRAIN EXPORT: COUNTRY SPOTLIGHT - ITALY.
July 15, 2003... This year's HGCA mission to Italy confirmed that there is a market for UK Group 1 and 2 wheat varieties, which Italian millers felt would suit their bread making requirements. The visit is part of HGCA's on-going activities to build relations...

SEED TREATMENTS: Anticipate threats and plan ahead.
July 15, 2003... A little forward thinking on seed treatment strategies for winter wheat could take the pressure off disease control decisions next spring. Teresa Rush finds out how. "A bit of planning ahead is what's needed. It's all too easy to get...

SEED TREATMENTS: Consider a complete protection package.
July 15, 2003... Growers looking to select a take-all seed treatment should weigh up the costs and additional benefits provided before making their decision. That's the view of Dalgety technical manager, Mike Jeffes, who says that there's little difference...

SUGAR BEET: Powdery mildew alert.
July 15, 2003... Control of powdery mildew in sugar beet with triazole fungicides is now recognised as being worthwhile as part of a managed strategy to achieve quota. But not all growers are convinced of the argument, it seems. Teresa Rush reports. This...

SUGAR BEET: Sweet alternatives to beat mildew.
July 15, 2003... July is disease monitoring month for sugar beet growers and powdery mildew should be on the priority list. The latest Broom's Barn prediction suggests that around one in ten crops will be affected by the end of August. Although disease...

POTATOES: Rapid haulm kill stops blight.
July 15, 2003... With tin no longer an option for end of season blight control, growers must look to harness desiccation management and blight control in tandem to minimise the risk of tuber infection during this harvest. Rapid desiccation, to starve blight...

CAP REFORM: Decoupling impact is hard to forecast.
July 15, 2003... At 6.35 am on June 26 the Common Agricultural Policy was radically and comprehensively reformed. Here, Robert Gooch, policy analyst with Eurinco, explains all. From January 1, 2005 all IACS payments could disappear and be replaced by a...

CAP REFORM: NFU viewpoint.
July 15, 2003... From Arthur Hill As vice chairman of the NFU Cereals Committee I have been asked to give a view on the Mid-term Review of the CAP which will bring fundamental change. The EU Commission has got its way on decoupling for the arable...

HERBICIDES: Farm your way out of black-grass problems.
July 15, 2003... Trials sites around the country are yielding up information about the performance of new - and not-so-new - crop protection products. Teresa Rush reports on some of this season's herbicide trials. Black-grass control is, not surprisingly, a...

HERBICIDES: Programmed approach in mixture.
July 15, 2003... In BayerCropscience trials on heavy land farmed by Bryan and John Collen near Bungay in Suffolk, pre-emergence Crystal followed by O4H + Stomp was again demonstrating its worth. The site is affected by a variable population of triple 'R'...

HERBICIDES: Pre-emergence treatments.
July 15, 2003... Just a few miles away at BASF's trials site on Hanslope Series at Little Ravely, the need for pre-emergence treatments as part of a programme to control difficult black-grass has once again been demonstrated. The best treatment here has been 4...

Talking Arable.
July 15, 2003... From our North Norfolk-based farmer Kit Papworth of L. F. Papworth Ltd, Lower Farm, Tuttington, near Norwich 30 JUNE 2003 I wrote on April 24, "rain is again forecast for the weekend. I hope it materialises this time." Much has changed...

PLOUGHS: Dual purpose ploughs increase flexibility.
July 15, 2003... AEA figures suggest that somewhere around 900-1,000 new ploughs are sold to British farms each year. As average tractor size continues to increase, it may come of little surprise to learn that the 5-furrow plough continues to make up a larger...

BUYERS' GUIDE TO PLOUGHS.
July 15, 2003... Dowdeswell (Tel: 01926 812335) Mounted Conventional - DP5 2-5 furrows. Up to 150hp. Prices from #2,229. Mounted Reversible - DP7 fixed furrow width. 4-7 furrows. Up to 260hp. Prices from #9,000. 100 series (both fixed/variable furrow widths)....

CHALLENGING THE ESTABLISHMENT: Stepping into the limelight.
July 15, 2003... Down-to-earth views on making `more from less' in crop establishment from leading independent tillage and soil husbandry consultant Steve Townsend. Liming is a `good thing'. In modern management speak that's a no- brainer. We've known it...

ROYAL SHOW: The future's? Using water wisely.
July 15, 2003... Dominic Kilburn and Alison Lea report on some highlights from a new- look Royal Show at Stoneleigh Park in Warwickshire. The British Biological Science Research Council (BBSRC) exhibition featured research projects provoking thoughts for...

Sensing the soil's strength.
July 15, 2003... Scientists at Silsoe Research Institute have developed a system for estimating the strength of soil helping growers choose the most appropriate type and depth of tillage and optimise irrigation and fertiliser applications. The sensor will show...

The worm has turned.
July 15, 2003... Stark figures highlighting the fact that 50-80% of potato fields in the UK harbour potato cyst nematode, in addition to pressure to reduce nematicide use, means that UK potato growers are in an increasingly vulnerable position in the defence...

Cutting down the weight problem.
July 15, 2003... Designed as a transport system, but also a stabiliser for tractor- mounted long reach mowers, the new Orbital from Spearhead (pictured right) is designed to get over the problem of excess vehicle weights when tractor and mower are combined. The...

Wider `shaker' option.
July 15, 2003... A 5m wide folding version of McDonnell's Shakaerator has been launched for tractors in the 240hp and over bracket. The new machine is linkage- mounted and has two outer wings attached to a central frame. The vibrator unit is hydraulically-...

Evolving crop storage and control.
July 15, 2003... Installed as either a new store system or a total replacement for any existing control or monitoring system, Crop Storage Limited's CSL Evolution provides a centralised management and control facility and improved accuracy of control to ensure...

Disadvantage of partial decoupling.
July 15, 2003... Rural affairs minister Margaret Beckett took the opportunity on her visit to the Royal Show to defend CAP reforms agreed the previous week in Luxembourg. She denied that the agreement was a "fudge" that would disadvantage British...

Lapwing award.
July 15, 2003... RSPB announced the winner of its Operation Lapwing competition - awarded to the farmer judged to have done the most to help breeding lapwings. David Brailsford, who has a 140ha mixed upland farm in Derbyshire, was awarded the prize. In the...

From seed to product.
July 15, 2003... A new exhibition covering four blocks next to the Grand Ring called the Grain Chain aimed to explain the cereal food chain to visitors. The largest outdoor exhibition ever mounted by RASE, it was made possible with sponsorship from a wide...

COLIN MYRAM'S CROP TALK: A nation of farmer gardeners?
July 15, 2003... East Anglian-based Colin Myram is a consultant to the agricultural industry. 26 JUNE 2003 Following a recent visit to Rothamsted Research, I came away somewhat depressed - not because of the quality of the research being done but...

Self-assessment: It's here to stay.
July 29, 2003... Don't think that the Crop Protection Management Plans you did/are going to do/had no intention of doing as part of the Voluntary Initiative is the only bit of self-assessment that will be winging its way to your farm in the foreseeable future....

A GM nation?
July 29, 2003... The government's Strategy Unit set up to look into the overall costs and benefits of GM crops has concluded that although existing GM crops could offer some cost and convenience advantages to UK farmers, any economic benefit to the UK is likely...

Britain leads the way.
July 29, 2003... A British team commissioned to write a set of common obligations for Integrated Farming across Europe, presented the working document at a landmark conference in Brussels at the beginning of July. To find out how it was received by European IF...

Black-grass threat.
July 29, 2003... Black-grass seeds will soon be starting to be shed in cereal crops and this year they are likely to have a low dormancy as a result of high summer temperatures - the consequence of which could be an early explosion of grass weed seedlings post...

Ranman transfer.
July 29, 2003... Belchim Crop Protection has become the sole distributor of blight fungicide Ranman Twinpack (cyazofamid). The company recommends 80g/ha active ingredient, and says it has excellent rain-fastness and resistance to weathering. This makes...

Volunteer potato warning.
July 29, 2003... Volunteer potatoes are emerging as a serious problem for more and more arable growers across the country, according to latest Monsanto studies, revealing populations as high as 200,000 tubers/ha in some cases. Conducted through the company's...

Blight about.
July 29, 2003... Cases of potato blight reached a total to 42 confirmed cases in the 30 days up to mid-July, says the BPC. Fresh outbreaks occurred in crops in the areas of Taunton in Somerset, Dunbar in East Lothian, Scotland and further south in the Kelso...

Let them pass!
July 29, 2003... "The best way of keeping the public behind us is to let them go in front," says NFU PR manager Simon Rayner. He was referring to the need to be aware of any traffic queues building up behind farm vehicles as harvest increases the need to...

New fungicide mix for beet.
July 29, 2003... A new approved fungicide mix will enable sugar beet growers to combine all-round disease control with harvest flexibility, according to Rene Pollak of Dow AgroSciences. The company, together with Bayer CropScience, is now supporting...

Banks/Sands link.
July 29, 2003... Banks Cargill Agriculture and Sands Agricultural Services Ltd have agreed to merge their Crop Protection businesses. BCA will purchase the trading operations of SAS Ltd - the East Anglian- based crop protection and contracting business. SAS...

Smith's Soapbox: Gay pride.
July 29, 2003... I was amused to read Colin Myram in 15 July's AF berating the fact that agronomy open days used to be about new wheat varieties or fungicide programmes but now they seem to be about growing wild flowers or feeding bumble bees. I have noticed...

Smith's Soapbox: Early start.
July 29, 2003... As I write this in mid-July north east Essex swelters under a heat-wave and the countryside is alive with the sound of combines. The barley and rape harvest is nearly done. The rape yields are well down on our average but at least it is easy...

Taking integrated farming across Europe.
July 29, 2003... Is integrated farming the 'third way' in agriculture? Obligations for IF are being agreed at a European level, and there are positive signals from Brussels. Alison Lea reports from a recent workshop in the city. It's good to talk. A recent...

Integrated Farming - what's it all about?
July 29, 2003... Integrated Farming offers a whole farm policy and whole systems approach to farm management. Why should farmers adopt it? Integrated Farming puts a name to many things that farmers will recognise they are doing anyway, so IF helps to...

The European IF family.
July 29, 2003... Founded in the year 2000, EISA - the European Initiative for Sustainable Development in Agriculture - is the umbrella organisation for six country IF organisations. LEAF represents the UK. The others are: FARRE for France, FILL for...

Integrated farming on the Rhine.
July 29, 2003... `Each German farmer currently nourishes 128 German citizens. I have a dream that these 128 citizens would nourish one farmer in return. This is one important reason for my involvement in FNL.' Rhine land farmer Heinrich Kemper told workshop...

A European Framework.
July 29, 2003... The set of Obligations - now at the stage of a working document - aim to provide a workable framework for IF across Europe. They go beyond the national Codes of Good Agricultural Practice, encompassing aspects of farming which provide consumers...

CONSERVATION: Buzz brings in the bees.
July 29, 2003... The Buzz project is one year old, and is already celebrating results for boosting biodiversity. Alison Lea takes a close look in the clover. A deep droning warned of the imminent approach of a huge black bee. "A queen Bombus ruderatus!"...

Look to seed treatments to ease disease control options.
July 29, 2003... Could winter wheat growers be making more of the foliar disease suppression effects offered by seed treatments? Teresa Rush reports. In some circumstances growers could be making more of foliar disease suppression effects offered by seed...

First wheat gain from take-all treatment?
July 29, 2003... Sowing first wheats early, after set-aside? Then you may be better off using a take-all controlling seed treatment, particularly one that can also reduce early disease pressure. That's the view of UAP technical director Chris Bean, who...

Economic response in second wheat slot.
July 29, 2003... Take-all seed treatments have the potential to markedly reduce whiteheads and improve yields in second wheats, according to latest Arable Research Centre trials. But correct product choice and usage are essential for the greatest response and...

Seed treatment news: Bayer CropScience.
July 29, 2003... The Secur system website from Bayer CropScience aims to help cereal growers check out the returns they can expect from drilling Secur- treated seed this autumn. The site enables growers to assess risk and return according to their...

OILSEED RAPE: Beware volunteer threat this autumn.
July 29, 2003... Volunteer cereals will be the most significant threat to the establishment and yield of oilseed rape in the coming season, according to a leading agronomist. Teresa Rush reports. ADAS Arable director Andrew Wells warns that crops...

Technology development provides performance boost.
July 29, 2003... Development of an entirely new way of combining the latest performance- enhancing adjuvants with crop protection active ingredients has enabled Syngenta to boost the performance of its fluazifop-p-butyl herbicide Fusilade. So-called...

POTATOES: Beware stem lesion threat in battle against tuber blight.
July 29, 2003... Potato growers are being urged not to underestimate the importance of stem blight as a source of tuber blight infection. Teresa Rush reports. Speaking at a blight control briefing at a trials site near Melbourne in Derbyshire, SAC potato...

FARM SAVED SEED: Are you really saving with seed?
July 29, 2003... The economic reasons for using farm saved seed may, at first sight, appear clear cut, but Mark Fort of Brown and Co. explains to Alison Lea that there is a lot more to take into consideration. Save seed, save money. This is the general...

Weed control without the agchem toolbox.
July 29, 2003... Without herbicides in your armoury, dealing with weeds becomes a major preoccupation. Alison Lea reports from a training day run by the Soil Association. Ask an organic farmer his main agronomic concern. Almost invariably the answer is...

WEED CONTROL: The host farm.
July 29, 2003... An interesting piece of reverse logic prompted Adrian Steele to convert his 900-acre farm in the Vale of Evesham to organic production. "We had major black-grass resistance problems. We were already growing Conservation Grade cereals, and I...

VOLUNTARY INITIATIVE: When a plan comes together.
July 29, 2003... The Voluntary Initiative rumbles on but are you taking any notice of it? If not, why not? asks Dominic Kilburn who hears how one aspect of the VI has helped growers to have a better understanding of their farming practices. If there is a...

Farmer perspective.
July 29, 2003... Wendy Kent, who farms 800 acres in partnership with her family out of SE Kent & Sons, Swillands, near Ipswich participated in a CPMP training course to help her focus on the future as well as realising CPMPs were important towards success in...

SUGAR BEET: Tolerant variety offers potential for integrated control.
July 29, 2003... From practical advice on the current crop to updates on long-term research projects - there was plenty on offer for sugar beet growers at the BBRO Broom's Barn open afternoon. Teresa Rush reports. A new virus yellows tolerant sugar beet...

Frost protection for sugar beet.
July 29, 2003... 'Ridging up' of sugar beet during November/December may provide a means of field storage, thereby reducing losses at the clamp. Research under way at Broom's Barn is investigating ways of storing beet in the field, rather than in the clamp,...

POWER HARROWS: Quick fit blades are principal change.
July 29, 2003... Last year around 1,500 new power harrows were sold to UK farms/contractors, a drop of almost 50% on the figures recorded by the AEA a decade ago. What's more, sales for the first four months of this year confirm another slight fall over the...

Revised Corvus and Corvex from Rabe.
July 29, 2003... New Rabe UK power harrows this season include the revised Corvus and Corvex models from 2.5 to 8m. The Corvus 3001 (3m) and 4001 (4m), feature bolt-on tines and 510mm packer rollers. The trough is made from titanium content steels, with...

CULTIVATIONS: Shallow cultivations bring in the harvest.
July 29, 2003... There's a field in Oxfordshire which is gaining quite a name as a dedicated learning area into the science and practice of minimum cultivations. Michael Bird takes a walk through the latest crop and reports on how cultivation depth can...

TALKING ARABLE with our North Lincolnshire farmer Ambrose Fowler.
July 29, 2003... JULY 13, 2003 I had always believed that there were only two sorts of farmers - those that came from Lincolnshire and the rest. That was until I was invited with some other North Lincolnshire friends to judge the Farms Competition for The...

COLIN MYRAM'S CROP TALK: Strob/triazole mixes will come out top.
July 29, 2003... East Anglian-based Colin Myram is a consultant to the agricultural industry, including farmers and suppliers. As I write this in the middle of July, barley harvest is in earnest and wheat crops are bleaching in the high temperatures. I...

The GM debacle/debate.
July 29, 2003... JULY 15 2003 We have recently seen a number of important milestones for GM, or are they roadmaps! Firstly, there are the press, especially the BBC, giving more prominence to the anti argument. Secondly, Meacher has lost his job and the...

TALKING ARABLE with our Shropshire-based farmer Arthur Hill.
July 29, 2003... JULY 13, 2003. So it has happened. The MTR is now fact. It was the usual last minute affair with deals and fudged compromise the order of the day. True to form, Chirac would not agree a deal until he was ready and not without a display of...