Drilling a companion crop or seed mixture alongside oilseed rape could help control pests and add valuable nutrition to soils, new thinking is suggesting.
Long established as a problem North of the border, Clubroot could be becoming more of an issue for oilseed rape growers further South.
A range of high yielding oilseed rapes with added agronomic functionality will be showcased by seed breeders DSV UK at Cereals 2019.
Hybrids dominate oilseed rapeseed production throughout mainland Europe and there’s a very strong case for this now being repeated in the UK, says DSV’s Mike Mann.
A rise in spring drilling is expected in 2019 as a direct result of the winter oilseed rape area dropping to around 580,000 ha.
Two of the new oilseed rape varieties added to the 2019/20 AHDB Recommended List feature Turnip Yellow (TuYV) resistance so just how important is the threat posed by the aphid-borne virus to UK producers. John Swire investigates.
DSV varieties have come top in the overall wheat and oilseed rape production categories in the 2018 ADAS Yield Enhancement Network (YEN) initiative with a win for the highest yield in the oilseed rape trials section too.
New varieties of wheat, oilseed rape and forage joined DSV’s established portfolio of wheat, OSR and cover crops on their stand at CropTec 2018.
What are the benefits of this new approach?
Drilling a companion crop or seed mixture alongside arable crops is nothing new. As yet however, this approach has not been widely used in traditional cropping and especially not in oilseed rape. Companion planting in OSR has two main objectives. The primary objective is to reduce nitrogen fertiliser inputs by using legumes to fix atmospheric nitrogen. The secondary objective focuses on repelling or distracting insect OSR pests.
With recent rain loosening soil and providing much needed moisture for parched ground, growers that have held back on drilling oilseed rape now have near perfect conditions for establishment, says Sarah Hawthorne of DSV.
Choose a variety with the right level of vigour, get your seedbed preparation right and pay attention to achieving the right plant population if you’re drilling into September, says Mike Mann of DSV UK Ltd.
Cover crops will play an increasingly important role in improving soil composition and fertility at the 3000ha South Pickenham Estate, near Swaffham, in Norfolk says estate farm manager Richard Cobbald.
DSV’s Turnip Yellow Virus (TuYV) resistant oilseed rape variety Temptation is currently in joint top position in the latest AHDB variety trials based on 2018 data.
After the cold and wet winter and spring, searing summer temperatures have made for a challenging oilseed rape harvest for many in the region.
With another difficult few weeks of challenging conditions for UK arable growers, the need for more robust and resilient oilseed rape varieties has once again been brought under the spotlight, says DSV’s Sarah Hawthorne.
DSV will be previewing its new ‘triple-layered’ high performance oilseed rape with sowing to harvest disease protection and yield protection alongside its growing portfolio of Clearfield varieties and TerraLife crops at Cereals 2018.
Last Saturday we invited a small group of farmers to join us at our GEN2050 conference in Leicester to discuss the developments of technology and resources by 2050.
Expanding forages, oilseed rape and maize on DSV's LAMMA 2018 stand
Winter is upon us with biting cold days and long nights - but Christmas nearly here! The season starts with a treat from the AHDB, in the form of the recommended list with its 20 new varieties of all types (nearly one for every day up until Christmas!).
* Turnip Yellow Virus (TuYV) a growing threat to UK producers
* Potential yield losses of up to 30% feared
* Temptation is DSV's first variety in UK to carry genuine genetic TuYV resistance
* Simulated cabbage stem flea beetle attack reduces yields by just 1%
* Even massive early spring crop damage produces crop yields at 85% of control
* Results support previous findings
* 0.8t/ha yield advantage over treated plots average for Incentive 45 and Dariot
* Advantage rises to over 1.0t/ha in untreated plots
Later drilling is often a difficult concept for growers to embrace fully. Memories of sluggishly developing crops and cold, wet autumns still sit firm in the minds of many growers. But it’s a very scenario now with significant breeding work gone in to the best varieties to ensure they can establish quickly in a range of growing scenarios including the freezing conditions of Eastern Europe.
Research has show that over 70% of the total root mass of oilseed rape is developed in the first 45 days weeks after sowing – hence Incentive 45’s name.
Having experienced issues with pollen beetle affecting conventional OSR varieties the previous season, Wiltshire farmer Julian Cooke switched entirely to two DSV hybrids for the 2017 harvest.
Northamptonshire farmer David Hutchinson has just finished harvesting 120ha of oilseed rape at Manor Farm, Strixton near Wellingborough, with DSV varieties Sparrow and Incentive 45 averaging just over 4.5t/ha.
Deutsche Saatveredelung AG - DSV invests in France Deutsche Saatveredelung AG (DSV) has invested 5.2 million euros in the construction of a new French seed breeding station in Terminiers. DSV breeds and tests wheat, barley, oilseed rape and forage and turf grasses for the French market at various locations in France.
As oilseed rape crops race towards harvest, lodging has once again reared its head this year with potential problems for some growers looming, says DSV’s Sarah Hawthorne.
Farmers Guide has been tracking the progress of a crop of the Group 4 winter wheat DSV Marston being grown by Tim Lamyman at Worlaby Farms on the Lincolnshire Wolds as part of his attempt to regain the world wheat yield record.
“Clearfield oilseed rape - the future’s bright,” according to Michael Farr, Southern and Western Sales and Marketing Manager for the international plant breeder, DSV.
A new ‘layered’ disease resistance approach is the latest development in DSV’s PNN initiative to develop a new generation of hybrid oilseed rape varieties delivering high performance without Neonicotinoid seed treatment.
Arable growers learning to get the most out of maize should start by following some basic rules regarding varietal selection and early establishment.
Oilseed rape will always have a place in the rotation at Green Drove Farm, near Pewsey in Wiltshire, believes farm manager Nick Downs.
New forage options, an addition to the TerraLife cover crop range and DSV’s first UK maize varieties will join the company’s established portfolio of oilseed rape and wheat varieties on their stand at LAMMA 2017.
The AHDB Recommended Lists can sometimes get overwhelming - with 55 winter wheat varieties, either recommended or a candidate. Selecting the right variety for your farming situation from such a long list can be daunting!
DSV is now taking its PNN (Post Neonicotinoid) initiative further forward with a range of new trials and initiatives designed to improve the reliability and cost-effectiveness of oilseed rape production, says the company’s Sarah Hawthorne.
Over 90 years ago, DSV started breeding grass and forage species, with the aim of improving the performance of animals.
Trials being carried out in the UK and Germany are showing how new hybrid genetics can help oilseed rape crops bounce back after severe pest attack early in the growth cycle, says DSV UK’s Michael Farr.
Verticillium wilt has been the focus of much breeding development in Germany in recent times following a steady rise in the disease’s incidence over the last 20 years, says Dr. Alex Doering of seed breeders DSV.
Although not a disease criteria identified on current HGCA Recommended Lists, choosing oilseed rape varieties with proven tolerance to verticillium wilt could be a good idea for UK growers if the recent experience in mainland Europe is anything to go by, says Dr. Alex Doering of seed breeders DSV.
It’s not just a question of choosing a ‘high vigour’ variety to help protect against potential losses from pests and diseases without neonicotinoids, says Mike Mann of DSV UK.
New trials focusing on how oilseed rape roots develop is giving seed breeders DSV fresh insight into how stronger and more tolerant varieties can be developed in the future.
Trials by Suffolk-based agricultural consultancy group Agrivice Ltd have focused on verticillium wilt tolerance in close rotations and confirm the need for strong early growth and primary root development.
Choosing the right variety to match individual conditions and drilling dates can have a major impact on the subsequent management of oilseed rape crops and the gross margins achieved.
The carefully selected variety of plant species in DSV’s TerraLife range of cover crop mixes is an essential part of their function but adds no additional complexity of management over single variety cover crops, says the company’s Emma Bedford.
If you’re thinking about growing cover crops you need to focus on what you expect to achieve and invest in the crop sufficiently to deliver it, believes one Oxfordshire arable grower.
With oilseed rape now starting to grow away you can learn a lot about it’s harvest potential by considering what your crop has looked like in recent weeks, says Sarah Hawthorne of DSV.
New techniques to boost the profitability of oilseed rape, growing mixed forages for cover cropping and energy production plus a range of new seed varieties will be the main features on the DSV stand at Cereals 2015.
Time is running out for oilseed rape growers to win a flying drone and camera system in DSV and United Oilseeds Marketing’s Incentive 45’s Taproot Challenge competition.
Strategic use of cover crops to arrest declining crop yields and create more sustainable production in the future is an essential element of a rotational shake-up introduced at Holkham Estate near Wells-next-the-Sea in Norfolk.
Minimising crop damage and improving soil organic matter in intensively-farmed beet and vegetable rotations are the main reasons behind a new approach to cover cropping at South Pickenham Estates near Swaffham in Norfolk.
With all his oilseed rape down to the new DSV variety Incentive this year, Suffolk grower Ali Drummond says the variety’s early vigour is a key element of his strategy for life with neonicotinoids.
“I don’t want to compromise on yield and oil content but the more agronomic properties a variety has built in the more relevant I think it will be in type of farming we will be doing in the future.
With DSV variety Compass always doing well on his heavy land and the need for a rapidly establishing variety to counter potential early disease and pest threats, Incentive was the by far the best choice says Cheshire grower Robert Cross.
Warwickshire grower Stephen Cowper’s Incentive oilseed rape not only ‘shot out of the ground’ after drilling its rapid subsequent growth has helped it shrug off all pest and disease attack.
Although concerned about managing the early weeks of growth following the loss of neonicotinoids, the variety’s early establishment has created the perfect crop going into winter, he says.
Incentive’s noticeably quicker establishment than other oilseed rape varieties has helped it growth through all early pest attacks at Nick Abraham’s High House Farm, near Dereham in Norfolk.
“We drilled another well known hybrid variety 10 days earlier that our Incentive and it had overtaken it within 3 weeks,” Nick explains.
Oilseed rape growers should avoid drilling early this year to avoid serious pest and disease problems, warns ADAS plant specialist Pete Berry. Whilst the early harvest and loss of neonicotinoids is tempting many producers to start drilling in the next few days, record numbers of flea beetles, perfect conditions for virus transmission and the prospect of unmanageable canopies late could make this a disaster.
With a harvest of mixed fortunes behind them, East Anglian oilseed rape growers face 2015 with some important lessons learned, believes Sarah Lockhart of Downham Market-based DSV UK Ltd.
Although only confirmed in the UK in 2007, this year has seen verticillium wilt spread rapidly across the country from its South East origins. Varietal choice plays a large part in limiting the effects of the disease, but some claims of resistance are misleading, says DSV’s Sarah Lockhart.
Strong early establishment and root development is one of the main reasons some oilseed rape varieties tolerate verticillium wilt attack better than others, says Sarah Lockhart of DSV UK.
Spring cropping and alternative cover crops are proving vital to one grower in Worcestershire, helping tackle blackgrass and improve the soil structure on his farm. Farmers Weekly reports.
One experienced East Midlands seed specialist is so confident in the performance of the new double RL leader Incentive 45, he put his reputation on the line by getting some of his most valued customers to drill substantial areas of the variety ahead of it even being recommended.
With many growers revisiting Spring cropping and taking on the challenge of greater diversity, seed specialists from DSV are starting to build a new production philosophy around using specially formulated crop mixes to restore soil structure and organic content.
New work from DSV is highlighting the relationship between root mass, leaf area and yield and showing a future without Neonicotinoids is possible.
The importance of root structures with regard to oilseed rape plant health and yield, new hybrid varieties plus TerraLife seed mixes for soil conditioning and the launch of Energy So(i)lutions energy crops, will be key features of the DSV stand at Cereals 2014.
DSV UK Ltd will be launching a new approach to growing crops for biogas plants at Cereals this year which is being held near Duxford, Cambridgeshire.
Incentive is the most exciting new hybrid variety to top both the North Region and East and West Region HGCA recommended lists in a very a very long time. It offers growers enormous potential with strong hybrid traits.
Nearly half of Lincolnshire producer Andrew Pearce’s oilseed rape acreage is the new DSV variety Incentive this year following two difficult seasons struggling with various establishment and lodging issues with other varieties.
“The fact that Incentive has topped both the East/West and Northern regions of the HGCA Recommended Lists proves what a great combination of high performance and versatility the variety has. "
Incentive is a significant step forward in terms of performance and versatility over the main oilseed rape varieties that have been at the top of the HGCA lists for the last few years.
With the highest gross output on the 2014/15 HGCA Recommended List, Incentive 45 is not only a true all-round performer.
Incentive 45, named for its very early and vigorous growth in the first six weeks, was best in the East/West and Northern region of the Home-Grown Cereal Authority’s Recommended List.
With the highest gross output on the 2014/15 HGCA Recommended List, Incentive 45 is not only a true all-round performer, its rapid early establishment also gives it several agronomic advantages, says DSV UK Managing Director Mike Mann.
Plant vigour is key to correct oilseed rape establishment and growth but new work being carried out by DSV suggests not only is it a bit of a misused term, its implication to agronomy management could be even more important in the years ahead.
Two new Oilseed Rape varieties and a new Winter Wheat will be previewed by DSV UK at Cereals 2013 hot on the heels of the company’s trio of firsts in 2013/14’s HGCA Recommended Lists.
As the first semi-dwarf oilseed rape variety to match the performance of its taller cousins, Troy could offer growers both management and harvesting benefits.
Described as a breakthrough by industry commentators, Troy is one of six new varieties to join the 2013/14 HGCA Recommended List for the East/West region and one of nine added to the North region.
A new approach to soil improvement using specific seed mixes to address individual agronomic and production issues in intensive rotations, will be launched at Cereals 2013 by DSV UK Ltd.