Content originally published in the Farmers Guardian
Land was starting to dry up, but as I write this on 15 March it has rained for two days. We are back to where we were at the beginning of the month.
Once conditions improve, one of the first tasks will be to push winter crops on, to make the most of the potential that is undoubtedly there. We had a kinder autumn than most and, generally speaking, winter barley and wheat went in well.
That said, some crops that haven’t received nitrogen in any form have deteriorated quite dramatically recently, due to growth commencing and nothing to help them along. They look very yellow and backward and will have started to lose yield potential.
However, quite a few crops had received their first nitrogen dressing by mid-March, and hopefully many more will have done since then, weather permitting.
I always advise applying a blended nitrogen/sulphur product at this timing, especially where no organic manure has gone on. Sulphur aids nitrogen utilisation and the two elements go hand in hand as far as I’m concerned.
I’ll be recommending Calfite Extra, plus manganese as needed, ahead of GS30 on both barley and wheats that have been standing in cold wet soils. This product contains calcium phosphite to improve crop rooting and L-PGA (pidolic acid) to increase nitrogen assimilation.
It can also be useful on good-looking crops that have a lot of tillers to support, where rooting has been compromised to a degree.
I’ll probably add TerraSorb, a blend of amino acids and trace elements, when treating very stressed crops. I think that will be money well spent this season.
Very little spring grain has been sown and some people are getting very itchy feet. Early barley drillers on light land usually start around 1 March. But it won’t take long to turn things around once warmer, drier weather arrives.
People are trying to apply FYM and slurry ahead of spring drilling and on grassland – there are a lot of full slurry towers to empty.
Now is the time to check for seedling docks in autumn reseeds. These need to be treated in the next few weeks, otherwise they will turn into an infestation within 12 months. Silage ground should also be checked.
Once April is here, thoughts will be turning to drilling maize under film, but given the current bottleneck there’s time enough; patience with seedbed preparation will be rewarded.
Simon Nelson advises farmers on a wide range of arable and forage crops across Cumbria, north Lancashire and into south west Scotland.
