“There was only a difference in a tonne between our first and second wheat yields from Evolution – both of which were higher than average for the season in this area, and if we had had more sunlight later in the summer, we could easily have been looking at yields such as those in 2015,” he says.

“The only downside was our second wheats had a lower bushel weight of 72-74 kg/hl, whereas with the first wheats it was up to 76 kg/hl.”

“Our focus here is to grow the biggest heap of grain we can get; milling wheats don’t do well on these silty loam soils, so we are always looking to push yields.”

On the basis of looking for ways to improve farm productivity, Mr Hinchliffe first began experimenting with no-till back in 2012, and now the whole farm is under a no-till system.

“We gave up ploughing about 16 years ago, and went to a min-till system and this seemed to work well. However we thought we could go even further and decided to try one field out under a no-till system with a new John Deere direct drill that we had just bought.”

“We started to see the benefits of no-till straight away as the ‘tester’ field soon turned out to be our best field.”

He highlights benefits such as; improved water penetration, increased worm numbers and better rooting. “All of which make it much easier to manage the soils.”

“Moisture retention is much improved now and we are certainly seeing a much slower release of nitrogen in the soil, which I think gives us the equivalent of an extra week’s grain fill.”

“We still subsoil where needed, mostly on the heavier magnesium clays – at the end of the day we have to take a pragmatic rather than a dogmatic approach,” he points out.

“With very little black-grass to contend with, wheats can go in early. “Last year we decided to grow Evolution as both a first and second wheat and drilled it from mid-Sept to early October, with the cleanest fields being drilled first.”

“Being able to drill earlier does mean that we can push yields that little bit more.”

“Our soils are a high pH of around 8, so we don’t have issues with take-all, which means that we can drill second wheats without too many concerns.”

“We use a higher seed rate for the second wheats; up from 350 seeds/m² to 400 seeds/m². My theory is that it is better to have a plant to manage than no plant at all and the high rate helps to counteract against slugs, which is one downside of the no-till approach.”

Richard Hinchliffe does all of his own agronomy. Septoria tritici and yellow rust are the main disease targets for his fungicide programme, with broad leaved weeds such as cleavers being a target in the spring.

Most of the wheats grown at Rawcliffe Bridge Farm are hard Group 4’s, with the exception of a small area of Belepi, Viscount and LG Motown.

This autumn Evolution will be the biggest variety grown on the farm, both as a second and first wheat, based on its performance this year. Costello will also be grown for the third year running. However Viscount, long time farm stalwart has started to drop away in yields, so Mr Hinchliffe will be trialling LG Motown as a replacement.

Inputs

240 kg Liquid N applied in a 3-way split before flag leaf

T0 – Bravo or Amistar Opti if yellow rust is about

T1 – Epoxi + Vertisan + Bravo

T2 – Epoxi + Imtrex

T3 – Proline

Evolution has performed very well in both the first and second wheat situations in Limagrain UK’s internal and external independent trials.

“Evolution appears to be more robust in dealing with take-all; probably an attribute of the variety originally being bred in Denmark and selected in second wheat nurseries which is a very testing environment,” says the breeder’s technical manager, Ron Granger.

“The variety appears to perform better in a second wheat slot than as a first wheat. On the AHDB Recommended List for 2017/18, as a first wheat, Evolution yields 102 % but move it into a second wheat slot and its performance jumps up to 103 %.”

The annual competition invites all BEPA members to submit samples of pulses, these are then judged anonymously by a panel of 6 judges, all of whom are representatives from the Human Consumption pulse industry. The samples are judged based on their suitability for the human consumption market.

Sunderlandwick Farms is a family farm, managed by Robin Smyth, who is the 3^rd generation to run the farm. The mixed farm is approximately 590ha in total, 440ha of which is cropped with arable crops: wheat; spring barley; oilseed rape and winter beans with the remaining land in ELS and HLS schemes as well as permanent pasture for the 150 suckler cows. The farm is on heavy land with a mixture of Burlingham and Holderness clays. Robin has been growing winter beans for seed on the farm for over 25 years for Nickerson/Limagrain, and has more recently moved to growing Limagrain’s own variety Tundra. The agronomy on the farm is carried out by Dale Senior of J K Senior and Sons, with all the expertise on cultivations, spraying and harvesting coming from the farm team of Ian Berriman, Pete Hall and James Hinde.

The beans are established by ploughing the seed into a depth of 4-6 inches, aiming for 25 seeds per square metre to give a target population of 17 plants established per square metre. The crop is then treated with a robust insecticide and fungicide programme to ensure pests and diseases such as pea and bean weevil and chocolate spot are kept to a minimum. This year, the decision was made not to use a pre-harvest desiccant, as it was felt it wasn’t necessary.

The beans were harvested between 30^th August to 3^rd September at moistures ranging from 16.3-16.9%, using a vario header equipped with side knife. Harvested yields adjusted down to 15% moisture were 6.67t/ha for the seed crop over 32.00 ha, and 6.16t/ha for a crop of commercial Tundra over 39.80ha. Overall Tundra yields for the 2017 harvest were 6.39 t/ha (2.58t/ac), and the gross margin after variable costs was £969.63. The highest individual yield (adjusted to 15%) achieved on one 21.65ha parcel was 6.92 t/ha (2.80t/acre). Yield maps indicate that the heavier soils contributed to areas of higher yield.

The yields were a farm record exceeding the previous 2008 record yield of 6.12t/ha. The 10 year average for winter beans on the farm is 4.96t/ha (2.00t/acre).

We have always been enthusiastic supporters of UK pulses and UK pulse growers, and continue to do all we can to promote and support growers in offering varieties that perform on farm and meet market requirements, says George Hunter, pulses product manager with Limagrain UK.

“The success of this approach can be seen in the varieties that we have on offer in this year’s PGRO Recommended List (RL).”

“Despite some of the challenges currently facing the sector, we believe that there are opportunities for pulses in the value added sector, and its about maximising these by choosing varieties that meet the quality and market requirement, and are consistently high yielding and robust to grow on farm, “ he says.

Large Blue Peas

Large Blue Pea LG Stallion progresses from P1 to P2, and even in a difficult season has maintained its 2% yield advantage over Prophet at 102%. Its high yield potential and good standing meant that LG Stallion was the variety of choice for the world pea yield record set by Tim Lamyman last year with a record yield of 6.47t/ha.

Large Blue Kingfisher has gained full recommendation this year and is without doubt the variety of choice if looking for a large blue that has excellent quality characteristics that will meet the requirements for both the human consumption and micronizing markets, based on its proven excellent colour retention.

“Kingfisher is a really exciting variety that offers the whole package; high yields and quality backed up by robust agronomic traits. Kingfisher is early to ripen, has good standing power (6), and good downy mildew tolerance (6).”

Spring Beans

LG Cartouche is a pale hilum spring bean that offers the highest protein content available on the spring bean PGRO Recommended List (29.3%) and gains P2 recommendation this year.

“LG Cartouche meets the requirements for the premium export market for human consumption, we are also seeing an increased interest in the variety from the animal feed sector due to its high protein content” says Mr Hunter.

LG Cartouche has shown consistency of yield performance over differing seasons at 101% and remains at a similar yield to the market leaders.  LG Cartouche has a strong combination of agronomic attributes; with shorter, stiffer straw and earlier ripening than both Vertigo and Fanfare.

“In fact this unique combination of characteristics makes it comparable to the earliest, shortest and best standing varieties on the RL!” he says.

Winter Beans

“We are delighted that Tundra has maintained its impressive position as the highest yielding winter bean since its launch in 2013. Yielding 105%, 2% over Bumble, this consistency of performance should give growers the confidence that they need when looking to grow a high yielding, robust winter bean.”

Tundra is a moderately short strawed variety, with good standing ability and an earlier maturity. Tundra has a pale hilum colour, as well as very good protein content, and is suitable to the premium export markets for human consumption.

The PGRO Recommended List 2018 will be available at pgro.org

Although early maturing varieties will be ready for harvest around 20 days earlier than later maturing alternatives, the agronomy of the crop will be very similar according to Richard Camplin of Limagrain UK, who points out that maturity class mainly influences what happens at the end of the growing season.

“The key to a good crop, irrespective of the variety is ensuring good establishment,” he comments. “This, combined with selecting a variety with good early vigour will ensure plants develop a good root system and achieve good leaf cover which is essential to optimise photosynthesis.”

Mr Camplin says that management must be focussed on achieving good germination and getting the crop away to a strong start. He explains that irrespective of variety there is a period of around 90-100 days between germination and flowering. It is during this time that the plants puts on all its vegetative growth.

“Once the plant has flowered it stops creating vegetative material and solely develops the cob.  As the vegetative portion of the plant provides half the energy of the eventual crop, it is important to maximise this growth, especially if the variety has high digestible NDF which means more of this energy will be utilised when fed.

“What you need to avoid is the plant germinating and then sulking because of poor seed bed or low soil temperatures. All this does is create a period in the crucial phase between germination and flowering when the opportunity for vegetative growth is lost.”

Mr Camplin advises ensuring fields for maize are not suffering from compaction, explaining that as maize is a deep rooted plant any compaction will reduce the plants ability to reach water and nutrients, which can stress the crop delaying maturing and reducing yield.

He advises leaving final seed bed preparation, when the top 5cm is worked to a fine tilth, until immediately prior to drilling to preserve soil moisture.

“Soil moisture is important but the key measurement is soil temperature Cold soils are the enemy of strong establishment. Avoid drilling before soil temperatures have achieved a minimum of 8°C and have been rising for at least four days.  For heavier soils, wait until they are 12°C. A soil thermometer is a sensible investment.

“Drilling into colder soils just reduces the extent and rate of germination. If in doubt delay drilling as the few days apparently lost will soon be recovered if plants get away quicker. Late frosts and heavy rain will both drop soil temperature.

“Drilling early varieties into warm soils will ensure they have the best chance of getting away strongly, maximising vegetative growth and helping ensure a good yield of quality forage while allowing successor crops to be established in good time.”

Group 3 soft wheats are said to be at risk of extinction after slowly losing their appeal with growers, largely due to a yield gap to barn filling feed wheats and falling premiums.

However, one grower in the Scottish Borders is defying this negativity and has taken biscuit wheat variety, Zulu, to consecutive bronze and silver awards in the ADAS Yield Enhancement Network (YEN) competition.

David Fuller-Shapcott farms about 413ha of heavy clay loam soils at Stichill, just a stone’s throw from Kelso, and in 2015- the same year that Northumberland grower Rod Smith broke the world wheat yield record – his YEN entry hit 14.2t/ha.

It was calculated to represent 78% of a potential of 18.1t/ha and saw the farm scoop bronze in the ‘Best Percentage of Potential Yield’ category.

The following year was a poorer year for wheat in the north, but the farm still achieved a respectable 11.9t/ha, 63.5% of an 18.6t/ha potential, and enough for a silver award.

Mr Fuller-Shapcott says the competition has been key in pushing yields of his Zulu wheats in recent seasons, with each entrant provided with a detailed report on their crop to highlight any areas that might need attention.

Light capture

Although it sounds counter-intuitive, Mr Fuller-Shapcott figures that big flag leaves don’t necessarily lend themselves to optimum light capture, as they become too large and fold under their own weight. This renders half the leaf ineffective and shades out leaves lower down the canopy that could be contributing to building yield.

“Zulu doesn’t have a huge flag leaf, which is a good thing. Breeders need to be producing a variety that utilises all the plant for photosynthesis, not just rely on the top of the plant”.

Micro nutrition

The farm has always paid close attention to micronutrients, taking tissue tests seven to ten days ahead of the first three fungicide timings, allowing time to react to any deficiencies.

Long term tissue testing has consistently shown Mr Fuller-Shapcott’s wheats to be starved of manganese and copper and his YEN reports also uncovered a low spikelet count in 2015, which was linked to zinc deficiency.

“We corrected it for 2016 and the spikelet count was much higher,” he explains.

Crops now have a Kick-Off seed dressing, which contains phosphorus, manganese, potassium, nitrogen, zinc and sulphate and is supplemented by manganese-copper-zinc applications at T0, T1 and T2.

Macro nutrition

While balanced micro nutrition is important, macronutrients such as nitrogen are still the key driver of yield and the farm applies a layer manure ahead of drilling to get crops off to a good start.

Being inside a Nitrate Vulnerable Zone (NVZ), Mr Fuller-Shapcott has been unable to throw too much nitrogen at his crops, with 200kg N/ha his nominal limit.

However, he has used his target protein of 10.5% as justification to apply 233kg/ha in 2016 and hopes further evidence of yield potential through his YEN reports will justify an increase in the future.

“I am also going to try some foliar amino acid products next year to try and give the plants a bigger boost,” says Mr Fuller-Shapcott.

Fungicides

As light interception is so crucial to building high yields, keeping the crop as green as possible for as long as possible is a key goal.

Mr Fuller-Shapcott says a robust fungicide programme is required and he aims to stay in a protectant situation to keep the crop clean right down to the ground, maximising photosynthetic area.

He acknowledges Zulu has some disease weaknesses, with its yellow rust score falling to 6 in the ratings shake-up last year and its eyespot score at just 3, but both risks are covered proactively.

Last year, Eclipse was used alongside chlorothalonil at T0, with its azole component strong on yellow rust, whilst morpholine active fenpropimorph offers rust activity and tackles any mildew in the crop.

This was followed by a T1 made up of half rate of Nebula to boost eyespot and rust control, half rate Adexar to maintain good protection against septoria, plus multisite chlorothalonil.

The T2 was a combination of Eclipse, Priaxor and chlorothalonil, whilst an ear spray was applied in the form of a cost-effective tebuconazole spray.

“You have to remember that we are much more at risk of the weather limiting spraying opportunities in the north, so you need a punchy programme,” adds Mr Fuller-Shapcott.

“The strobilurins keep us ahead of the game with yellow rust, and the robust programme also keeps us in a protectant situation with septoria – if you miss timings, you are on a hiding to nothing without it”.

Growth regulation

The other factor to bear in mind with Zulu is its height and when pushing the variety hard for yield – combined with an eyespot risk – it can be susceptible to lodging.

Despite this, Mr Fuller-Shapcott says it stood well in 2015 when yields were exceptional. However, the following year when potential was lower, he assumed he could trim rates of plant growth regulator (PGR) and as a result, some of the crop went flat.

“We use a split PGR programme of Canopy at T0 and Canopy plus chlormequat at T1, but we should have been more robust with the first dose of Canopy last year. It is definitely something to bear in mind,” he explains.

Group 3 wheats provide a low risk premium

Growing the top yielding winter wheats on the Recommended List is not a priority for David Fuller-Shapcott, instead prioritising potential market opportunities when choosing varieties.

As a result, his farm has been growing biscuit wheats for many years and Zulu now dominates his area, offering a potential premium with biscuit makers, distillers or bioethanol plants, plus a strong regional performance of 102% in the north.

All the grain is produced on contract for local merchants Frontier or WN Lindsay, with a biscuit premium paid if quality parameters are met. Any grain failing to make the spec is sold for distilling purposes.

“Our strategy is to grow everything for a known market, rather than growing it and selling after,” he explains.

Mr Fuller-Shapcott adds that biscuit wheats have an attractive premium versus risk ratio, as he doesn’t need to invest excessively to hit the required 10.5% protein.

As a result, he won’t be heavily penalised if the weather turns against him in the late summer to erode Hagberg Falling Numbers and elevate fusarium risk, so it is a low risk way of growing a premium crop.

“There is more choice from the soft Group 4s but premiums are lower, so we look for a low risk Group 3, as we can’t always get the sprays on exactly when we need to.”

Farmers are invited to bring a bag of freshly picked grass to the Limagrain stand on plot 121 where its NIRS mobile testing machine will analyse the sample and provide a nutritional analysis of the crop.

The top prize, valued at £1500, will go to the sample with the highest ME across the two-day event.

“We are drawing attention to the importance of considering all aspects of grassland production – soil, cultivation and seed mixture,” says Limagrain seed specialist John Spence. “We also want to emphasise the importance of considering the nutritional qualities of the seed mixture, as well as its agronomic values.”

Limagrain will be demonstrating its LG Animal Nutrition (LGAN) grass seed mixtures that have been specifically developed for their combined yield and feed values and have been shown to have more digestible fibre.

“The aim is to grow high energy grass,” adds Mr Spence. “A significant proportion of this energy comes from the fibre. The higher proportion of digestible neutral detergent fibre (DNDF) in the grass varieties used in the LGAN mixtures and the inclusion of more palatable tetraploid varieties, that cows prefer over diploid grass varieties, helps to boost the grass’ feed value and boost intakes.

Cut it, bring it, and Limagrain will test it. Watch the video for more details by going to: www.lgseeds.co.uk/comps

To find out more about the show CLICK HERE

This unique combination of microbes includes five isolates of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) and five races – or strains – of plant growth promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR). It has been developed to improve soil health and crop production and can bring long term benefits to grass, cereal and maize crops.

“The benefits of this soil conditioning product are two-fold,” says Limagrain grass seed manager Ian Misselbrook. “It works as a biostimulant and in our replicated trials has been shown to increase yields of ryegrass swards by 36% consistently in cuts throughout the season. It establishes a symbiotic relationship with the host plant which promotes root development and improves soil condition and structure, which brings long term benefits to the soil and to existing and following crops.”

The mycorrhizal fungi increase the plant’s root system, leading to dramatic improvements in absorption area by 100 to 1000 times and therefore boosting its uptake of nutrients. A sticky glycoprotein produced by the mycorrhizae encourages soil aggregation and accounts for 27% of the carbon in the soil.

The rhizobacteria fix atmospheric nitrogen and also have bio-stimulant properties that improve root development and will enhance the action of the package of mycorrhizal fungi.

“UK developer, PlantWorks, has shown that the combined action of the mycorrhizal fungi and rhizobacteria contained in Smart Rotation SR2 outperforms the performance of a control with no inoculant and of just applying one of the two groups of microbes,” adds Mr Misselbrook.

SR2 works on a compatible host plant and can be used with grass seed mixtures and non-brassica cover crops.

“Growers can mix SR2 with the seed at drilling or work it into the seedbed prior to sowing and the benefits can last for the life of the crop.

“We can see it will be especially beneficial in reseeds or new grass leys that are following cereals and where the nutrient content and soil structure has deteriorated. And in the case of grass swards, it takes productivity to a new level. Longer term the advantages are far-reaching. We know many of our soils are at risk of being unprofitable due to soil erosion and the loss of carbon. This soil conditioning package can help to regain its value.”

Smart Rotation costs around £38/ha. Based on an increase in yield of 36%, this produced around 2 tonnes of dry matter per hectare worth at least £200. “In just one year, our trials have shown that SR2 can be justified on productivity gains alone but the longer term benefits in terms of improving the organic content of the soil for future crops and future generations of farmers makes Smart Rotations SR2 a very worthwhile investment.”

Choosing a new sugar beet variety is no longer just about output, agronomic characteristics such as bolting tolerance and disease resistance are becoming increasingly important characteristics to consider, which is why the recommended list now requires varieties to perform well in these categories over three years of field trials, “says Bram van der Have, sugar beet consultant for Limagrain.

BTS 3325 is high yielding (Adjusted tonnes 103.0%) rhizomania tolerant variety offering very high sugar content of 18.1%, which is one of the highest on the BBRO Recommended List, making it a very attractive proposition for growers and end-users alike.

“However what make BTS 3325 so exciting is that alongside this higher output, BTS 3325 has also demonstrated a very low ESB (Early sown Bolting) score –one of the lowest on the RL in this slot. “

“It is likely to appeal to growers who are in a position to drill on or before the 5 March, so it’s the ideal variety choice to start the beet sowing period, but it is also flexible enough to be sown later, without compromising its high yield and sugar content. “

BTS 3325 also offers a very robust diseases resistance package that growers will find valuable, offering excellent rust resistance (7), and very good downy mildew and powdery mildew resistance.

Recommended last year, BTS 860 was one of the most popular beet varieties sown in 2017 due its high yield potential and agronomic performance, across a range of soil types and growing conditions.

“It’s all very well to opt for today’s top yielder on the recommended list, but will it be next year’s too?”  says Mr van der Have. “Consistency in performance is equally, if not more important than topping the yield table.  One can budget on consistency but only gamble on the top yield.”

BTS 860 has shown itself to be a very consistent performer that offers very high yield at 103.9% of controls, alongside one of the highest sugar contents on the Recommended List at 18.1%, which makes it a very attractive variety for professional sugar beet growers looking to meet the high requirements of sugar processors.

“BTS 860 is likely to appeal to the vast majority of sugar beet growers who find crops perform best when drilled during the conventional sugar beet drilling slot which our Betaseed breeders define as from the 2^nd week of March until the end of the drilling period,” says Mr Bram van der Have.

During this ‘normal sowing time’, BTS 860 has one of the lowest scores for tendency to bolt. “Or to sum up BTS 860 drilling virtues, it offers flexible sowing and is suitable for early, normal and late sowing.”

BTS 860 has a very good rating of (6) for rust and good rating of (5) for powdery mildew. The variety has also exhibited a very good tolerance for downy mildew.

Variety choice based on drilling time versus output

Based on when sugar beet crops are sown, Limagrain UK suggests that UK growers can be split into three categories;  those that are happy to drill very early, those that are risk averse but looking for high yields, and those that  are less risk averse and prepared to drill later and take the risk of higher bolting. (See graph)

Depending on which category a grower sits in, it’s important to consider how varieties can support the best performance in that specific sector, says Ron Granger, arable technical manager for Limagrain.

“Early growers are considered to be those that are prepared to drill sugar beet as soon as conditions allow – end February onwards generally. Growers in this sector need varieties with good bolting resistance an important genetic trait offering crop security usually at the expense of yield.”

“However, you can see how the introduction of BTS 3325 bucks this trend.”

“The largest sector of sugar beet growers in the UK are those that are looking for high yields combined with lower bolting characteristics, which means that they look to sow their beet only when conditions are suitable which is usually mid-March onwards.

“BTS 860 gives them this reassurance offering a very high yield with lower bolting figures.”

The last group of growers are associated with wanting to grow higher yields, and are prepared to compromise this with higher bolting figures associated with delayed drilling. Our variety BTS 470 sits well in this slot.”

Making OSR variety choices based on the conditions in which they are to be grown is fundamental to a profitable crop, and this comes down to understanding how the genetics or traits within that variety help to protect the top-line yield from the host of environmental and crop management factors that are known to depress yield, says Dr Vasilis Gegas, Limagrain’s senior oilseed rape breeder.

“When choosing to grow a new variety, seed yield and gross output based on AHDB Recommended List figures are often the hook, however these figures are hard to replicate on farm and this is down to the erosion of this top-line yield once a variety is in a field situation.”

A combination of factors, such as disease pressure, environmental conditions, agronomic practices and crop management broadens the gap between the genetic yield potential of a variety and the realised performance on farm,” he says.

“The reality is that we don’t know what the next season is going to throw at us there are so many unknowns in this game, from grain prices, weather patterns, disease pressure and even the impact of Brexit, so start by minimising risk wherever possible by choosing the right variety and making the most of the agronomic characteristics on offer.”

Our approach at Limagrain is to maximise yield potential while ensuring yield stability. In order for a variety to reach its full yield potential, it’s critical to protect against any factors that could suppress this yield. We have worked on reducing yield instability and protecting yield potential, by building traits into our varieties that help to mitigate the impact of environmental and other stresses.

Limagrain’s dedicated UK OSR breeding programme based in Rothwell, Lincs is unique in that it focusses specifically on challenges that UK OSR growers face. “Loss of chemistry to control aphids and associated yield losses, the spread of club root and light leaf spot into non-traditional regions, and of course difficulties with establishment, are all issues that can be tackled through the right genetics.”

“We look at how best we can combine a range of traits so that we are able to offer varieties that suit particular situations. For example, growers in the north are looking for OSR crops that will establish quickly so need to demonstrate early vigour, winter hardiness, early maturity and have robust disease resistance against Light Leaf Spot.”

However these genetics need to be rigorously tested in the conditions to which they will be launched, to know if they will perform consistently, points out Dr Gegas. “We are able to test all our varieties for a number of years under UK conditions, which means that we are confident that we are bringing the most appropriate and consistent varieties to market.”

Genetic traits

With the loss of neonicotinoid seed treatments and increasing resistance to insecticides as well as the difficulties of optimising foliar insecticide applications, control of aphids has become more and more difficult and subsequently aphid-borne diseases more prevalent.

TuYV is one such disease spread by the peach potato aphid (Myzus persicae). TuYV infection can reduce yields in OSR by as much as 30%, oil content by 3% whilst increasing levels of glucosinolates and erucic acid.

Resistance to TuYV is a trait that has been pioneered by the Limagrain OSR breeding programme, and the inclusion of this trait in OSR varieties has been proven to mitigate yield losses particularly in high infection situations, notes Dr Gegas.

Limagrain’s Amalie was the first variety to carry this resistance back in 2014, and since then Annalise (RL UK candidate), has been brought to market, offering a much higher yield and an impressive oil content (46.9%), way above that of Amalie.

Limagrain has also introduced the TuYV resistance trait into the RL candidate hybrid, Architect. Along with characteristics such as pod shatter resistance, winter hardiness and excellent autumn vigour, the high potential yield of Architect is locked in and protected – as has been shown in trials results from across the country where the variety has yielded 105% in the east/west and 104 in the north.

“We have been able to eliminate the yield penalty associated with the introduction of the TuYV resistance into OSR. Our new TuYV resistant varieties therefore have high yield potential and the necessary traits and agronomic characters that enable the crop to reach and maintain that potential on farm.”

“Our target has always been to deliver cutting edge scientific innovations to farm through precision breeding, and this is exactly what UK farmers get, real solutions to real problems.”

We know that the levels of TuYV incidence are associated with the distribution of aphids in the autumn before, says Dr Gegas. “Levels of aphids in the autumn of 2016 were at similar levels to 2014, which was a high infection year, so we could be looking at some very high TuYV infection levels this year.”

Limagrain carries out an annual TuYV survey of which the results will be available later next month, he confirms.

Pod Shatter (POSH) resistance is a trait that all new Limagrain OSR hybrid varieties offer. On farm, significant OSR seed loss can be caused when pods break or shatter as a result of storms near harvest or even when the combine passes through the crop.

“POSH resistance can help to counteract these losses, as well as providing some flexibility in the timing of the harvest, which can be as much as 14 days extra in our tests,” he says. “In addition, a robust POSH resistance cuts down the number of volunteers in the following crop, easing the burden of weed control.”

Graph: POSH resistance provide farmers flexibility during harvest

Dr Gegas points out that not all hybrids have POSH resistance, as in some cases the trait has been lost in the breeding process. “However, we have developed the necessary genetic tools and analytical methods to introduce the trait into our varieties and to precisely quantify POSH resistance to ensure that our varieties carry a high level of resistance.”

Limagrain’s hybrids Aquila, Architect and Arrow offer very high levels of pod shatter resistance and this plays out in the high yields of all three varieties.

Club Root

Club root is becoming an increasing threat to OSR performance across the UK, so breeding for new sources of resistance is more important than ever, says Dr Gegas.

“We have invested significant effort into our breeding programme to overcome the yield penalties associated with club root resistant varieties.”

“We are particularly excited about our hybrid variety, Archimedes that offers a gross output of 99% as well as POSH resistance and an excellent disease resistance profile (8 for canker and 6 for LLS).

“With its stiff stem, exceptional early vigour and early maturity, Archimedes offers the best available package for the traditional club root growing areas of Scotland, but also infected land further south.”

“The Limagrain OSR breeding programme will soon deliver its first Clearfield hybrid, Conrad, to market next year,” adds Dr Gegas.

Limagrain candidate and certified OSR varieties and associated traits

“Swedes cost around of £403 per hectare – or £62 per tonne of dry matter – to grow, yet produce 80 to 90 tonnes of feed per hectare,” he says. “They can be grazed from October to February, depending on the variety.”

Limagrain field trials highlight the high-energy content of swedes at 12.8 to 13.1MJ. “These energy values are higher than most other forage crops, making them one of the lowest cost but highest yielding and feed value options available,” he adds. “Even when yields are moderate, they are still a cost-effective feed,” he adds.

Grown on a range of soils, swedes also do well in moist and cooler conditions, making them ideal for most UK sheep farming areas. Swede crops should be drilled into a level seedbed on free draining fields that can be easily grazed.

Swede seed should be treated for flea beetle and sown into a soil with a pH around 6.5. “And it is worth selecting a disease resistant variety. There’s some high performance varieties that are both clubroot and powdery mildew tolerant.”

The latest results from Limagrain’s trials compare popular varieties of swede and show for that the popular varieties Gowrie and Lomond produce dry matter yields 18% and 11% higher than Ruta Otofte. Both varieties were bred by the James Hutton Institute in Scotland.

“However, the variety should also suit the system,” says Mr Titley. “Lomond and Gowrie produce high dry matter yields and consistent performance for feeding from November to January. Invitation, meanwhile, has the highest dry matter content of all varieties on trial at 12.6% and a relative dry matter yield 6% above the control, but it is especially winter hardy so suitable for long keep systems and feeding in January and February.

“It’s also worth considering the feed value in the leaf – varieties with large leaves provide extra grazing potential.”

“Many producers will successfully finish lambs on swedes and a more productive crop – often from a higher yielding variety – will reduce the time to finishing and increase feed efficiency, which all adds to the bottom line.”

Limagrain’s latest fodder beet trial results are available from its website www.lgseeds.co.uk/swede

Sweet Success with Swedes

• High energy winter feed (12.8-13.1ME/kg DM)
• Sow April-June
• Growing costs around £403/ha
• High dry matter yields (7-10t/ha)
• Ideal for finishing lambs and winter maintenance
• High yielding powdery mildew and club root tolerant varieties available

While selecting varieties that produce high seed yield is important, it is a very inconsistent trait influenced by several season-dependent factors, such as weather or disease and pest pressure.

Conversely, oil content is consistent across most seasons, according to Agrii’s technical seed manager David Leaper, and something growers can use to their advantage to increase revenue.

“It’s an uncannily stable characteristic and if you are growing a variety with an inherently high oil content, whether you get a low seed yield or high seed yield, you will still get a high oil content and subsequent bonus,” he explains.

Best-seller

A decade ago, varieties on the Recommended List had oil contents of 42-43%, but now there are a handful of varieties that are above 46%, including Agrii’s best-selling conventional Nikita at 46.3%.

The variety initially didn’t make the Recommended List two years ago due to its phoma score of 4, but was re-assessed and added last year for its high light leaf spot rating of 7, highlighting the increasing importance of resistance to the disease across the UK.

Other key characteristics include stiff straw, a fast growth habit – making it suitable for drilling into early September – and high gross output at 108% of controls, which is underpinned by its high oil content.

With growers paid a bonus of 1.5% of their contract price for every 1% oil above 40% and futures for harvest 2018 currently about £375/t, growing a 4t/ha crop of Nikita could return an additional £33.75/t or about £135/ha.

“Many other varieties on the list are around 44%, so the bonus will be lower at around £22.50/t, or £90/ha. Although it’s a small difference, it’s all extra income to the farm,” explains Mr Leaper.

Highest oil

Agrovista’s national seed manager Nigel Walley agrees oil bonus is a key consideration when selecting a variety, particularly as the price picks up following a few bearish seasons.

The agronomy and distribution group will be marketing Annalise this summer, which has the highest oil content of any recommended or candidate variety at 46.9%, plus a gross output of 105% in the East/West region and 106% in the North.

Mr Walley says the conventional candidate could offer an attractive oil bonus for growers and it also has other valuable characteristics, namely its resistance to turnip yellows virus (TuYV).

The disease has been on the rise in recent years and after the loss of neonicotinoid seed treatments, and increasing resistance to insecticides, using varietal resistance is the arguably the most reliable way of protecting yield from autumn infection via its main vector, the peach potato aphid.

Amalie – currently the only TuYV-resistant variety on the list – has been an asset according to Mr Walley, but its gross output is now 12-14% down on leading varieties, but Annalise is just 5% off the top spot, so a likely recommendation this year will be a game changer.

“You can see up to a 30% yield decrease from TuYV infection and I believe 5-10% is commonplace, we are just not seeing it or recognising the symptoms.

“Growing a resistant variety like Annalise is a no brainer in TuYV hotspots where there is a high concentration of brassica crops grown – particularly this autumn, as the virus risk is forecast to be very high,” he adds.

Wider appeal

The variety is also of interest outside virus hotspots, with a solid agronomic package to back up its yield and specialist trait, including a scores of 8 for resistance to lodging and stem stiffness.

Mr Walley also notes a solid disease resistance package, with score of 6 for both phoma stem canker and light leaf spot, combined with medium maturity.

“It is agronomically strong with no obvious weaknesses. We see it as our key conventional variety this year and expect to sell out of seed,” he says.

Desiccation

While variety choice can help boost oil bonuses next season, Mr Walley adds that growers should not to desiccate too early this summer, or risk reducing the crop’s oil content and potential returns.

With the pressure on at harvest, there is always a temptation to spray off oilseed rape to avoid being caught out by the weather or overlapping with the wheat harvest.

However, this can cut short the grain filling period when oil content is built, particularly on more backward parts of fields, which take longer to reach maturity.

“If you think you are ready, go away for a week and come back to it. If you compare a desiccated crop to one that hasn’t been sprayed, you can guarantee the naturally senesced one has a higher oil content,” he explains.

Grower utilises virus resistance to maintain oil quality

Turnip yellow virus can reduce oil content in rapeseed by as much as 3% and raise glucosinolate and erucic acid levels in the extracted product, resulting in bitter taste for the consumer if used for cooking.

This has been a concern for grower Andrew Ownsworth, who has built a successful enterprise producing his own cold pressed rapeseed cooking oil.

To minimise the risk of tainting the award-winning product he sells across Lincolnshire and the surrounding counties he is looking at resistant varieties to ensure the brands reputation for great taste remains intact.

“We have started to pick out [virus] symptoms in crops, so I want to get something in our armoury that will help control it in the future. It is all about keeping the taste right,” he explains.

This season he has tried 10ha of candidate hybrid Architect, which not only offers the protection against higher glucosinolate and ericic acid levels with its TuYV resistance, but also a high gross output of 105% in the East/West, 44.6% oil and pod shatter resistance.

Spreading risk

It also fits in nicely with his strategy to grow a mix of conventional and hybrid varieties with a range of agronomic characteristics to spread risk and ensure the farm has enough rapeseed for the crush, whatever the season brings.

“The pod shatter is important as you invest a lot of effort and money in the crop, so it helps us protect the yield we have. There is nothing worse than the wind blowing and all the seed dropping on the floor,” says Mr Ownsworth.

John Challans, Nickerson’s seed specialist,says the pod shatter resistance should buy Mr Ownsworth about seven to 10 days at harvest over varieties that don’t have the trait, so can be extremely valuable.

“An added benefit of pod shatter resistance is that it gives farmers the option of letting the crop ripen naturally which not only increases oil content but also enhances oil flavour.”

He adds that Architect is also vigourous and winter hardy, so is suited to growers UK-wide, and has a score of 6 for the two main oilseed rape diseases phoma stem canker and light leaf spot.

“Architect doesn’t rely on single resistance genes, it has quantitative resistance [made up of multiple genes] so it’s more robust. It isn’t early flowering either, so lessens the risk of any frost damage in the spring,” says Mr Challans.

“We found a wide range in results,” says Limagrain’s John Spence. “This highlighted the range of feed quality possible, even in samples taken from farmers’ ‘best’ fields and cut at the right time.”

ME scores ranged by as much as 1.2 MJ/kg, with digestible fibre (dNDF), sugar and protein levels all differing by more than 6%. “Trial work has shown that each 1% increase in DNDF can result in an increase in milk production of 0.25l per cow per day, so a 6% variation in DNDF across grass Samples, represents 1.5litres per cow per day.”

And the results also demonstrated the importance of looking at more than one constituent of the feed value. “As we would expect, samples with high sugar content had the lowest protein levels and vice versa –  high protein grasses had low sugar levels,” he adds. “The sample analysed with the highest sugar content actually had the lowest ME of all, showing us that just looking at one constituent isn’t a good way to judge feed quality.”

“We used the results to draw attention to the importance of considering all aspects of grassland production – soil, cultivation and seed mixture,” adds Mr Spence “And the importance of considering the nutritional qualities of the seed mixture, as well as its agronomic values. Seed mixtures with poor feed value can be expensive.

“The aim is to grow high energy grass. A significant proportion of this energy comes from the fibre. The higher proportion of digestible neutral detergent fibre (DNDF) in the grass varieties used in the LGAN mixtures and the inclusion of more palatable tetraploid varieties, that cows prefer over diploid grass varieties, helps to boost the grass’ feed value and boost intakes.

Limagrain, OPICO and Sustainable Soil Management offered free soil advice, 10 acres of premium grass seed mixture and the seeding work for the fresh grass sample that tests highest for metabolizable energy (ME) at this year’s Grassland and Muck Event.

This top prize, valued at £1500, will go to the sample with the highest ME across the two-day event.

“Our winning sample had a more balanced nutritional profile with good protein and sugar levels but, most importantly, the highest DNDF figure resulting in an excellent ME of 14.9 MJ/kg.”