Just over 550ha of the 1000ha farm is dedicated to arable crops, 30ha is rented out for seed potatoes and there are 100 cows and 2200 ewes at the low-ground farm.

Farm Manager Chris Lovie says: “Although we are a mixed farm, before I started working here two years ago, they used to run a tight arable rotation, with lots of brassicas for grazing sheep through the winter. This led to incidences of Clubroot, and we are now working to manage this threat.”

Clubroot is a major issue in rape in Scotland’s arable rotations, with over 50% of fields used for oilseed rape carrying the disease – and in areas like Aberdeenshire, the incidence is higher with the majority of fields affected.

Yield losses on average are around a third of a tonne for every 10% disease severity, but in severe early infections in warm autumns emergence can be so poor that crops are ploughed back in so, at the extreme end, yield losses can be 100%.

If a field is infected then drilling a variety listed as clubroot resistant is still the primary means of reducing the risk of yield loss.

Planning rotations is also really important to keep fields profitable for the long term. Even stretching oilseed rape rotations out in infected fields from three, out to five years is enough to make a difference to infection levels and reduce pressure on the varietal resistance mechanism.

Chris Lovie, Farm Manager at Dunecht Home Farms

In Mr Lovie’s approach to tackling Clubroot at Dunecht the rotation is being widened to include a minimum of spring and winter barley, wheat and oilseed rape in the rotation. This will help to ensure that rape is not grown more frequently than one in eight years.

He always looks to grow a Clubroot resistant variety, but notes it also has to be suitable for the more challenging winter conditions of Aberdeenshire.

“Being so far north, the cold can set in quite early on, so we look for good autumn vigour and we like a variety that is able to put on enough biomass.”

He aims to create the best possible seedbeds to get the crop up and away as soon as possible. “Ploughing is useful for creating tilth for an even seed bed on what are often very wet soils, and also helps keep slugs under control.”

He is also evaluating shallow and direct drilling using a Simba Horsch drill.

Drilling usually starts in August, with the rape often going in after winter barley, or spring barley if he can combine it early enough.

His plans for next year are to grow the exciting, new Limagrain variety LG Anarion, which is the first to offer effective Clubroot resistance, along with TuYV and pod shatter resistance, without compromising yields.

In Limagrain trials, LG Anarion showed an 11% yield increase over its current clubroot variety, Alasco, and 5% over other leading club root varieties; representing a significant improvement and further closing of the yield gap associated with Clubroot resistance.

“LG Anarion has very strong autumn dynamic growth with fast biomass accumulation and then sits in the winter, so it does not get too ahead of itself. It exhibits very good winter hardiness,” says Mr Lovie.

Agronomically there is much to like about the variety; it offers good disease resistance with breeders data suggesting ratings of 6 for light leaf spot, 6+ for phoma and a good tolerance to verticillium.

Mr Lovie also likes LG Anarion because it has early-mid flowering and maturity, as he finds that the longer oilseed rape flowers for, the better it performs. It also has good ratings for stem stiffness and lodging.

Moving on to talk about other cultural controls he is undertaking to reduce the incidence of Clubroot, he reveals that although some of the soils on the farm are loamy, they are generally not the most fertile.

“We are working to improve this so we are taking remedial activity with applications of cattle and sheep muck, plus the occasional pig muck.

“We are also trying to improve the organic matter content by adding digestate.”

He notes that low soil pH is often associated with Clubroot, so he is keeping an eye on acidity, and current pH is 6.2.

“We soil sample every 5 years and apply calcium lime variably.”

While N, P and K are applied at planting, Mr Lovie has moved to using a liquid fertiliser strategy with two applications in spring; one in early March and the other just before flowering to keep the crop flowering.

Mr Lovie says: “At the other end of the growing season, we direct cut it, so good pod shatter resistance is increasingly important to protect yields, especially as we often find that harvest gets divided into two parts.”

“As a way of getting there, we have found that LG Anarion ticks all the boxes for us agronomically while also offering really good yields.”

Charlie Catto of Agrii, agronomist for Dunecht Home Farms, is looking forward to having LG Anarion available for his customers from next year.

“When it comes to oilseed rape, the faster it establishes the better chance it stands, so what is really appealing about LG Anarion is its ability to get out the blocks promptly,” says Mr Catto.

“The high autumn vigour, will help it to grow away from any potential flea beetle and slug damage.”

Fast establishment can be particularly important when it comes to a practical fit into the rotation, he adds, explaining that, if oilseed rape follows spring barley it is drilled a bit later than he would ideally like, so being able to establish well before the cold weather sets in, is a really important characteristic.

He is also pleased to see LG Anarion has pod shatter resistance, as this is high on his list of important traits for any new variety, noting that when windy at harvest this can make a difference to the yield of as much as 1t/ha in direct cutting situations.

“I really like the agronomic profile of the variety because it has resistance to the important pests and diseases, without taking a hit on yield.”

“For example, although turnip yellows (TuYV) is not yet much of a problem in this part of Scotland, by having resistance, growers know that they will not lose yield from this pathogen if it does become more prevalent.”

“As an agronomist, it is useful to find a Clubroot variety that has good light leaf spot and Phoma resistance ratings. We saw high levels of light leaf spot this winter in Aberdeenshire, so together with a good fungicide strategy, it will provide growers with effective crop protection.

“When these agronomic characteristics are added to yield and oil content – a high yielding Clubroot resistant oilseed rape variety supported by a robust agronomic package – it’s clear that LG Anarion is an excellent choice for the farmer’s gross margin.”

“Where we have issues with clubroot it certainly ticks all the boxes I’m looking for and will be my first choice this Autumn.”

Varieties with the N-Flex trait have the ability to use nitrogen more efficiently. In the field, this means that varieties with the N Flex trait are better able to withstand delayed or sub-optimal nitrogen applications.

This exciting discovery comes as a result of extensive trials over the last few seasons in Europe, by breeders Limagrain, testing LG Antigua’s performance in optimal and sub-optimal nitrogen conditions.

“Essentially the N-Flex trait means that hybrids containing the trait use each unit of available N more efficiently than those which don’t,” says Will Charlton, Limagrain UK’s arable marketing manager.

“In the field, this translates into varieties with the N-Flex trait producing more stable yields year to year, with less in-field yield variability.”

The addition of the N-Flex trait illustrates Limagrain’s approach to producing hybrid oilseed rape’s that are trait-loaded.

High yielding varieties Ambassador and LG Aviron were the first 4-trait loaded varieties, offering genetic resistance to TuYV , pod shatter, RLM7 and the N-Flex trait. LG Antigua now joins this prestigious line-up.

“We are carrying out further work in farmer split field trials for the 2020-21 cropping year to evaluate how N-Flex aids spring nitrogen management and secures yields,” adds Will.

This autumn’s favourable establishment conditions and relatively low incidence of CSFB, means there are some crops which more closely resemble kale than the struggling OSR crops we have seen in previous seasons.

Our own rooting and canopy studies can confirm this, with crops in October already more advanced in terms of biomass than crops observed in March of last year.

From our own work and our ongoing involvement with YEN, we know that OSR optimal plant numbers are between 25-40 plants/m2. In reality, low populations are difficult to establish and understandably growers compensate for losses with higher seed rates. But with fewer losses seen this season, plant populations in many crops are far higher than the optimum. These crops will require a different management to some of the smaller thinner crops we have seen in previous seasons, to reduce lodging and maximise light interception and achieve a higher percentage of yield potential.

Nitrogen Management

An AHDB project (PR447) investigating canopy management in OSR, identified that adjusting N based on canopy size (calculating N already tied up in the canopy), offers a yield increase of up to 0.36 t/ha in situations where the crop would have, if managed ‘traditionally’, produced a canopy that would have lodged.

The key principles are:

• Reduce first split in the spring to lessen stem growth, saving for a main dressing around stem extension
• Do not delay sulphur availability – select the right product and apply as much of the sulphur required as possible, with the first split
• Know how much N is in your canopy and adjust rates accordingly. Dose response curves still show optimum N in the crop to be 220 kg/ha. PR447 outlines that only 60% of spring applied N is utilised by the crop, so this must also be adjusted for

To calculate crop N:

• Use GAI (either satellite or mobile phone apps). As a rule, 1 unit of GAI is equivalent to 50 kg/ha nitrogen in the canopy
• Fresh weight method – NIAB TAG identified a strong correlation between fresh weight and Canopy N, with every 1 kg of above ground fresh weight/m2 equating to 55 kg/ha N in the crop

Growth Regulators

In crops with high populations or GAI over 0.8, consider applying a PGR. In the spring, these can be fungicides that have a growth regulatory effect such as Tebuconazole or Metconazole, or specialist growth regulatory products such as Caryx (containing Metconazole and Mepiquat chloride).

In dense crops with high plant numbers, branches are formed from the top of the plant down, and as the first branches start to extend, they block sunlight to the bottom of the canopy. This can cause branches to abort and prevent flowers or pod production, leaving crops with a relatively thin top-heavy band of pods, which makes the crop more susceptible to lodging.

In crops treated with a PGR, the top branches (or Raceme) are shortened. This allows for more light interception through the canopy, allowing a deeper layer of pods and branching. Additionally, this allows for better penetration of fungicides at flowering, which can help prolong green leaf duration, which is heavily associated with reaching a greater percentage of yield potential.

The crop of Acacia won Gold for the highest yield of oilseed rape, as well as the highest yield potential category producing a staggering 69% of its potential, a full 8% clear of the second placed entry.

Reflecting on the growing season, Mr Lamyman says: “The canopy of Acacia was incredibly impressive for the season, standing on average well over five feet, absolutely brimming with long, large pods looking as if they would almost bust open with the amount of seed inside.”

He chose the variety as his YEN crop because it was ahead in terms of yield of all the varieties – including the hybrids – in the 2019/2020 AHDB Recommended List.

“Acacia is the highest yielding conventional variety and is one of the fastest conventional autumn vigour varieties, short and incredibly stiff.”

Before drilling, the field chosen for the YEN crop, was worked with a Lemken Terradisc, Vardestad carrier and Lely roll. The crop was drilled on 18th August using a Vardestad System Disc Rapid with the coulters set at 12cm width into a field that followed 25 years continuous spring barley.

“The field chosen for the crop was a North-East facing grade 2 chalky Wold clay to the depth of 35 cm, which then runs into pure chalk.”

The crop emerged at speed – but was very quickly under attack from flea beetle, revealed Mr Lamyman.

“However, the combination of applying an insecticide to slow the flea beetle pressure and Delta K to stimulate a cytokinin growth effect and increase the fibrous root mass, allowed the oilseed rape to grow away from the flea beetle attack, and establish itself exceptionally well in the most challenging autumn on record,” he says.

He points out that at Worlaby Farms there was 660mm of rain falling between 1^st September 2019 and 1^st March 2020.

By this stage the spring had turned very dry, in fact the spring of 2020 was the fifth driest spring on record at Worlaby Farms.

Five even splits of Nitrogen with three containing sulphur were applied between 1^st February and 30^th April, giving a total of 258 kgN/ha and 160 kg/ha So3.

A standard high yielding oilseed rape crop usually produces around 100,000 seeds/m2 at 5 thousand seed weight (TSW), but Tim achieved 161,000 seeds/m2 to maintain a normal TSW weight of around 5.

Harvested on 29^th July with a Claas Lexion 750 combine, there were no problems, it was a straightforward job, reports Mr Lamyman.

“Even though it was over 5ft tall, the canopy was short and stiff enough to combine without having to alter the bed to put the rape plates and side knife on.”

All of the top six yielding oilseed rape varieties on this year’s Recommended List (RL) have come from the breeders stable, reinforcing the success of its ‘trait loading’ approach in providing UK growers with varieties that are robust and deliver consistently across seasons and regions.

Two exciting new varieties join these top six on the Recommended List for the first time, LG Aviron and LG Antigua.

Hybrid LG Aviron gains UK wide recommendation with an extremely high gross output of 108% over control. It shares this top position with stable mate Ambassador, which has held onto its very high yields for the second season in a row.

“Trait loading of our varieties means that LG Aviron offers the N-Flex trait unique to Limagrain’s oilseed rape varieties, as well as resistance to pod shatter, TuYV and RLM 7,” says Will Charlton, Limagrain’s oilseed rape product manager.

“The N-Flex trait is a relatively new trait launched in our hybrids last year offering a step forward in the way that oilseed rape varieties minimise yield loses in sub-optimal N conditions.”

“Ambassador and LG Aviron, the two highest yielding varieties on the RL, possess this trait; and have demonstrated their robustness and resilience in what was a challenging season for oilseed rape.”

“LG Aviron has proven itself to be a very vigorous hybrid, that can establish well in challenging seedbeds.”

Gaining recommendation for the east/west with an extremely high gross output of 109% of control and 108% for the UK, LG Antigua is the second of Limagrain’s fully loaded hybrids to join the top six on the RL this autumn.

“LG Antigua offers a comprehensive genetic traits package: combining TuYV, pod shatter and RLM7 resistance and good disease resistance.”

“The variety has excellent plant vigour characteristics in both the autumn and spring, and offers the earliest maturity available on the RL which is a valuable trait on farm, points out Mr Charlton.

These two new and exciting recommendations join Limagrain’s other outstanding recommended and proven varieties, all of which offer characteristics suitable for certain situations or market requirements, and proved themselves in last season’s challenging conditions.

Ambassador is the joint highest yielding variety on the 2021/22 Recommended list and is the outright highest yielding variety in the east/ west region. Ambassador is a fully loaded hybrid and with proven performance both in trial and on farm – Ambassador is the variety to beat in terms of oilseed rape performance.

Aurelia is a very high yielding hybrid offering high yields across all regions of the UK and is the top yielding variety in the north at 106% of control. A fully loaded hybrid combining genetic TuYV, pod shatter and RLM7 phoma resistance, Aurelia also offers the highest Light Leaf Spot rating (7) available on the RL.

Acacia is the highest yielding conventional variety on the RL and in its second year of recommendation has proven on farm and trial performance at 107% of control. Acacia offers key agronomic characteristics of strong autumn and spring vigour, solid disease resistance and short, stiff straw, combined with a high oil content.

Artemis is a consistently high yielding fully loaded hybrid variety with excellent autumn and spring vigour at 106 % of control. Artemis offers a comprehensive trait package with TuYV resistance, RLM7 and pod shatter. It is one of the tallest hybrids on the List and has very good straw strength attributes for securing yield potential in dry conditions.

Aspire is the only recommended conventional variety with the all important TuYV resistance. It is a short robust plant type with very good straw characteristics. A solid disease and TuYV resistance means Aspire fits the early drilling option perfectly with its slower speed of development.

Aardvark is a conventional variety with early flowering and high vigour and the best disease package out of the recommended conventional varieties. The variety has demonstrated a strong performance across all regions of the UK and has a strong agronomic package including excellent straw strength and solid disease resistance.

To find out more about any of these varieties please visit www.lgseeds.co.uk

At harvest the crop in the trial at Strichen achieved a yield of 3.11t/ha, with 43% oil; cost calculations showed a gross margin of £2,624/ha, assuming a price of £900/t. In a second trial at Fraseburgh, yields were 2.4t/ha, so slightly less but still bringing in a healthy gross margin in a very challenging year in which to grow oilseed rape.

“The LG Aurelia did much better than many conventionally-grown OSR crops in this area, so quite a few farmers in the area have asked what variety it is – and they wouldn’t believe it was organic,” he says.

“It also proved easy to combine, so all in all it has been a very positive variety to grow.”

Aurelia Winter Oilseed Rape

“The key to the success of an organic crop is choosing a variety with good autumn and spring vigour and strong agronomic characteristics, so for this reason I chose the hybrid LG Aurelia which offers all of these.”

“LG Aurelia has the best disease resistance package on the AHDB Recommended List, along with TuYV resistance and pod shatter resistance. It also offers a high gross output and oil yield.”

He has repeated the trials again this year, and at the end of the first week of September, the 2020 planted crop drilled on 20th August already has two leaves.

Andy uses his own organic starter treatment mixture applied in the seed-bed which helps protect the crop from flea beetle, while a sulphur-based nutrient product helps deter pollen beetles.

All sites received sulphur- based nutrition at 5-leaf stage and stem extension. Another dose of sulphur based nutrition was applied at petals fall.

“We could have done more with nutrition, I feel our main limiting factor is nitrogen, and this will be addressed next season.

“I also plan to feed the crop a little earlier, as soon as there is enough leaf we will apply a nice organic cocktail. My plan is to drive yield up by 20%,” says Mr Cheetham.

He reflects that the results prove that going back to basics works best, including covering the ground to help reduce weeds.

As harvest results are reported, there is a very obvious trend that stands out from last season; hybrids have outperformed conventional varieties, says David Leaper, seed technical manager with agronomy firm Agrii.

David Leaper, Seed Technical Manager for Agrii

Mr Leaper refers to the results just in from Agrii’s national oilseed rape trials, that clearly show this trend.

“There were some clear difference in how varieties responded to the challenges of the season in terms of autumn establishment and root development; biomass proved to be the key in terms of offsetting the effects of Cabbage Stem Flea Beetle (CSFB).”

This work really highlights the value of vigour when establishing later drilled varieties, and growers who are now looking at drilling their rape slightly later than planned should strongly consider opting for a hybrid variety, he advises.

He also points out that latest sensible cut-off date for drilling rape is around the 10^th September.

“Later drilled crops can do well but the chances of success diminish quickly after this date.”

Results from trial sites in Kent, Lincolnshire, South Wales and Angus in Scotland, show that the overall highest yielding hybrid varieties Ambassador and Aurelia, produced seed yields of 118% and 117% respectively, followed by candidate variety LG Aviron at 113%. This is well over the control mean of 110% (DK Expansion) at 4.7 t/ha.

Within the conventionals, Aspire (101%), Acacia (98%) and Anastasia (97%) led the pack, yielding slightly less than the mean control Campus (104%).

When combined with the two year summary, the trends remain the same; the hybrids outperform the conventionals. Aurelia and Ambassador remain at the top of the hybrids, with Acacia, Aspire and Anastasia all grouped together with Campus at the mean control of 4.5 t/ha.

“The hybrids were able to get their roots down and establish well, whereas many of the conventional varieties struggled and consequently were smaller and less bushy, and once the CSFB got into the plants, there was very little left of them to recover,” explains David.

Agrii also produces autumn and spring vigour scores for all of the varieties in the trial, with each variety being scored between 1-9, where 9 is the best vigour.

“Unsurprisingly, the hybrids led the pack for both autumn and spring vigour; Aurelia and LG Aviron had the highest scores way up in the 6’s for autumn vigour. The highest score for conventionals was Anastasia with 5.7.”

“Taking in five of the key sites, the trend remained the same for spring vigour; LG Aviron (7.2) and Aurelia (6.8) were some of the best hybrid performers, and Aardvark (6.2) and Anastasia (5.9), led the pack for the conventional varieties.”

LG Ambassador

“It’s important to recognise that there are differences in vigour between hybrid varieties and conventional varieties; there is a range, and it’s not an all or nothing characteristic. Some of the conventionals showed remarkable vigour and in some individual cases, this was comparable to that of some of the hybrids.”

“It’s no surprise that the seed yield and vigour graphs correlate,” says David.

Varieties that offer a range of traits or are trait loaded, have the upper hand when it comes to protecting the genetic yield potential of the particular variety, believes Mr Leaper.

He points out that the value of the TuYV trait played out once again, with varieties containing the trait delivering an additional 5-8% benefit over those without.

“The top four yielding hybrids all have TuYV resistance; as does the conventional Aspire.”

“With the very dry spring, many oilseed rape crops will have struggled with nitrogen uptake, so it is interesting to see that varieties with the new N-Flex trait have done better, such as Ambassador and LG Aviron.

“The N-Flex trait allows the crop to be more efficient in transforming N into yield, so in times of limited availability, this has played out.”

“Ambassador is the first four-trait loaded variety containing the N-Flex trait, TuYV, pod shatter and RLM7 resistant traits, and the value of this has played out in its performance in a difficult season.”

Mr Leaper points out that recent AHDB harvest results reflect those of the Agrii trials, where there is a similar yield benefit of hybrids over conventionals, with the same top 5/6 varieties. “It is always reassuring when trials run independently of each other, produce similar results!”

Agrii WOSR Varieties – 2 year summary

Oilseed rape for the 2021 season

Liam Wilkinson, technical officer for breeders Limagrain UK, believes that we are currently experiencing some of the most favourable oilseed rape establishment conditions for the last 3 or 4 years.

“In some regions, crops have still not been harvested, particularly winter barley. This provides an opportunity to drill OSR in favourable conditions – so it should be strongly considered.”

Considerations for later drilling

• Pick a vigorous variety which can not only establish quickly, but accumulates a large canopy.
• Choose a variety with good phoma resistance. The effect of phoma can be more damaging in a smaller later sown crop.
• Adjust sowing rates. As soil temperatures cool down, germination field losses will increase. Seed rates should be increased to still aim for that optimal plant population of 25-30 plants/m².
• Wet weather has seen an increase in slug activity. Crops should be monitored closely and treated at threshold,particularly where seedbeds have been left unconsolidated.

“Back in November a meeting was hosted at SRUC, Craibstone to discuss a possible fact-finding visit to Sweden where they grow quite a lot of organic oilseed rape,” explains Andy.
“I decided I would tag along and see if I could get involved. We organised a trip to Linkoping in Sweden, where we visited the Cameleon drill factory and a number of farms over the three days we were there.”

“Once we had seen the crops in Sweden it was clear that growing organic oilseed rape was do-able.” Scotland’s Rural College is leading the Scottish Organic Canola (SCOCAN) project with a £30,000 grant from the Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund (KTIF). The project, in turn, follows on from a Rural Innovation Support Service (RISS) group. The project is primarily driven by farmers using a number of approaches, some based around the Swedish model, which include best options for establishing and fertilising the crop, as well as precision weed control.

LG Aurelia

Trials

With guidance from Andy, large plots of oilseed rape have been planted on five farms across the north east of Scotland: one in Moray, three in Aberdeenshire and one in Angus. He reveals attention to detail at every step of the process of preparing, drilling and growing the crop. Key to success of the crop was the correct variety choice; Andy needed a variety with good autumn and spring vigour, and strong agronomic characteristics. He has found just this with winter oilseed rape variety LG Aurelia.

“It was quick to establish last autumn and was quick off the blocks this spring too. It is doing much better than many conventional-grown OSR crops in this area so quite a few farmers in the area have asked us what variety it is – and they wouldn’t believe it was organic,” he says. “I will definitely be growing it again.” LG Aurelia was the variety which stood out for him with its impressive package of genetic traits offering a high gross output and oil yield, Turnip Yellows and pod shatter resistance, along with the best disease resistance package on the 2020/21 AHDB Recommended List – it scores an 8 for Light Leaf Spot and stem canker.

“It’s vigour is noticeable; it has an autumn/spring vigour boost and is medium-early to flower and medium for maturity, ensuring less damage from any late frosts, as well as allowing maximum green leaf canopy duration for maximum yield potential. It has turned out to be perfect for the job,” says Andy.

Two organic crops of LG Aurelia were drilled into land that had been grass for 20 years. Prior to sowing, the grass ley had been disc harrowed at one site, and rotovated at the other to break up the sod before ploughing, as this helps reduce pest numbers and nutrient lock up. “Sowing date for one site was 12 August and we used a seed rate of 55 plants/m2. This was sown with an Amazone 6m power harrow drill combination. We were delighted that within just four or five days the crop emerged and there was little sign of flea beetle.”

Fully loaded Hybrid from LG

Another, on the Moray coast, went in behind carrots. This crop developed roots which measured up to three feet long, he reports. Three of the four sites were sown using the System Cameleon drill. Seed-bed creation is normally done by first ploughing and pressing or ploughing then spade rolling or it can be direct drilled into stubbles using the System Cameleon (a low draft, low disturbance seed drill which is also an inter-row hoe using camera guidance). The bed is normally rolled after sowing and if slugs are likely to be a problem, he applies organic slug pellets with the Cameleon drill. Andy has his own organic starter treatment mixture applied in the seed-bed which helps protect the crop from flea beetle, while a sulphur-based nutrient product helps deter pollen beetles.

Fertiliser is used according to requirement; every field has a Full Soil Survey which uses ADAS and Albrecht figures to determine the soils chemical, physical and biological profile. This analysis can also determine potential nitrogen availability, and any limiting factors. All sites received sulphur- based nutrition at 5-leaf stage and stem extension. Another dose of sulphur based nutrition will be applied once the petals are all off. This is followed up during the season and if necessary sulphur based foliar treatments are applied.

Site Layouts and trials facts:

Site 1:
Near Inverurie, Aberdeenshire: sown 30th September: 2 fields 9.80ha in total
Variety: DLF Elevation (Conventional variety)
Previous crop: Orrganic winter oats (seed)
Cultivations:
Half field ploughed, spade rolled then sown with Cameleon drill at 25cm spacings sown at 5kg/ha to give 12 – 15 plants per linear metre.
Half field direct drilled with Cameleon drill at 25cm spacings sown at 5kg/ha to give 12 – 15 plants per linear metre. This field was not rolled
Also given special organic seedbed mix to help ward off flea beetle.
This site also got inter-row weeded with the Cameleon at 5-leaf stage and the start of stem extension, there was a serious problem with volunteer winter oats from previous crop.
Present crop condition: TOTAL CROP FAILURE

Site 2:
Near Strichen, Aberdeenshire: sown 12th August, one field 5ha in total
Varieties: LG Aurelia, LG Ambassador, LG Artemis, DSV Dazzler, DSV Darling (All Hybrids)
Previous Crop: Grass 20 years plus old
This crop also got 10t/acre hen-pen at stem extension.
Cultivations:
Field given good dose of muck, disced, harrowed in then ploughed and Cambridge rolled then sown with a 6m Lemken power harrow combination drill LG varieties sown at 5kg/ha and DSV at 2.5kg/ha to give 55ppm2 (sown using TGW). This field was never rolled.
Also given special organic seedbed mix to help ward off flea beetle.
Present crop condition: Very Good

Site 3:
Near New Aberdour, Aberdeenshire: sown 1st September: two fields 8.15ha in total
Varieties: LG Aurelia, DMH440(Bayer) (Both Hybrids)
Previous Crop: Grass 20 years plus old
Cultivations:
Field rotovated, ploughed and spade rolled then sown at 25cm spacing at 5kg/ha giving 12 – 15 plants per linear metre. Rolled with Cambridge rollers
Also given special organic seedbed mix to help ward off flea beetle.
This crop also got 10t/acre hen-pen at stem extension.
Present crop condition: Very Good

Site 4:
Near Buckie on the Moray Coast, Aberdeenshire: sown 1st September: one field 4ha in total
Varieties: LG Aurelia (Hybrid)
Previous Crop: Carrots
Cultivations:
Field done with spading machine after carrots, spade rolled then sown with Cameleon drill at 25cm spacing at 5kg/ha giving 12 – 15 plants per linear metre. Rolled with Cambridge rollers. White clover was also sown intra-row in this crop.
Also given special organic seedbed mix to help ward off flea beetle.
Present crop condition: Very Good

LG Ambassador

“All sites got tissue analysis at 5 true leaf stage and stem extension, and any nutrients deficient were applied using foliar treatments on an organic derogation,” says Andy.
“The plan was also to use a new organic fungicide, but with a bit of resistance from one of the certifying bodies it was not cleared for use in time. This was to be used at mid and late flower to reduce the risk of sclerotinia.”
“Luckily nature did a good job by blasting the petals to the ground with wind and rain.”

Sites 2 & 3 got amino acids at 5 leaf stage, these really greened up the crop and going by the tissue analysis did the job they said they would as well. A lot of bio stimulants are classed as “Muck & Magic”, but having used amino acids in both conventional and organic cropping I know they work.
This site also got inter-row weeded with the Cameleon at the start of stem extension.

Tim Lamyman of Worlaby Farms, near Louth in Lincolnshire, harvested the 9ha of the conventional variety, Acacia on 16th August. He was optimistic when he started combining as the crop stood at just under 5ft tall and was brimming full of pods.

“The crop combined exceptionally well for such a thick crop of rape with tree trunk type stems that were up to 2 inches wide. For a conventional variety, the seed looked exceptionally bold,” he says.

Acacia is the highest yielding variety on the 2020-2021 AHDB Recommended List (RL), and set a new benchmark for oilseed rape yields when it joined the RL. The open pollinated variety is an Anastasia cross, inheriting key agronomic characteristics of strong autumn and spring vigour, solid disease resistance and short, stiff straw, combined with high oil content. “The field hasn’t had a rape crop on it for the last 20 years,” explains Tim. “Previously the field had continuous spring barley. I chose Acacia for its short straw, fantastic standing power, vigour and being the highest yielding variety on the AHDB list – if we were going to beat the previous best of 7.01 t/ha on the farm it had to be this variety.”

The Acacia was drilled into soils that had been worked with a Lemken Terra-Disc, a Vaardestad Carrier and drilled at 5kg/ha and then rolled. “As the crop established, the cabbage stem flea beetle moved in, but through a combination of its genetic vigour and an application of Bionature Delta fertiliser, that went on with the insecticide spray (lambda-cyhalothrin) it seemed to give it that extra boost, explains Tim. Delta is a stabilised nitrogen fertiliser with potassium for improved rooting, stress tolerance, crop quality and yield production.

“This combination of insecticide for the flea beetle and the fertiliser for promoting rooting and combatting stress saved the crop. No system is fool proof, particularly with oilseed rape, and especially if you are drilling into a dry seed bed with no prospect of rain, so it’s important to give it every possible chance.” Tim believes his approach has paid off – and it has been more than worthwhile investing in the crop all the way through.

Autumn programme:

• To mop up a few remaining barley volunteers, Tim went on with 0.75 l/ha Fusillade Max (125 g/l fluazifop-p -butyl) and also included a second application of 2.5 l/ha Delta K.
• The final autumn spray focussed on light leaf spot control with 0.5 l/ha tebuconazole and a further application of insecticide (lambda-cyhalothrin).

“By this stage it had started raining, and it felt like it would never stop- but in Jan we had a break from the weather and went on with 1.7 l/ha Astrokerb (500 g/litre propyzamide + 5.3 g/litre aminopyralid) plus 2.5 l/ha Delta K.”

Spring programme:

• A March application of prothioconazole and Hallmark were combined with a final application of Delta, to encourage extra branching.
• At stem extension 0.35 l/ha Toprex (250 g/l difenoconazole 125 g/l Paclobutrazol) for canopy and light leaf spot control
• 2.5 l/ha TipTop (20N20P20K) and 0.5 l/ha Rainbow wave (boron & molybdenum)
• Early flowering 1 l/ha Azoxystar & 0.5 l/ha tebuconazole was applied. 1 l/ha Xstress and 0.5 l/ha Calflux were applied again to increase biomass and pod survival to maximise seed size and numbers.
• Programme was finished off with a mid-flowering application of 0.4 l/ha proline and 1 l/ha X stress and 0.5 l/ha Calflux to keep the crop growing through the extreme drought pressure!

Conditions

Establishing oilseed rape, as with all crops, begins with drilling into the correct conditions. Drilling OSR into a dry seedbed is one of the most damaging starts the crop can get. Drilling should be into a seedbed with warmth, moisture and adequate nutrition, so that the plant can germinate and keep growing. Oilseed rape seeds harbour much less energy stores than other species, so ensuring plants can establish roots quickly and that those roots then have access to moisture and nutrition, is key for strong autumn establishment and vigour.

Drilling Date & Variety Choice

With OSR, there has been a tendency to drill by calendar date, with growers looking to drill as early as possible, particularly in areas highly affected by cabbage stem flea beetle (CSFB). Whilst these early drilled crops, if well-established, can better withstand attack from adult CSFB, it makes them more vulnerable to larval damage: meaning that drilling early for flea beetle may not be the way to go.

As part of a current research project, funded by AHDB, Dr Sacha White (Senior research entomologist at ADAS), has analysed 1,100 sites dating back 14 years, looking at the correlations between drilling date and damage from CSFB. One clear trend that emerged, was that later drilled sites had markedly less larval damage.

In recent seasons, the most severe damage to OSR crops has been caused by the CSFB larvae, rather than the grazing damage by adults. Later drilling means that the crop misses the main influx of adult CSFB during migration; resulting in later egg laying with cooler temperatures – slowing development of eggs and larvae. This results in lower larval numbers in the autumn and in the following spring.

With later drilling, there is a need for a greater attention to variety choice, with growers needing to choose varieties that can establish quickly and cope with the risks of drilling later. These risks include the potentially damaging effects of phoma on smaller crops, and increased risk of winter damage. Aim to have plants established with a sufficiently large biomass to overwinter, to aid with overall robustness and increased spring growth, which in turn can help to grow away from spring larval damage.

The precision breeding approach from Limagrain, means that LG’s fully loaded hybrids; Ambassador, Aurelia and Artemis, fit this position perfectly. They have amongst the highest early vigour scores in RL harvest in 2019, and in Limagrain’s own internal trials. The presence of the RLM7 resistance gene gives exceptional resistance to phoma (which can be more problematic in later drilled crops). This combines with the added security of resistance to Turnip Yellows Virus (TuYV) and pod shatter resistance, to protect against seed losses at harvest.

In areas where CSFB is less of a concern and drilling conditions tend to be wetter, such as in the north or west, varieties such as; Aurelia, Artemis, Aardvark and Aspire, fit an early drill window perfectly. In the correct conditions, these varieties will establish well and not leave too big of a canopy to manage over the winter. Remember when drilling early, to drill when seed bed conditions are right, not by calendar date.

Seed Rates

One method growers’ have tried to mitigate for CSFB damage, is to drill at higher seed rates. Dr White also investigated this and found that higher seed rates produced the same number of larvae per plant as there were in plots drilled at lower seed rates. This meant that there were higher larval numbers in plots drilled at higher seed rates, potentially causing higher pressure in nearby OSR crops the following year. Also, higher seed rates can lead to overly large canopies that require management to deal with an increased risk of lodging. With vigorous varieties, seed rates should target 25-30 plants/m2 and in the case of less vigorous varieties, aim for 40-45 plants/m2.

Key Messages

• Drill to conditions – seed bed with adequate moisture and nutrition allows OSR to establish and keep growing
• Pick a vigorous variety suitable for your chosen drilling window
• More seed can lead to more problems – thicker seed rates can lead to more CSFB larvae and lead to difficulties managing canopies

Further link: ahdb.org.uk/csfb

Turnip Yellows Virus (TuYV) is becoming increasingly challenging to control as the main vector, the peach potato aphid (Myzus persicae) has developed resistance to pyrethroids, and the disease is becoming more widespread across the British isles.

This corresponds to increasing levels of infection; since 2016, Limagrain UK along with industry partners – Agrii, Openfield and the AICC – have been monitoring levels of TuYV in crops across the UK.

Sampling is carried out twice during the growing season, with an initial small-scale survey conducted in Oct-Nov, followed by extensive testing carried out in early spring.

Dr Vasilis Gegas, European Oilseed Rape Portfolio Manager

“TuYV incidence reached its highest level ever last season, with 84% of non-TuYV resistant UK crops infected in early spring 2019. Almost all sites had an infection rate between 81-100%,” explains Dr Vasilis Gegas, Limagrain’s European oilseed rape portfolio manager.

“Incidence was highest in East Anglia and south east England.”

What’s the solution? Genetic resistance, points out Dr Gegas.

This year’s AHDB Recommended List for oilseeds has eight varieties with TuYV resistance.

“Over the past few years, there’s been huge genetic improvement in breeding for TuYV resistance, meaning that Limagrain’s TuYV resistant varieties have moved from the bottom of the yield pile since the launch of Amalie in 2014 to the top by quite a margin. Today, TuYV resistant varieties sit amongst the highest yielding varieties on the 2020-2021 AHDB Recommended List,” says Dr Gegas.

What to grow? The first decision to make is whether to go for a conventional or hybrid variety.

Hybrids; Ambassador, Aurelia and Artemis as well as conventional Aspire, all offer TuYV resistance and sit amongst the top six highest yielders on the RL.

Yielding 106% over control, Aspire is the only conventional variety on the RL that carries the TuYV resistance gene. Aspire is short and stiff-stemmed and therefore easier to manage which we know is one of the key reasons growers opt for conventional varieties.

Aurelia and Ambassador are both good hybrid choices, suitable for September sowings. Both are trait-loaded varieties that provide high resistance to pod shatter, TuYV and stem canker. Aurelia is the only variety with twin “8” ratings for light leaf spot and stem canker on the AHDB Recommended List 2020-21.

Ambassador has the edge on vigour, while Aurelia is slightly shorter and stiffer, suited better to fertile sites.

Source: AHDB Recommended List Winter oilseed rape 2020/21

For more information on any of these varieties, click here