Weed and disease fears for early-drilled wheat

摘要

After a prolonged harvest, it is nice to see fields cleared and the evidence of what was one of the most difficult cropping years removed. The focus has quickly shifted to sowing autumn cereals, with a rush to drill wheat and barley early. Making decisions about how to farm based on what happened last year is both puzzling and understandable.Attempts have been made to negotiate delayed drilling for better blackgrass control - a task, in some cases, as tough as negotiating a Brexit deal.For cereals sown early, the subsequent weather unfortunately remained hot and dry, which was not ideal for the all-important pre-emergence herbicides to work well for grassweed control. In some cases, the relief of having early-sown, good-looking cerealcrops may change to disappointment, as it could be difficult to control high levels of blackgrass.Good seed-bed quality with moisture and cooler conditions will all help to get the best performance from the residual herbicides.