technical brief February 2017
In this issue
News and crop production advice from Frontier
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Give spring barley the best possible start The British spring barley crop area is forecast to rise by as much as 17% this year, driven primarily by a fall in winter oilseed rape area and the increasing strategic role spring cropping has to play in managing black-grass. As we wait for field conditions to improve, crop production technical lead, Dr Paul Fogg explains the key areas to review to maximise crop potential.
Establishment Poor establishment is the biggest threat to the success of the spring crop. Spring barley is highly susceptible to compaction, the impact of which can be compounded in dry springs. Look to move as little soil as possible before drilling, especially in a blackgrass situation as this will stimulate germination and dry out the seedbed, impacting establishment and potentially the performance of residual herbicides.
Drilling date Seedbed conditions are more important than drilling date. Aim for a plant population of 250–300 plants/m2 (300–350 seed/m2). In good conditions, establishment will typically be 80% (early sown) to 95% (late sown). Keep in mind that sowing too early into a poor seedbed can compromise establishment, but this needs to be offset by the fact that spring barley compensates less if sown late.
Nutrition Nearly all spring barley crops will benefit from fresh phosphate to encourage rooting and rapid crop development, irrespective of existing soil levels. Early season (3- 4 leaf stage) use of phosphites can also help with rooting, provided sufficient phosphate is available in the soil. The lack of natural sulphur deposition means soil levels are now extremely low, requiring sulphur fertiliser (25-50kg/ha SO3) to be routinely applied. When it comes to nitrogen, a two way split would be typical, with half in the seedbed and half at the three leaf stage. The challenge with nitrogen rates for malting barley is balancing the drive to push yields while keeping grain nitrogen below contract limits. The latest survey data suggests average nitrogen rates are 104kg/ha. There is scope to review this as modern varieties have inherently better yield potential and ability to produce lower grain nitrogen levels. Recent
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Give spring barley the best possible start Harnessing the power of yield data Know your crop nutrition needs Give sugar beet a boost with green cover
Page 10 Plan
ahead for stewardship success
Frontier trials have shown that rates from 125–175kg/ha resulted in high yields but only produced a modest 0.1% increase in grain nitrogen.
Herbicides, PGRs and fungicides If growing spring barley is part of an integrated strategy to manage black-grass, a stale seedbed is essential. Remember why you are growing spring barley and don’t be rushed into drilling too early. Selective herbicide options are more limited relative to winter crops and are more reliant on EAMUs. Herbicide strategy will be dictated by anticipated dominant weed species, seedbed condition and soil moisture status. Pre-emergence residual herbicide programmes are increasingly being used on early sown crops, black-grass sites and where resistance to ALS chemistry is a concern. Spring barley yield is driven by final shoot numbers and ears/m2. While PGRs are not routine in spring barley, the early use (3-4 leaf stage) of approved PGRs can help reduce apical dominance, thereby promoting vegetative growth. This can be supplemented with trinexapac-ethyl at stem extension for example, followed with an ethephon based product at BBCH37–49, but all depends on risk and nitrogen inputs. In trials, a two spray fungicide programme gave an average 1.7t/ha response across 15 varieties. All of the new SDHI based products gave similar performance with respect to yield. Where ramularia is expected, including chlorothalonil at the T2 timing is key. An effective fungicide programme is also beneficial for grain quality. For expert agronomy advice to get the best results from your crop, speak to your local Frontier contact.
“Nearly all spring barley crops will benefit from fresh phosphate to encourage rooting and rapid crop development.” Dr Paul Fogg
Crop production technical lead
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technical brief
Harnessing the power of yield data As all growers know crop yield is the driver for financial sustainability and, combined with price, it defines gross margin. While farmers have been collecting yield data since the early 1990s, using that data productively has remained a challenge. Tom Parker, SOYL’s head of products and technology, explains how the recently revamped online business management tool, MySOYL, helps use valuable historical yield data to inform business decisions. As yield mapping technology on combines becomes more common, collection of yield data increases in volume every year. No farmer starts a fine harvest morning thinking what a great day it is for data collection, but as they go combining to reap the rewards of their investment and a long growing season, collection of yield data is a valuable by-product of the operation.
How MySOYL can help To date, farmers have had limited options to unlock the true value of their own yield data, but the latest version of the MySOYL website offers a straightforward solution. SOYL focuses on providing tools that allow farmers to make more informed management decisions and to gain insight into farm business performance. Making use of yield data is a prime example of this approach, as growers can now access all of their yield data with MySOYL. Essentially, the farmer provides the raw data from the combine and regardless of the machine it was collected by, SOYL’s expert team cleans the data, sense checks it and uploads it to the website. After the import process, the farmer’s entire yield data archive can be accessed on the website, regardless of whether data has been collected for two or twenty years. It’s located alongside all the other farm data, both current and historical, collected by SOYL. MySOYL then allows the user to interrogate the yield data within one large screen or by splitting the screen into up to eight segments. Previous seasons’ yield data is loaded and the interrogation tool drills down to see the underlying values as well as a visual analysis of yield patterns over time. We can then see whether there is any consistency in the yield data and start to explore how it can inform management decisions. Assessment can be made of which parts of each field are consistently performing or underperforming and which parts vary each season, or to put it another way, which parts of the field are consistently contributing to the gross margin and which are consistently costing money.
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News and crop production advice from Frontier
Figure 1: Using MySOYL to compare eight years of yield data
Analysis and decision making MySOYL is the central component that provides the link between all the data layers in a precision crop production system, including nutrients, electro-conductivity, soil types and crop establishment. The site allows growers to view and analyse all of this data in one place, as well as to access other features such as seed and fertiliser calculators, with a single log on for a modest annual subscription. Combining yield data with these other data layers allows the farmer to explore management decisions. Is yield performance correlating with soil type or nutrition and how can crop performance be improved? Which soil types need to be managed differently? Did a recent lime application improve yields or just maintain them? Does the pH status of some soil types need to be checked more often? Yield variation might not be easily explained but it will provide the basis of further investigation. As a rule of thumb, regular shapes within yield data are often the result of management, whereas irregular curves are created by natural conditions and lines or streaks may have been caused by equipment. Seeking expert advice will help to confirm this and identify a plan for positive change. Each individual year of yield data is important, but the greater the archive, the greater the value as multiple years’ worth will help to eliminate seasonal variation and assess crop, field and soil type performance. Indeed over time, individual crops can be analysed separately.
Figure 1: Using MySOYL to compare eight years of yield data
Figure 2: Valida?ng other precision farming data layers using mul?-layer analysis in MySOYL
Yield
P
K
Mg
pH
Soil Type
EC (Shal)
EC (Deep)
Figure 2: Validating other precision farming data layers using multi-layer analysis in MySOYL
To find out more about how MySOYL can benefit your business or to request log on details, please speak to your local SOYL contact or call 01635 204190.
The future The future will see further developments in analysis of all the data we collect and of course the ultimate result of the decisions made on the farm is yield. We can learn from yield data and make more informed decisions in subsequent seasons. All farmers can benefit from this analysis, as well as many other options available on the MySOYL website.
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“Yield data analysis allows us to see which parts of the field are consistently contributing to the gross margin and which are consistently costing money.� Tom Parker
Head of products and technology for SOYL
technical brief
Know your crop nutrition needs Some crops have already received nitrogen top dressings, but as spring approaches, now is the ideal time to review and map out nitrogen and sulphur application plans for the rest of the season. Requirements must be supplied from the soil and applied manures and fertilisers, but many growers are uncertain how this should be split or how much the crop needs in total. Fertiliser technical development manager, Mike Slater and national crop nutrition technical manager, Edward Downing explain the key points to consider.
Crop potential To adjust from standard recommendations for the conditions in any one field, firstly the yield potential of each crop should be assessed. Is the crop well rooted? Is there a good plant population to support the target yield? The total nitrogen uptake requirement for a winter feed wheat crop will be around 200kg N/ha, but for one with a 10t/ ha potential, this rises to 235kg N/ha. For a 10t/ha milling wheat crop to achieve both yield and protein specification, around 300kg N/ha is needed. This nitrogen requirement has to be supplied from mineralised nitrogen in the soil along with nitrogen from any applied manures and fertilisers. In winter cereals, approximately two thirds of the total nitrogen uptake will transfer to the grain. For a 4t/ha winter oilseed rape crop, total uptake will need to be around 235kg N/ha, 175kg of which is to build the ideal canopy, plus an additional 60kg to maintain upper leaf vigour and seed development. An 8t/ha spring barley crop at a grain N of 1.8% will need to take up 180–200kg N/ha and an 8.5t/ha spring wheat crop for milling requires 250kg N/ha. Reflecting on the uptake requirement is the foundation to nitrogen planning as it poses the question: where will the nitrogen come from?
Soil nitrogen Soil nitrogen availability varies widely depending on organic matter levels, the quantity of any manures applied last autumn and previous cropping. Assess the supply of nitrogen likely to be available in your soil from mineralisation. In many parts of the country, this winter has been relatively dry with higher than average soil temperatures so far. There is still a risk of leaching if there is a late wet spell, but mineralised nitrogen in the soil is currently above the five year average. Likely nitrogen availability from manures is best determined by analysis but the Fertiliser Manual RB209 can be used as a guide. Where fields have high organic matter levels or where large applications of manures have been made, consider testing soils for mineralised nitrogen, ideally to a depth of 90cm, or 60cm if this isn’t possible. In combinable crop rotations without any manure applications, the mineralised nitrogen levels should not vary significantly year to year. For a guide to soil available nitrogen, use the tables in RB209 based on previous crop, winter rainfall and soil type.
Fertiliser requirements Once the yield target has been set and the likely soil mineralised nitrogen confirmed, the additional nitrogen needed from manures and fertilisers can be calculated. If manures are applied in the autumn, some of their readily available nitrogen will be leached over winter, so to achieve the best utilisation of the nitrogen in manures, they should be applied in early spring. The tables in RB209 or the Manner NPK software are a good guide to the quantity of crop available nitrogen in manures. AD digestate liquor can have very high readily available nitrogen levels, potentially over 80% of the total nitrogen, so these materials require careful planning to achieve maximum utilisation. When calculating the fertiliser requirement it’s assumed that on medium to heavy soils, only 60% of the fertiliser nitrogen applied is utilised by the crop in the growing season. This is built into standard recommendations. The challenge is to increase this level of utilisation by ensuring that roots can proliferate through the whole soil volume, which will only be possible where the soil is well structured and not compacted. Fresh phosphate can stimulate increased root development, leading to greater nitrogen recovery and improved crop returns.
The total nitrogen uptake requirement for a winter feed wheat crop will be around 200kg N/ha. For one with a 10t/ha potential, this rises to 235kg N/ha
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Example nitrogen plan: • 10t/ha of feed wheat at 10.8% protein (1.9% grain N) • Total N uptake required: 235kg N/ha • Soil N supply: 85kg N/ha • Total from manures & fertiliser: 150kg N/ha • 150kg N/ha @ 60% = 250kg N in fertilisers but @ 70% = 228kg N/ha
Nitrate nitrogen in fertilisers is immediately available to crops and although ammonium nitrogen can be taken up, this will rapidly nitrify to nitrate as soils warm up. However, nitrogen in the urea has to dissolve and hydrolyse and then be converted to nitrate, delaying availability and in dry conditions nitrogen can be lost to the atmosphere. All crops need a significant quantity of sulphur and as little is now deposited from the atmosphere, manures and fertilisers are the only sources. On lighter soils and especially in high rainfall areas, sulphate is lost by leaching, creating higher risks of sulphur deficiency. Table 1 indicates the quantities of SO3 required by winter cereals and oilseed rape.
Deficiency risk
Winter wheat
Oilseed rape
High
45 - 60
100 - 125
Medium
35 - 45
75 - 100
Low
25 - 35
50 - 75
Table 1: Kgs SO3 required per Ha
Managing AD digestate applications Digestate from anaerobic digesters can be a very good source of nutrients for crops but it needs careful management. Firstly, it’s vital to have a laboratory analysis of the digestate to be applied as this can vary significantly between AD plants and even during the year from the same sites as the feedstock varies. Some sites are also separating the digestate into liquid and solid fractions which significantly affects the nutrient content, further reinforcing the need for recent analysis. It’s key to understand that a high proportion of the nitrogen contained in digestate is readily crop available. This is a real benefit, but it can also pose issues. For those farming in an NVZ, there are ‘closed periods’ when the digestate can’t be applied (see table 2). These are in place to try to reduce the risk of nitrate leaching from these materials.
Grassland
Tillage land
Sandy or shallow soils
1st Sept to 31st Dec
1st Aug to 31st Dec
All other soils
15th Oct to 31st Jan
1st Oct to 31st Jan
Table 2: NVZ closed periods (not for the solid fraction if it is below 30% readily available nitrogen) Source: NVZ guidelines, Nov 2013
Nitrogen requirements have to be supplied from mineralised nitrogen in the soil along with nitrogen from any applied manures and fertilisers
“Reflecting on the uptake requirement is the foundation to nitrogen planning as it poses the question: where will the nitrogen come from?” Mike Slater
Fertiliser technical development manager
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technical brief
Know your crop nutrition needs (Continued) Meeting crop demand
Figure 1: Nitrogen use efficiency at the Wensum site growing winter wheat. This is an example of the low nitrogen use efficiency of autumn bandspread applications in comparison with spring applications. This result was seen consistently across the other sites. Source: Wrap publication - DC-Agri Research Summary, Feb 2016
Figure 2: Ammonia loss Source: Wrap publication - DC-Agri Research Summary, Feb 2016
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Outside these periods, digestate can legally be applied but because the nitrogen is so crop available, it must be applied near to crop nitrogen demand. An application in spring, either before sowing a spring crop or on an established winter crop, will therefore be the best timing because of the high nitrogen demand of all crops during this period. Applications can be made in autumn ahead of winter crops, with OSR being the best option with its reasonable nitrogen demand in this period. However, this demand is still significantly lower than in spring and especially for winter cereals, so application rates must also be lower. If more nitrogen is applied than the crop can take up, the excess can potentially be lost from the soil through leaching which is a waste of money and more importantly, damaging to the environment. During summer, the only real application opportunity is to grassland but with warm and potentially dry soils, ammonia losses are a significant risk.
As the nitrogen is so crop available, digestate must be applied near to crop nitrogen demand
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Ammonia losses from digestate need to be managed as this can significantly reduce the amount of applied nitrogen that is actually taken up and used by the crop. Loss is influenced by the method and timing of application and soil conditions. Figure 1 clearly shows the significant improvement in utilisation of nitrogen by the crop when applications are made in spring rather than autumn. Figure 2 shows the reduction in ammonia loss from surface applications to trailing shoe, which puts the digestate under the crop canopy, through to shallow injection directly into the soil. Losses from surface applications can be reduced by applying to moist soils but the biggest reduction comes from rapid incorporation, which must happen within six hours of the application of the digestate. Used correctly, AD digestate can be an excellent organic fertiliser, but remember that poor management and application can harm the environment and provide significantly less value as a source of nutrients to your crops.
Care must be taken with application rates to avoid leaching
The best timing for digestate application is in spring, before sowing a spring crop or to an established winter crop
“Digestate from anaerobic digesters can be a very good source of nutrients for crops but it needs careful management.� Edward Downing
National crop nutrition technical manager
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technical brief
Give sugar beet a boost with green cover The UK sugar beet crop is set to increase by up to 25% this year as the sugar surplus has eased and quotas are due to end. However, yields will suffer if sugar beet is sown into poor soils and despite many growers taking an interest in improving soil health and structure, there is plenty still to be done. Kings eastern technical advisor, Paul Brown examines how green cover crops can make a difference. In recent years, factors such as heavier machinery and lack of organic matter addition have damaged soils. Most arable crops can suffer in such situations, but especially root crops such as sugar beet, which needs to get its roots down to a sufficient depth quickly to obtain the necessary water and nutrients for maximum yields. This isn’t possible on soils in poor condition. Along with changes in machinery use, cover crops have a key role to play. Frontier and Kings have worked with sugar beet growers over the last five years to find successful cover crop options to suit the beet crop. Results have shown yield gains of up to 20% after cover crops. Significant improvements in soil health and structure are key to these yield gains. Other contributing factors vary from farm to farm but can include:
• Nematode reduction, especially Beet Cyst Nematode (BCN) • Nitrogen capture and transfer into the beet crop • Improved soil tilth after cover crops allowing less spring cultivations. Soil structure and health Well managed cover crops will help soil structure and health in a number of ways. Cover crop roots provide soil fungi, bacteria and micro-organisms with a food source when land would usually be bare for several months between a cereal harvest and the next spring. The roots also create pore spaces and allow air into the soil. Cover crops like radish will help soil structure as its strong, deep roots can bust through compaction. In a mixture with other shallower rooted cover crops, the soil tilth in the top 6 inches is improved, allowing soils to better cope with heavy rain and drain more effectively. Cereals and rape seem to have hit a yield plateau and we believe that soil health is a limiting factor in the yield of many crops. Improvement can be difficult to measure, but Frontier’s Soil Life service helps to identify and improve soil health and vitality by analysing the physical, biological and chemical status of the soil. With expert guidance from an advisor, this is used to inform and develop a bespoke action plan to help soils fulfil their potential. Ask your local contact for more information.
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Figure 1: No cover crop on the left and after a cover crop on the right, in adjacent fields in summer 2016.
Nematode reduction Specific varieties of cover crop can help to reduce damaging nematode populations. The success breeders have had in introducing the appropriate genetics into cover crops is an impressive example of biological control. BCN is a common pest in sugar beet and is becoming more widespread. A good range of radish and mustard varieties is now available that will significantly reduce BCN. Some will also reduce potato cyst nematode and free living nematodes, like stubby root nematode and root knot nematode. With just one autumn’s cover crop growth, BCN populations can be reduced by over 80%. The crop can then be grazed or destroyed with glyphosate. If growers suspect a nematode issue, detailed testing to identify the species present is the first priority. The whole rotation and how the cover crop might help or hinder each crop grown should then be considered.
Figure 2: Sugar beet after a radish cover crop which gave a 65% reduction in BCN population on the right. No cover crop on the left and 28% less yield.
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Nitrogen capture and release Some nitrogen is always left behind after a cereal crop and much of this can be leached out of the reach of the next crop by autumn and winter rains on bare soil. Most cereals are only 50% to 70% efficient at using the nitrogen applied and after paying for this resource, we don’t want to lose it through leaching. Growing a cover crop can catch that nitrogen and take it into the crop leaves and stems, reducing leaching and allowing the captured nitrogen to be released into the subsequent crops. Cover crop success is linkedFresh to sowing date, species, growthPotash stage Nitrogen and management at destruction. a low carbon to nitrogen Species weightCrops with capture capture Kilosbut N /ha Kilos K /ha ratio will release about 50% T/ha to the next crop, a high C:N ratio may release only 20% Rye & vetch mix in the first year. 14.1 Because of its 81 growth over up 95to nine months, good use of this Radish sugar beet can make 30.1 125released N. 198 Radish & cereal mix
26.4
107
160
Table 1: Analysis of above ground cover crop in January 2015, after wheat and before beet in mid Norfolk
Additional cover crop benefits The benefits of cover crops extend beyond contributing to improved yields. Other advantages include: Grazing: With careful species choice, many cover crops can offer good grazing in autumn and winter.
Reduced spring cultivations: The root activity of a cover crop can till the soil which can lead to reduced spring cultivations, associated cost savings, reduced moisture loss and less compaction, all resulting in higher yields.
Cover crop species choice To achieve any of these benefits, species choice is important. As well as sugar beet, it’s vital to look at the other crops in the rotation as a whole and to consider the overall aim of the cover crop. Requirements and considerations
Suggested species
BCN reduction
Radish or mustard
Nitrogen capture
Radish, cereal , vetch
Soil structure improvements
Radish with phacelia and cereal
Grazing
Radish, cereal – oat/rye
Rotation includes rape
Avoid mustard
Rotation includes high frequency of rape
Avoid radish too often
Cover crop with no brassica content Rotation includes beans and peas
Linseed, phacelia, cereal and buckwheat Avoid vetch and clover
Table 2: Suggested species according to requirements. Always seek expert advice for your own situation.
EFA requirements: Cover crops can meet farm EFA requirements as a catch or cover crop. They must be in a mixture but can still provide effective nematode reduction and nitrogen capture. Consider the rules carefully to ensure the chosen crop suits your rotation. Wind blow reduction: On light soil prone to wind blow, the cover crop residue can significantly reduce erosion. The roots can hold the soil and the above ground residue reduces wind speed. If crops are direct drilled, there is further reduction in soil movement.
For expert advice specific to your own circumstances or to see how a Soil Life report could benefit your business, speak to your local Kings or Frontier advisor.
“After five years of work with sugar beet growers to find successful cover crop options, results have shown yield gains of up to 20% after cover crops.” Figure 3: Sugar beet direct drilled after a cereal and vetch cover crop
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Paul Brown
Kings eastern technical advisor
technical brief
Page 8. News and crop production advice from Frontier
Plan ahead for stewardship success The window for Countryside Stewardship Mid Tier applications is due to open around the end of March and forward planning is essential to deliver an agreement that works on farm. Kings’ western technical advisor, Neil Harris, examines the options available for growers starting from scratch with stewardship or transitioning from an existing scheme. There are three tiers to Countryside Stewardship: Higher Tier, Mid Tier and the Hedgerows and Boundaries Grants Scheme. All applications are subject to competition and depending on the level of uptake, it may be that not all will result in an agreement offer. Up until now, scheme uptake has not been high so it has not been particularly competitive, but this may change. Seeking advice is recommended to give your application the best chance of success. Growers with Entry Level Stewardship and Higher Level Stewardship agreements expiring before the end of 2017 will need to compile a Countryside Stewardship application this year to minimise the period without any sort of agri-environment funding. Whether this is a first foray into stewardship or a continuation of long term efforts, Countryside Stewardship has a lot to offer. It is a valuable additional income stream for growers, providing a regular annual payment in an otherwise volatile farming sector and poor ground can be taken out of production and farmed more profitably. With carefully chosen options, sporting interests can also be enhanced while receiving a payment for doing so.
Mid Tier Mid Tier is aimed at the wider farmed landscape. It seeks farmers willing to adopt certain options aimed at specific local targets illustrated on Natural England’s targeting statements. These include options for water quality and the Farm Wildlife and Pollinators Package. Anyone can apply for this strand of the scheme, but it’s important to take good advice to make sure that the right options are chosen and maximise the chances of a successful application.
Hedgerows and Boundaries Grants Scheme The Hedgerow and Boundaries Grant Scheme was launched on 1st February and the closing date for applications is 28th April 2017. Grants are available for hedgerow laying, coppicing and gapping up, planting hedgerow trees, stone-faced bank repairs and restoration, and stone wall and earth bank restoration. Schemes run for two years and the maximum grant available per farm business (SBI) is £5000. In the last application round, this scheme was about £1m undersubscribed and Natural England is keen to see an improved uptake in this application round.
To discuss how Countryside Stewardship could benefit your business, speak to your local Kings or Frontier advisor.
Higher Tier Higher Tier is generally by invitation from Natural England only, and although anyone can apply, the chances of success of an uninvited application are low. This tier is aimed at specific habitats such as species rich grassland, salt marshes and ancient orchards or at designated sites such as SSSIs. With very few Higher Tier applications being processed by Natural England, many growers expecting their expiring HLS agreements to naturally progress into a Higher Tier application could be disappointed over the next few years. This year, many who applied through the ‘Higher Tier Expressions of Interest’ process have been directed by Natural England to apply for the Mid Tier. If you are considering applying for Higher Tier this year, we would recommend having a contingency plan in place to have a Mid Tier application drawn up.
“Whether this is a first foray into stewardship or a continuation of long term efforts, Countryside Stewardship has a lot to offer.” Neil Harris
Kings’ western technical advisor
Page 10 Always take professional advice before making crop production decisions. Frontier has a team of over 140 professional agronomists, backed by a technical support team and network of trials and demonstration sites. To arrange to speak to an agronomist get in touch with us today info@frontierag.co.uk or call 0800 227 445.
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