Black-grass

If tempted to drill winter cereals early on the back of two difficult autumns it pays to be aware of yield, weed and disease implications.

Practical glyphosate application guidelines, published by the Weed Resistance Action Group (WRAG), aims to help arable growers reduce the increasing risk of glyphosate resistance developing in grass-weeds.

The result of the temptation to drill earlierlastautumn to ensure crops were safely in the ground is evident insome fields as highnumbers of black-grass headsemerge above the crop.

Farmers are being asked to assist in a new study looking at the spread of rat’s tail fescue, a grass-weed that is already posing problems in France, Switzerland, Spain and Denmark - and is now starting to take hold in England

Small Robot company (SRC) has announced its Tom monitoring robot is now delivered to commercial specification and entering service on UK farms.

Crops have been met with drought in the south and east of the country, widespread frosts and even April snow in some parts in recent weeks.

Much needed spring sunshine and some good drying days have allowed growers to get their spring drilling campaigns underway.

The post-emergence herbicide bentazone is facing deregulation if growers do not start acting to reduce leaching into ground and surface water, BASF has warned.

Happy New Year. I hope you all had some form of rest and normality over the festive period. Like many of you, I was happy to see the back of 2020 while filled with excitement for what the new year has in store for us. Well at this moment in time I am slightly concerned that 2021 is just 2020 reappearing in disguise.

EAMUs have been granted for herbicides in linseed and rye.