Menu

Know How / Weed management

Find out about the main pest threats and how to control them in wheat, barley, oilseed rape, sugar beet and potato crops. Get advice on dealing with pests including flea beetle, TuYV, potato cyst nematode and slugs, how and when to apply insecticides and what a permanent neonicotinoid ban would mean.

Advice and tips

BARLEY

How to get spring barley off to a good start

Whether it’s an option to replace missed or failed winter drillings, or a profitable mainstay in the rotations of committed malting growers, spring barley is expected to increase its area…

CROP MANAGEMENT

Advice on backwards and poorly established crops this spring

An early dose of nitrogen to nurse backwards cereal crops into action will be key to optimising yield after crops battled intense rainfall this winter. Soils could be carrying 40-60kg/ha…

SOILS

How to manage waterlogged soils in an autumn deluge

This season’s washout autumn has seen crops battered by flooding and swamped by slugs, in what was the wettest October in England since 2000. In fact, some fields have been…

WEED MANAGEMENT

Herbicide mix shows good ryegrass control

Good control of ryegrass in winter wheat can be achieved using a new herbicide alongside others with different modes of action, cultural controls and timing sprays when there is adequate…

See all

Case studies

NUTRITION AND FERTILISER

How fulvic acid can cut glyphosate rates and help foliar N

Fulvic and humic acid could be beneficial additions to spray tank mixes, enabling growers to increase efficacy and successfully cut back glyphosate and fertiliser rates by one-third. Both fulvic and…

ARABLE

Grower moves to direct-drilled OSR and companion crops

Dorset grower Andrew Fry is growing oilseed rape for the first time and is hoping for a good yield from his new break crop. There is also £100/ha of government…

WEED MANAGEMENT

Video: Leicester farm trials weed seed unit on Fendt combine

Europe’s first Redekop seed control unit (SCU) fitted to a Fendt Ideal 10T combine, aimed at controlling weed seeds, is being put to the test this harvest in Leicestershire at…

BLACKGRASS

Borage and herbage seed helps Essex farm fight blackgrass

Borage and herbage seed break crops have helped one heavy land Essex arable farm get on top of blackgrass, with double spring-sown breaks and low soil disturbance seen as the…

See all

Insights

WEED MANAGEMENT

Are alternative weed control techniques viable for beet?

With sugar beet herbicide options dwindling, researchers are testing options using artificial intelligence and robotics. Mike Abram reports German field trials comparing spot-spraying and robotic systems are highlighting both the…

See all

News

POTATOES

Trials show it's safe to use key herbicide on Elland potatoes

Farmers growing Elland potatoes are set to benefit from another herbicide option this season, after tests show a key pre-emergence active can be safely used. Metribuzin is key component of…

WEED MANAGEMENT

Less common weeds threaten cereal yields

Farmers are facing a further threat to winter cereal yields from high populations of less common weeds this spring. The lack of autumn residual herbicides applied in some areas, wetter…

WEED MANAGEMENT

Rothamsted reveals the pros and cons of a glyphosate ban

Farmers could face reduced crop yields as well as an increase in weeds if the use of glyphosate is withdrawn, according to modelling carried out by Rothamsted Research. The modelling…

BLACKGRASS

Drainage key to combatting blackgrass, research shows

Blackgrass often thrives on heavy, waterlogged land, and new research has revealed how the problematic weed uses specific adaptations in root structure to flourish in saturated soils. Scientists at Rothamsted…

See all

Test and reviews

New Defy 3D nozzle: Sprayer operators give their verdict

Agrochemical giant Syngenta has launched its new Defy 3D spray nozzle, which will provide growers with improved grassweed control and reduced spray drift. The new nozzle is an evolution of…

See all

Video

WEED MANAGEMENT

Video: Leicester farm trials weed seed unit on Fendt combine

Europe’s first Redekop seed control unit (SCU) fitted to a Fendt Ideal 10T combine, aimed at controlling weed seeds, is being put to the test this harvest in Leicestershire at…

WEED MANAGEMENT

Video: Mechanical hoes offer solution to herbicide resistance

As herbicides are withdrawn from the market, resistance builds and growers seek more sustainable weed management strategies, an increasing number of growers are turning to mechanical weed control. Andy Baggott,…

SUGAR BEET

Video: Robotti successfully drills and weeds 150ha of sugar beet

Autonomous Agri Solutions and Sentry farming have teamed up to use a fully autonomous robot to successfully drill and weed a 150ha area of sugar beet across Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire.…

CEREALS

Cereals 2022: Watch the solar-powered FarmDroid in action

A fully autonomous, solar-powered robot capable of precision drilling and weeding was on display at Cereals this year. Using ultra-accurate GPS to record exactly where each seed is placed, the…

See all

Webinar

OILSEED RAPE

How to balance high inputs and market prospects for OSR

Although the price of oilseed rape has risen sharply largely due to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, so too have input costs such as fertiliser, fuel and energy costs. Therefore, oilseed rape growers…

See all