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Know How / Disease management

Get advice on managing disease in wheat, barley, oilseed rape, potatoes, and sugar beet. Find the best ways to combine cultural and chemical controls and how to deal with fungicide resistance. See tips, insights and farmer case studies focusing on major disease threats such as septoria, yellow rust, ramularia, phoma leaf spot and blight and how to combat them.

Advice and tips

CROP MANAGEMENT

Advice for growers dealing with ergot this harvest

The fungal pathogen ergot is reported to be widespread across UK cereals this harvest, with some growers identifying the disease for the first time in decades. The greater incidence is…

SUGAR BEET

Tips to tackle foliar sugar beet disease in high risk season

Virus yellows is not expected to be the major issue feared in the spring – when aphid migration started earlier than usual – sugar beet growers have been reassured by…

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Wheat growers advised not to scrimp on T3 sprays

Wheat growers are being warned not to economise on T3 sprays and risk exposing emerging wheat ears in such a wet high disease pressure year. See also: World’s first verified…

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Expert tips for T1 fungicide strategies in rain-battered wheat

Weeks of rain and higher-than-normal spring temperatures are creating challenges for T1 fungicide plans, with growers advised to be guided by drilling date and variety. In such a testing season,…

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Case studies

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Eliminating chemicals helps future-proof pig and arable farm

Nick Dymond’s journey to chemical-free crop production began 10 years ago when he decided to escape the chemical conveyor belt and focus on soil health at the family pig and…

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Dorset grower hopes for lift from septoria-hitting SDHI

Bob Rowe is turning to a new hard-hitting septoria fungicide across all his 700ha of winter wheat at the crucial T2 flag leaf timing later this month to gain from…

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Will Arable Insights Farmers cut fungicide spend this season?

Should growers consider reducing fungicide spend given the state of this year’s wheat crops? Farmers Weekly asks our Arable Insights Farmer panel about their disease control plans. Scotland: David Fuller-Shapcott…

CROP MANAGEMENT

How two farmers are cutting back on fungicides this spring

Two arable farmers are planning to dramatically cut back their fungicide spend this spring, helping to overcome rising chemical costs. Wiltshire grower George Hosier aims to spend the absolute minimum,…

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Community

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Twitter round-up: Spring drilling and wheat T0 race is on

The recent spell of warm, dry weather has allowed many growers to get into full the swing of spring drilling and take on the first fungicide application timing in winter…

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Insights

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Improved BYDV tool to give cereal growers better control

Winter cereal growers are set to see a more accurate warning system next season for a key aphid-spread disease. The AHDB’s new Acrobat tool will give a more precise forecast…

POTATOES

Potato growers advised to stock up mancozeb for new strain

Potato growers are being advised to stock up on the multisite fungicide mancozeb before sales end on 30 November, to help manage resistance risk next season. The advice follows confirmation…

ESTABLISHMENT

Cereal seed treatments for farmers to consider this autumn

Seed treatments have many roles, which include fungicide dressings, nutritional enhancers, and in more recent years, the arrival of biological treatments have been added to some agronomy plans. So as…

DRILLING

3 risks to assess before drilling winter wheat early

Winter wheat growers are being advised to think hard about three heightened risks before going for early drilling this autumn – namely blackgrass, aphid-borne disease, and septoria. After a very…

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News

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Adama to launch new mode-of-action fungicide for 2027

A brand new mode-of-action fungicide for controlling costly diseases in cereals and oilseed rape could be available to UK farmers in just over two years’ time. Adama, the company developing…

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

New cereal fungicide mix available for spring 2025

The first three-way fungicide co-formulation containing Iblon (isoflucypram) has gained approval for use in cereals, offering growers another option for managing disease in spring 2025. In autumn 2023, Bayer launched…

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

OSR growers advised to check crops for phoma

Oilseed rape growers have been advised to check crops for phoma, with the first three weeks of October being critical for managing the disease. The AHDB says the peak onset…

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

50 years of arable disease data goes online

Growers, agronomists and the wider public now have free access to more than 50 years of arable pest and disease data from across England and Wales. Following a three-year project…

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Video

WEED MANAGEMENT

Video: Phone app is cheaper way to monitor crops with a drone

A new smartphone app offers farmers a cheaper and easier way to monitor their crops, simply with a mobile phone and a cheap drone. Developed by Northumbria-based Drone Ag, the…

POTATOES

Video: Early potato harvest start is worst for 40 years

Brothers Peter and Philip Le Maistre are sixth-generation Jersey farmers and for them this potato season has been the worst since covering spuds with plastic started to be used on…

POTATOES

Video: Jersey early potato yields dip 20% after frosty February

Jersey’s early potato harvest is almost a month late this spring, with yields expected to be down one-fifth after the Beast from the East frosted off young plants barely out…

ARABLE

Video: Crop Doctor sees septoria rising to worrying levels

Disease levels are rising in the nation’s wheat crops with the wet weather likely to encourage septoria to spread and put growers on alert to make sure their fungicide programmes…

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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…

ARABLE

Webinar: Combating fungicide resistance

Farmers need to find ways to combat problems in crop protection that are caused by development of resistance to fungicides. Pathogen resistance to fungicides is widespread. This is especially true…

ARABLE

Expert advice on maximising OSR yields in a difficult season

After such a wet autumn and winter, the big question over oilseed rape this spring is: "What can farmers do to maximise yields in a very difficult season for oilseed…

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