Spring beans will be receiving a final bruchid spray as they finish flowering. A pyrethroid and half rate pirimicarb will be used as levels of black bean aphids are increasing. This will be our third bruchid spray in some cases due to the protracted season. Disease levels are still low in bean crops so a low rate triazole and chlorothalonil will be sufficient to keep the crop clean.

The early-maturing oilseed rape varieties are nearing desiccation timing. After recent rains picked up some late nitrogen it has, thankfully, prolonged the pod filling period. All crops will be treated with glyphosate (unless they are for seed).

Most of these treatments will include a pod sealant. With the current value of the seed we are trying to reduce the risk of pod shatter and ensure we harvest as much of the seed yield as we can. Towards the next week we will be looking at winter barleys with the intention of desiccating some uneven crops.

Those with volunteer wheat present should use glyphosate as long as the end market allows. For those tempted to use diquat, it only has clearance for laid barley and oats for animal feed.

Spring barley crops that have not been treated with an insecticide recently are suffering from high aphid numbers. These will be treated with pirimicarb or a pyrethroid within the next week.

I am encouraging growers to have some spare glyphosate in store so no one misses an opportunity to spray blackgrass as it emerges in either stubbles or stale seed-beds. If the sprayer can be left full of water ready, then that is better still.