Farmers who have become used to drilling sugar beet in March have had to readjust this spring. The wettest March for 40 years delayed sugar beet drilling well into April on all but the lightest land. Growers must adapt their herbicide programmes accordingly, urges crop protection manufacturer UPL.
The Met Office reported that
the UK sugar beet growing area experienced 200% of its average rainfall in
March and above-average rainfall in April. This left land destined for sugar
beet saturated, with insufficient gaps between the rain to dry it out. BBRO
estimates that 70% of the UK sugar beet crop was drilled up to the 25th
of April, with only the heaviest soils still to be drilled. Very little was
drilled in March, leaving the bulk of the UK crop being drilled up to a month
later than average.
Cambridgeshire-based farmer
and contractor Tom Jackson of W.R. Jackson & Son did not begin drilling his
sugar beet until late April. “As soon as we felt the land was finally ready, we
drilled 600ac of sugar beet in 6 days,” says Tom. “Overall, the seed beds were
fantastic, and we have had good establishment. One advantage of drilling later
is that emergence is much quicker because of the warmer soil temperatures. 80%
of it is up now, with the first true leaves emerging on some. However, we have
lost a month, so the crop may never quite compensate.”
Tom manages a typical mixture
of soil types on the edge of the fens. He has a combination of heavy clay and
deep organic soils across his farms. The heavier soils can take a long time to
dry out in the spring; cultivating them too early can result in a very uneven
seedbed and smearing in the row with the drill. The organic soils are much more
friable, and the surface is quicker to dry out, but wet holes can quickly
reveal themselves, and Tom has learned to treat them with respect. “We have had
to be very patient. I kept digging holes in the fields but felt it was not
quite ready earlier in April; there was no sense in pushing it.
“We have not yet put a
herbicide on. The priority will be a graminicide on the cover crops sown on the
black land as they are now getting quite big. Our sprayer has been busy
catching up with wheat T1s, and winter barley T2s will be next on the list. I
expect we will make fewer herbicide applications this year because of the later
drilling. We will start as soon as the weeds are ready," adds Tom.
UPL’s sugar beet technical specialist Antonia Walker believes that warming soil temperatures and sunnier days will soon see grass and broad-leaved weeds emerging quickly. Not only has the weather disrupted drilling, but it also means that decent spray days are few and far between, meaning early weed control will be challenging. “Farmers and agronomists should consider the weed populations in their fields, including grassweeds,” says Antonia. “Where possible, I would recommend a pre-emergence herbicide of Bettix Flo (metamitron) and Oblix 500 (ethofumesate). This will give some flexibility on timing for follow-up post-emergence herbicides.”
Antonia believes programmes
should be built around the three key actives for post-emergence broad-leaved
weed control: ethofumesate, metamitron and phenmedipham. “Rates can be adjusted
to reflect the size species of the weeds present. This will be especially
important with the later drilled crops and disrupted spray programmes this
spring. The BRRO offers excellent guidance on the relative efficacy of each
active against common broad-leaved weeds in their 2023 sugar beet reference
book. We have found this approach to deliver the most cost-effective herbicide
programme for sugar beet.”
Farmers planning to use
Centurion Max (clethodim) for post-emergence grass weed control are urged to
consult the stewardship guidelines before applying it. In particular, they
should observe the no-spray period and not apply any herbicide five days before
or 14 days after application. More details can be found on UPL’s website.
