Latest News

Oilseed Rape Seed Treatments

21/09/09

We will be monitoring both crops and cost of chemical for flea beetle control, it is possible that some crops will need a 2nd application of foliar insecticide. The combination of seed dressing and pyrethroids is to reduce the risk of resistance building up to the neonicotinoids group of chemicals. Fields without any seed dressing will be used as a control.

Chinook will reduce early damage caused by cabbage stem flea beetle and flea beetles with a limited duration of aphid control. A foliar insecticide is likely to be required where flea beetle pressure is high or prolonged, or where later pests e.g. turnip sawfly or aphids continue to invade the crop. Flea beetles (and other pests) have to feed on the oil seed rape to take in the chemical, so some shot-hole damage is inevitable. Protection lasts for about 3-4 weeks.

Modesto reduces damage caused by flea beetle and cabbage stem flea beetle, with reductions of attack from turnip sawfly larvae and virus carrying aphids. Modesto gives 4-6 weeks control of flea beetle and sawfly with at least 8 weeks protection against aphids, which transmit Tuyv. An additional foliar insecticide may be required if early flea beetle pressure is very high and plants are small. Later pyrethroid sprays may further reduce the virus infection and increase yields. Hy-Pro Duet controls the important seed borne diseases including a reduction in seedling phoma.

Cruiser will give reduction of damage caused by aphids, flea beetle and cabbage stem flea beetle lasting for 6-8 weeks. A follow up insecticide with a different mode of action may be reqiured. Cruiser will control downy mildew, seed borne phoma with moderate control of seed borne alternaria.

Approximate costs for Cruiser and Modesto is £7-£8 per ha more than Chinook, follow up sprays of pyrethroid will be about £2/ha. So far the Chinook dressed seed has a higher level of shot-holing on the cotyledons compared to other treatments but this has not affected crop establishment. The pre cleaned seed only is not showing any sign of flea beetle damage so far. Over all, flea beetle levels are low this season regardless of seed dressing where only odd plants which had found moisture to germinate have a high level of notching. Since the last lot of rain these crops have started filled in with more plants and very little beetle damage.

---

All News

• Oilseed Rape Seed Treatments (21 September 2009)
• Can you control blackgrass and establish a crop of winter beans for £20 per acre? (22 May 2009)
• J K Senior & Sons - Metaldehyde Usage Dropped (23 March 2009)
• How Two Yorkshire Farmers are reducing the cost of crop establishment. (26 January 2007)