Septoria - Bayer Crop Science UK · TO KEEP GROWERS IN WHISKY Distilling Malting barley growers in the north of England and Scotland supplying distilling markets on contract can expect

BayerField Days:The results

Profit from good diseasecontrol in 2015

the cultural solution

Time-lapse photos showvalue of protection

Timing matters

Septoria

www.bayercropscience.co.uk

Spring 2015

North Edition

Bayer CropScience Ltd.230 Cambridge Science ParkMilton RoadCambridgeCB4 0WB

Bayer Assist: 0845 6092266or 01223 226644www.bayercropscience.co.uk

©Copyright Bayer CropScience 2015.

Finding the right combination in barleyPages 4-6

Whisky keeps barley growers in profitPages 7

2014: A year to learnPages 8-11

SDHI fungicides at T1?Pages 12-13

Good timing is all you needPages 14

Time-lapse photography puts timing in focusPages 15

Septoria: The cultural solutionPages 16-17

Bayer Field Days: The resultsPages 18-19

Predicting a Fusarium seasonPages 20-21

Beating flea beetles to profit from OSRPage 22-23

Mike AbramPR and CommunicationsManager

Andrew FlindDevelopment ManagerCombinable Fungicides

Contents

32

Crop Focus Spring 2015

Will CharltonProduct ManagerCombinable Fungicides

Tim ShortProduct ManagerCombinable Fungicides

Keepingbarleydisease awayPages 4-6

L

MAYFungic

id

Se

e

Pages 8-11

Learning from 2014Page 14

Timing matters

2015

Aviator235Xpro contains prothioconazole + bixafen. SiltraXpro contains prothioconazole + bixafen. Proline275 contains prothioconazole. Fandango contains prothioconazole + fluoxastrobin.Firefly155 contains prothioconazole + fluoxastrobin. Folicur contains tebuconazole. Mesurol contains methiocarb. All are registered trademarks of Bayer.

Adexar contains epoxiconazole + fluxapyroxad. Imtrex contains fluxapyroxad. Ignite contains epoxiconazole. Comet200 contains pyraclostrobin. Opus contains epoxiconazole.Brutus contains epoxiconazole + metconazole. Elk contains dimethenamid-p + metazachlor + quinmerac. Tracker contains epoxiconazole and boscalid.All are registered trademarks of BASF.

Bontima contains epoxiconazole + isopyrazam. Seguris contains isopyrazam + epoxiconazole. Zulu contains isopyrazam. Bravo contains chlorothalonil. Amistar Opti contains azoxystrobin + chlorothalonil.Cherokee contains cyproconazole + chlorothalonil + propiconazole. Keystone contains isopyrazam + epoxiconazole. Plenum contains pymetrozine. All are registered trademarks of Syngenta.Hyvido is a registered trademark of Syngenta.

Vertisan contains penthiopyrad and is a registered trademark of DuPont.

Falcon contains propaquizafop and is a registered trademark of Adama.

Astrokerb contains propyzamide + aminopyralid and is a registered trademark of Dow AgroSciences.

Rubric contains epoxiconazole and is a registered trademark of Cheminova.

54


Disease pressure in barley was higherin 2014 than for many years, and ithighlighted the need to use aprothioconazole-base to achieve thebest disease control.

Net blotch and mildew caused earlyconcern in winter barley in 2014, says DrFiona Burnett of SRUC, butRhynchosporium was also showing up inplaces, often at severe levels.

“Just as it was with wheat diseases, 2014was a high pressure season,”she recalls.“That means it was also a responsive yearfor fungicides, providing they were appliedat the right time.”

As the season developed, the wetter areasin the west increasingly suffered fromRhynchosporium, while there was more netblotch and brown rust found in crops inthe drier parts of the east, she notes.

“The regional differences seen in diseaselevels were also related to previouscropping,”says Dr Burnett.“Where barleyhad been grown before, there was more ofan issue with Rhynchosporium.”

Although spring barley varieties tend tocarry better mildew resistance, there’salways a risk that the spring crop will pickup any other disease that’s alreadyestablished in the winter crop, shecontinues.

“So any early problems in winter barleytend to transfer onto the newly sown crop.And that’s what happened in 2014.”

The mild, wet winter experienced last yearprovided favourable conditions for diseasedevelopment, with events to datesuggesting that the same scenario will berepeated this year, points out Dr Burnett.

“So far, it’s almost a replay.We’re seeingnet blotch and mildew already, followinganother relatively mild autumn andwinter.”

Without a sustained period of coldtemperatures, there is likely to be highdisease pressure again this year, shepredicts.“Fortunately, growers can use thelessons from last year to help them copewith the disease threat.”

Those lessons included making good useof T0 andT1 sprays, she says.“It wasapparent early on that disease was around,

so the early treatments were essential.There was plenty of warning of what wasto come.”

More T0s were applied to winter barley,followed by robust T1s, she confirms.“Crops had disease, but they also hadpotential. So growers were prepared tospray and to use the stronger fungicideproducts.”

Omitting a T1 spray on spring barleyproved to be a mistake.“It meant that theT2 treatment then had to be eradicant,putting yield at risk.”

The greater choice of chemistry for use onbarley is good news, stresses Dr Burnett.“There are more products to choose fromand most offer good performance againstdisease. So there are plenty of options.”

But within the different chemistry groups,there are some stronger candidates, shesays.“We know that prothioconazole is thestrongest azole on barley, and that is alsoreflected in the performance of co-formulations containing prothioconazole,such as Siltra.

“These continue to perform very well, aswas confirmed by the latest HGCA-fundedfungicide performance trials results.”

SDHIs all offered good efficacy in thefungicide performance trials, with Imtrexbeing at the top end of the straight SDHIsfor disease control in 2014, while Zulu wasat the other end.“It still has a place butwould need to be balanced by its partner –as they all should.

“Adexar is available for barley now, but itsepoxiconazole content makes it a lesswell-balanced barley product.”

Strobilurins can also be used and havegiven good results againstRhynchosporium, she notes, whilechlorothalonil has a role in providing amore protectant T1 spray.

“Chlorothalonil can also be used at T2 forRamularia control,”points out Dr Burnett.“If the warnings indicate that there’s ahigh risk of Ramularia, it can be addedinto the mix.There’s less evidence of itsinterference with the efficacy of otherproducts in barley.”

Looking ahead to 2015, she highlightsthat the warning signs are already present.“The disease is there and the conditionsare conducive to its development. So payattention to early sprays, bothT0s andT1s,and see what disease gets transferred tospring barley.”

Again, the T1 spray will be important forspring barley crops.“There’s always atemptation to omit it, but it wouldn’t besensible this year.”

Rhynchosporium and mildew arethe main disease threats in mostyears to the 1400ha of winter barleygrown at A.J.Duncan near Turriff inAberdeenshire.For this reason, arable manager SandyNorrie sticks to a three sprayapproach, starting every season with aT0 treatment and following it up witha well-timedT1 andT2 programme, toprevent disease getting establishedand keep crops growing well.

“Our average winter barley yield was9.8t/ha last year,”says Mr Norrie.“Most of it is being grown on fertileland, thanks to applications of poultrymanure, so we’re able to push foryield. Our fungicide strategy is animportant part of that.”

Both hybrid and conventional feedbarley varieties are produced acrossthe 22 farms that form the A.J.DuncanGroup, with much of the output beingused to feed laying hens and fatteningbulls. Of the 14,000t of barleyproduced in 2014, some 8,500t wasused internally.

This year, 512ha of hybrid barley isbeing grown after wheat, with theremaining barley area down to the

KWS varieties Glacier,Tower andMeridian. Smaller areas of Escadreand Infinity also feature.

A cyprodinil-basedT0 is used everyyear, says Mr Norrie.“It helps us tomanage any disease inoculum that’saround early on with differentchemistry.The barley can be quiteforward by March, especially if we’vehad a mild winter, so we add somePGR to it if necessary.”

At T1, his preference is for a robustBontima/Proline mix, with a bit ofchlorothalonil added to it.“Again, weinclude growth regulators in with thistreatment, to keep crops standing.Last year we had a record straw crop,so we have to be mindful of thelodging risk.”

At T2, he uses Bayer’s Siltra.“It’s a longlasting treatment, which hasperformed the best in barley trials.TheSDHI component helps to give us agood yield response, and partnering itwith prothioconazole, the strongestbarley triazole, really adds to thisperformance.”

Mr Norrie works closely with hisagronomist, Andy Gilchrist of ScottishAgronomy, to ensure that cropsremain clean. He sees no reason tochange his fungicide use in 2015,although fertiliser applications may betweaked.

“We’ve got plenty of organic matter inthe soils, so there’s an opportunity toreduce our fertiliser use a bit, withoutaffecting yields,”he says.

• Use prothiconazole as foundationfor barley disease control

• Make good use of T0 and T1sprays in programmes

• Use different modes of action tohelp reduce risk of net blotchresistance spreading

• Siltra / Fandango programmestrong against net blotch andRhynchosporium

Key Messages

Crops had disease, but

they also had potential. So

growers were prepared to

spray and to use the

stronger fungicide product

Sandy NorrieGrower Focus

The disease is there and

the conditions are

conducive to its

development. So pay

attention to early sprays,

both T0s and T1s, and see

what disease gets

transferred to spring barley

It’s a long lasting

treatment, which has

performed the best in

barley trials

barleyFinding the right combination in

76


Add in the recent upswing in the wheatmarket that underpins the barley baseprice and growers in these areas cannow lock into values up to £165/t.

Whisky exports slipped 11% in the first halfof 2014 due to falling demand in Asia,much of this due to the Chinesegovernment’s anti-extravagance policies,and the strong pound.

However, while distillers might reduce theircontracted tonnage this season, growerswithin a reasonable haul of distilleries areunlikely to be affected, says Stuart Shand,sales director at Gleadell Agriculture.

“Scotland cannot grow enough to satisfycurrent demand and distilleries have reliedon growers fromYorkshire northwards tosupplement demand. Following the boomin whisky exports several years ago extrabarley was contracted further south, and itis this tonnage that has been affected bythe downturn, but probably only by a smalldegree – contracts might be cut by 10%,but probably no more.”

Distilling premiums remain unaffected,says Mr Shand.“Unlike brewing, whiskyproduction is a long-term affair, so distillersneed stability.They have been paying up to£25/t over wheat futures for a number ofyears, and that is likely to continue.”

What happens to the base price is lesscertain. Further wheat price rises in theshort term seem less likely now thatRussian wheat export restrictions, one ofthe major supportive factors, have beenpriced into the market.

Further out, a relatively bearish long-termwheat supply scenario overhangsprospects, he notes.“Current values arewell worth considering. Growers who

prefer to wait should keep a close eye onthe markets and be ready to act quickly.”

Another potentially bearish factor for thewider barley market is the sharp increase innational barley plantings predicted in theHGCA’s recent early bird survey, whichsuggests the spring barley area is set to riseby 9% and the winter area is up by 12%.

Supply and demandHowever, the ongoing strong demand fordistilling barley will help protect northerngrowers from any resulting marketdownturn, says David Cairns, agrochemicaldirector at McCreath, Simpson andPrentice.

“The increase in sowings is being drivenpartly by the three-crop rule but perhapsmore so by the renewed focus on springcropping to tackle blackgrass.

“However, most farmers in the north arealready growing at least three crops andblackgrass is not a particular problem.Thebarley area could even fall as continuousbarley growers look for alternatives,”headds.

Despite this Mr Cairns recommends allbarley growers, regardless of market orarea, grow on contract to avoid the risk ofopen-market exposure.“A lot of spot sellersin the past season ended up with nowherefor their barley to go and it ended up asfeed.

“There is a whole range of contracts onoffer to suit different attitudes to pricespread and risk as well as expected grainspecification.

“Growers might want to fix a price, usepremium over wheat futures, protect thedownside, or take a more bullish view and

choose a contract that delivers the fullextent of the upside. But most growerswant some form of risk management and acontract is the way to obtain it.”

Stuart Shand agrees.“If the findings of theearly bird survey are borne out, we couldsee an exportable surplus of 650,000t.Growing in hope is not a great strategy.”

PREMIUMT O K E E P G R O W E R S I N W H I S K Y

DistillingMalting barley growers in the north of England and

Scotland supplying distilling markets oncontract can expect another season of

good premiums, despite a sharpdrop in whisky exports and amarked increase in the UK’sbarley area.

Good agronomy is required toproduce the plump, even grainsdemanded by maltsters.Avoiding stress, particularly bykeeping disease to a minimum, isespecially important in spring barley,which has a very short growingseason. It needs to retain as muchgreen leaf and awn area as possibleto fill grains effectively, says MrCairns.

“Rhynchosporium is the main diseasein the north and can be veryaggressive. Proline is key in aprotective programme, applied atearly stem extension (GS30) andawns just visible (GS49), with astrobilurin or SDHI partner toprovide a different mode of action.”

Ramularia can also be very damaging,so Mr Cairns advises addingchlorothalonil to the secondapplication.

Mildew-prone varieties such asGolden Promise, still grown for nichemarkets, may need a separatemildewicide at tillering, he adds.

THE GRAIN OF TRUTH

“The wet, mild conditions that we experienced were just right for net blotch,”says Mr Flind.“Of course, those are the same factors which also suit Rhynchosporium.”

Siltra followed by Fandango programme performed extremely well where net blotch wasthe main threat, says Mr Flind.

1 Hybrid barley netblotch trials

That was shown in twoindependent trials where netblotch in untreated Hyvidowinter barley plots averagedaround 10%. In those trialstwo sprays of Bontima yieldedalmost 1.0t/ha less than twosprays of Fandango, with theSiltra followed by Fandango,giving a further 0.3t/ha (seechart 1).“That equates toaround £75/ha more returnfrom Fandango and over£100/ha more from Siltra overthe Bontima programme, aswell as providing a better netblotch anti-resistance strategy.”

2 Winter barleyRhynchosporium trial

The Siltra / Fandangoprogramme is also strongagainst Rhynchosporium, saysMr Flind.That was illustratedin a trial conducted by OAT,which had high levels ofRhynchosporium infection. Inthat trial two sprays of Siltrayielded the most at 8.79t/ha,but the Siltra followed byFandango plus chlorothaloniltreatment was only 0.1t/haless, and two sprays ofFandango 0.25t/ha behind.

In contrast, a two sprayprogramme containingBontima yielded over 1t/ha lessthan Siltra, which translatesinto an extra £130/ha income.

3 Scottish Agronomywinter barley trial

A second trial in Scotlandcarried out by ScottishAgronomy showed a similar pattern, with two sprays of Siltra giving the highest yield at8.1t/ha with Siltra followed by Fandango at 7.84t/ha.Again the two spray programme ofBontima was lower yielding by over 0.5t/ha, with Adexar also 0.4t/ha behind Siltra.

2014FungicidePerformanceNet blotch was one of the most common diseases found in winterbarley in 2014, although Rhynchosporium was also present.

10

Yie

ldt/

haUntreated Bontima x2

1.6 fb 1.4 L/haFandango x2

1.0 fb 0.75 L/ha

5

7

2

1

6

8

9

4

2

0SiltraXpro fb Fandango

0.6 fb 0.75 L/ha

£53.58*£124.69*

*Margin over fungicide cost (*/ha)

£158.75*

10

Yie

ldt/

ha

5

7

2

1

6

8

9

4

2

0Bontima x2

1.6 fb 1.2 L/ha

£121.30*


Fandango x21.0 fb 0.75 L/ha

£218.17*

SiltraXpro x20.6 fb 0.4 L/ha

£255.31*

SiltraXpro fbFandango + CTL

0.6 fb 0.75 +1.0 L/ha

£240.54*

Untreated

10

Yie

ldt/

ha

5

7

2

1

6

8

9

4

2

0Bontima x2

1.6 fb 1.0 L/ha

£19.15*

Adexar x21.0 fb

0.75 L/ha

£42.81*


Fandango fbFandango

+ CTL1.0 fb 0.75 +

1.0 L/ha

£75.38*

SiltraXpro x20.6 fb

0.4 L/ha

£91.15*

SiltraXpro fbFandango

+ CTL0.6 fb 0.75 +

1.0 L/ha

£57.00*

Untreated

Source: 2 independent trials 2014. 10% net blotch in untreated.Winter barley £114/t. Average fungicide web price September 2014

Source: Oxford Agricultural Trials 2014.Untreated: 42% Rhynchosporium leaf 2; 12% on flag leaf.Winter barley: £114/t. Average fungicide web price September 2014

Source: Scottish Agronomy. Untreated Rhynchosporium 14% leaves 3&4.Winter barley £114/t. Average fungicide web price September 2014

1

2

3

Net blotch spores with less sensitivityto SDHI fungicides were first pickedup in Northern Germany in 2012, andspread to other parts of Europe,including the UK in 2013.“It’s a worrying development as it is thefirst case of SDHI resistance to a diseaseto be found in an arable crop in the UK,”says Andrew Flind, Bayer CropScience’scereals fungicides development manager.

“But equally growers should be reassuredthat so far it has not resulted in anyperformance failures in the field.

“It is a warning, however, to continue toemploy suitable strategies to minimise therisk of resistance developing andspreading in all diseases, not least Septoriain wheat,”he says.

In barley, it is positive that there are arange of other actives that will helpcontrol net blotch when used in aneffective programme, includingprothioconazole and strobilurins, such asfluoxastrobin or trifloxystrobin.

Programmes making use of all threeshould provide very effective control of netblotch and other barley diseases, Mr Flindsuggests.

“But it is important that you don’t leaveany one partner exposed to controlling asingle disease. For example, if you use aweaker azole, such as epoxiconazole,against net blotch, you will leave theSDHI component more exposed topotential strains of the disease that areless sensitive to SDHIs.”

Net blotchresistance

Bill Clark, commercial technical director atNIABTAG, recalls that it was a two diseaseyear for many growers, with both yellowrust and Septoria causing difficulties.

“Even in areas which don’t usually getthem, both diseases were severe,”he says.

He believes that yellow rust will continueto be an issue for growers, given that thereare at least four different types of theWarrior race and a high number ofsusceptible varieties being grown.

“Don’t forget that some resistant varietiesare susceptible at the seedling stage, whichhelps to build up inoculum levels throughthe autumn and winter if it’s mild.”

But Septoriawas the more difficult tocontrol this year, he says, for a number ofreasons – both simple and complicated.“Unfortunately, people are still gettingtheir growth stages wrong and spraying atGS31 rather than GS32.All too often, thiscauses them to leave too long a gapbetweenT1 andT2, allowing the disease toget onto leaf two and three.”

The use of chlorothalonil at bothT0 andT1is beneficial to protect against Septoria, hecontinues.“If it was missed, Septoriacontrol was more difficult.And wheredisease pressure was high, straighttriazoles, even with chlorothalonil, weren’tgood enough.”

Eradicant controlIn addition,T2 sprays were very important,points out Mr Clark.“It was only theSDHI/triazole mixtures which gave goodenough eradicant control of Septoria. Highrates of triazoles aren’t enough in highpressure situations.”

So the best fungicide programmes in 2014were those that had early intervention onyellow rust, the inclusion of chlorothalonilfor Septoria and used robust rates of SDHImixtures at the flag leaf stage, hesummarises.

“By early action on yellow rust, I meanseed treatments or an autumn/preT0

spray,”he stresses.“And by robust rates ofSDHIs, I mean three quarter doses ofproducts such as Aviator.”

The average spend on fungicides in 2014was high, he accepts, but the return oninvestment was even greater.“Yieldresponses of over 4t/ha were not unusual,especially where both diseases werepresent.”

Even today’s grain prices mean thatgrowers will get a good return on theirinvestment, he notes.“It’s not what peoplewant to hear, but the optimum fungiciderequirement of a wheat crop is only slightlyaffected by the wheat price.

“Wheat at £200/t and at nearer £100/tshould only have a slightly alteredprogramme. Perhaps spending £15-20/haless.”

Product differences weren’t obvious at T2,providing the timing was right, he says.“The two market leading SDHI/triazoleformulations,Aviator andAdexar, bothperformed very well (see chart below) andin line with our expectations.The key withboth of them is to keep rates high underhigh disease pressure.”

Whichever product growers opted to use,they should have used at least threequarters rates.“You can’t afford to get itwrong at theT2 timing – if this spray ispoor your yield is lost.”

Looking forward to the 2015 season,MrClark believes yellow rust is here to stay.“The more aggressiveWarrior races now

dominate the UK population so we canexpect the disease to be around next year.

“Furthermore, the UK wheat area is stilldominated by rust-susceptible varieties.”

This means that if there’s another mildwinter, early intervention will again beimportant.“If you haven’t used a seedtreatment, you will need to take action atT0.”

Mr Clark adds that loss of efficacy in thetriazoles against Septoria should continueto be a consideration in disease controlprogrammes.“The SDHIs will be veryimportant, especially at T2. But if we have awet spring, then they may also be neededat T1.That’s a decision that can be takennearer the time.”

Accurate growth stage recognition isessential, particularly when leaf three isbeing targeted, he advises.“It’s so easy toget it wrong, which then makes the wholeprogramme difficult.”

His final word is on cost.“Remember thatthe wheat price shouldn’t dictate yourfungicide programme.Trim it back a bit, byall means, but don’t make drasticchanges.”

The average spend on

fungicides in 2014 was

high, but the return on

investment was even

greater. Yield responses of

over 4t/ha were not unusual

9


A lessonLearned?High disease pressure brought fungicide programme effectiveness andtiming into sharp focus in 2014, not least because growers faced the highestSeptoria levels since the DEFRA winter wheat disease survey began. It makes the2014 growing season one to remember for more than just the easy harvest.

• Huge return on investment fromfungicides in 2014

• Wheat price has little impact onoptimum programme costs

• Disease well controlled wheretimings good

• Protectant programmes need tobe used

• Concentrate on identifying finalleaf 3 emerging correctly

Key Messages

Continued...

Yie

ldt/

ha

Untreated Aviator235Xpro 1.0 L/ha Aviator235

Xpro 1.25 L/ha

10.5

11.0

10.0

9.5

8.0Adexar 1.25 L/ha

9.1

10.7 10.7

9.0

8.5

10.8 10.8

Adexar 1.5 L/ha

Source: Mean of 15 trials: (AICC, ADAS, SRUC, NIABTAG, BCS) (Leaves 1 & 2)

Santiago: Untreated

Yield comparison between Aviator and Adexar

8

The survey, which is conducted across300 commercial crops in July, providesa snapshot of what has taken place andgives a very useful overall picture ondisease incidence, explains Dr JudithTurner, plant pathologist at FERA.

“The 2014 results confirm what manypeople suspected with Septoria,”she says.“All areas were affected by the disease,with no regional variation being seen.That’s very unusual.

“Septoria was found in 100% of crops,making it the worst year since 1970, whenthe survey started.”

To put this into context, a low disease yearwould result in just 50% of crops beinginfected, she points out.“That shows whatgrowers were up against and whatfungicides had to do.”

A comparison with 2012, which wasanother bad Septoria year, shows that thedisease pressure wasn’t as high then.“Disease was very evident in wheat cropsin 2012, but it was due to the lack ofspraying opportunities caused by theincessant rain, not because of unduly highdisease pressure.”

The 2014 results show that Septoria levelswere at 5.9% on the flag leaf and 11.5%on leaf two, she notes.

The importance of the forecast“Septoria is largely weather driven,”explains Dr Turner.“That means one badyear won’t necessarily be followed byanother – a cold, frosty winter followed bya dry spring will have a huge effect onreducing the threat. Last year, of course,we had a very mild winter.”

Indeed, analysis done at FERA for BayerCropScience has shown that there’s norelationship between Septoria levels insuccessive years, she stresses.“That’s verydifferent to diseases such as light leaf spot,which has a very significant relationshipfrom one bad year to the next.”

This means that growers should not worryabout 2015, based on what happened in2014.“The weather will drive anyepidemic,”notes Dr Turner.

Septoria was found in

100% of crops, making it

the worst year since 1970,

when the survey started


Rapid crop growth combined with tightspray windows and early crop maturitycreated quite a challenge for diseasemanagement across the 400ha (1,000acres) of arable at Mr Stubbings’farmsouth of Scarborough.

Some 160ha of wheat is grown in rotationwith winter and spring barley, oilseed rapeand beans.Varieties this year focus onGroup 4s for the nearby bioethanolmarket, with most down to Relay,Viscountand Alchemy, with some JB Diego alsoreplacing KWS Solo.

“Crops started off last spring relativelyclean, but conditions became a lot morechallenging as we got to T1 andT2,”MrStubbings says.

Products and rates are tweaked accordingto each variety’s disease profile, but in allcases he aims to take a preventativeapproach rather than chasing diseasethrough the season.

Last spring Septoria on older leaves wascontrolled using aT0 of Cherokee appliedon 10 April at 1.0 L/ha on Alchemy and1.25 L/ha onViscount. Relay and KWSSolo both received 1.0 L/ha of Bravo,although 0.25 L/ha of tebuconazole wasincluded on the Solo.

TheT1 spray (25-30 April) was a morebroad-brush approach, he says, witheverything receiving 1.1 L/ha of Fireflyplus 1.0 L/ha of Bravo and a mildewicide.

“I’m a big believer in controlling eyespotand mildew early so you don’t end upchasing the diseases later at T2. It’s a fairlyrobust approach, but Firefly is a fantastic

product and having the prothioconazole inthe mix is really worthwhile.”

T2 fungicides were again adjustedaccording to variety, with KWS Solo andRelay both receiving 1.0 L/ha of Aviator,whileViscount had 1.0 L/ha of Keystoneplus 0.75 L/ha of Bravo.Alchemy received1.1 L/ha of OpusTeam with0.8 L/ha ofVertisan.

“The Aviator on Relay was stunninglygood,”says Mr Stubbings.“The flag leafstayed green and clear of disease rightthrough toT3 and beyond.We got luckywith some of the spray timings last year,but even so, I’m a firm believer in taking apreventative approach to disease control.”

Firefly was also applied at T3 last year, assingle product on Alchemy and Relay, andin combination with tebuconazole on SoloandViscount.

A similar fungicide strategy is likely to beemployed this spring, although MrStubbings says he may try using an SDHIat T1 andT2 if conditions require it.“FireflyandVertisan could be a good mix and Imight also increase the Aviator rate to1.25 L/ha if required at T2.”

Andrew FlindDevelopmentManagerCombinableFungicides

Average yieldincrease 0.7 t/ha

High Septoria pressure(60-100% untreated)


Medium Septoria pressure(20-60% untreated)


Low Septoria pressure(

1312


In most situations, a well-timedT1 spraybased on Proline + chlorothalonil timed toprotect the fully emerged leaf three willgive all the protection that a winter wheatcrop needs at that stage of the growingseason, where a T0 has been applied, saysAndrew Flind of Bayer CropScience.

“What we’ve seen over the past few years,in trials, is that there’s little difference indisease control if an SDHI/triazole productis used instead of Proline at T1, where a T0has been applied,”he says.

“Providing the right rate is applied and thetiming to hit leaf three is correct, a Proline+ chlorothalonil mix will give excellentresults.”

For the best outcome, he recommends thatcereal growers use a minimum of threequarters rate at T1.“That means Proline at0.55 L/ha and chlorothalonil at 1.0 L/ha,following an effective T0.The message thatrates need to be kept up remains the samethis year, ahead of the new season.”

In addition, accurate spray timing isessential with this approach, he stresses.“There is a case for an SDHI in more

curative situations, such as where spraytimings have been delayed and/or there’shigh disease pressure, or where T0 hasbeen missed,”he acknowledges.

No need for two SDHIsBayer trials conducted in 2014 comparingT1 sprays showed 84% control of Septoriafrom a well-timed Proline + chlorothalonilspray.That went up very slightly, to 86.5%with Aviator, but remained at 84% when aVertisan + Proline mix was used.

“The SDHIs were no better in theseprotectant situations,”he says.“Even in ahigh pressure year, it’s still possible to getvery good results from Proline +chlorothalonil. So providing everything isgoing according to plan, there’s no need touse two SDHIs in a winter wheat diseasecontrol programme.”

Yield responses from theT1 spray were upto 2t/ha this year, continues Mr Flind.“There is an argument for using an SDHIat T1 for insurance, but that tends to bewhere growers struggle to get round all oftheir crops with the sprayer in a tighttimescale.

“But there’s also a counter argument thatkeeping the best chemistry for the timingthat protects the leaf layers driving yield isa good way of reducing the risk ofresistance developing, so safeguarding thechemistry for longer.”

The role of chlorothalonil at T1 has beenanother focus of Bayer trials, so that thecompany can gain a better understandingof the situations in which antagonismbetween active ingredients andchlorothalonil can occur.

“There’s always been an issue withchlorothalonil and triazoles in a curativesituation, which everyone in the industryhas been aware of for a while,”explainsMr Flind.“So it was important to look athow chlorothalonil might affect theperformance of Aviator, by using threedifferent rates and investigating bothprotectant and curative situations.”

Use CTL as a protectantFollowing ADAS work, it was establishedthat there is a small disease control andyield benefit from adding 0.75-1.0 L/ha ofchlorothalonil to 1.0 L/ha of Aviator,providing it is being used in a protectantsituation, he says.

“Chlorothalonil has a useful effect inprotecting a leaf three once it has just fullyemerged, which contributes significantly toyield,”explains Mr Flind.

These findings confirm that where growersare keen to follow their T0 spray withAviator at the T1 timing, it is fine to includechlorothalonil, says Mr Flind.“But it isimportant that a T0 spray was used to helpmake sure the T1 is being applied in aprotectant situation.”

However, where there’s been a delay andthere is a need for curative control on leafthree, or disease pressure is very high, herecommends leaving chlorothalonil out ofthe tank, as it can compromise diseasecontrol.“That’s especially important if rustis already present in the crop.”

The best returns from using Aviator comefrom aT2 application, however, stressesTim Nicholson, Bayer CropScience’scommercial technical manager for theSouthWest.“The flag leaf and leaf twocontribute most to yield and are thereforethe most important leaves to protect withthe best chemistry. It is also the timingwhere you get most improved crop healthbenefits from applying Aviator.”

And with wheat prices under pressure thisyear, it also makes sense to use the mostcost-effective programmes, he says.“Byapplying Proline + CTL followed byAviator, rather than a new SDHI at T1 andT2, you can potentially trim up to £15/hafrom programme costs and still achieve thebest possible yields, as was shown in ourdemonstration trials last season.

“Across 200ha of wheat on a farm, thatsaving is the equivalent of the cost of a 27tlorry load of wheat.”

Bayer won’t be supporting the use ofchlorothalonil at T2 with Aviator, addsMr Flind.“While there should be noinfection on the flag leaf when theT2 isbeing applied, leaf two often has latentdisease infection already present, and withthat leaf contributing around 25% toyields, it is not a good idea to potentiallycompromise disease control on that leaf.”

“Our trials have confirmed disease controlcan be adversely affected by adding CTL toAviator at T2, due to the curative situationon leaf two so it’s better to stackchlorothalonil early in the programme andget its protectant benefits then.”

Key points to bear in mind

Why CTL may have a place at T1 but not T2

First sporesarrive

Latent infections(no symptoms)

First sporesarrive

Leaf 3

Leaf 1

At GS39, CTL:

Leaf 2

Leaf 3

T1 T2

With a T1, well timedat L3 emerged, CTLwill have a usefuleffect on this yieldproducing leaf

• The ear and top 3 leaves contribute 98% to total yield and are the key focus

• CTL is purely protectant and needs applying before spores land on the leaf

May have auseful effecton L1

But no effect onlatent infectionin L2 and L3and may alsointerfere withcurative activityof partnerproducts

Aviator +/- CTLWhen does antagonism occur?

Yield benefit/loss vs Aviator (1.0 L/ha)

A key advantage for Proline at T1 is itsall-round strength on the key diseasesat that timing, says BayerCropScience’s Tim Nicholson.“Byusing Proline at 0.55 L/ha, you notonly get effective Septoria control, butit also widens the spectrum to includeeyespots and Fusarium foot rots,yellow rust and some mildewactivity.”

Proline is also useful for beginning aFusarium inoculum managementprogramme ahead of the main controltiming of T3. Research carried out byHarper Adams University College andFERA over a number of years hasshown the benefit of usingprothioconazole at T1 in reducingFusarium build-up, and ultimatelylevels of mycotoxins in grain.

The active also has useful activityagainst mildew, which could meannot needing to apply a specialistmildewicide unless there is activemildew in the crop, and is strongagainst yellow rust, when applied as aprotectant, in particular.“If there isactive yellow rust at application, itmakes sense to add a strobilurin tohelp knock down the yellow rustquickly.”

Disease control (%) Benefit/negative vs Aviator alone 1.0 L/ha

6

0

2

4

-2

-4

-8

-10

-6

Aviator235Xpro

Aviator235XproProtective

Curative

Yield (t/ha) Benefit/negative vs Aviator alone 1.0 L/ha

0.40

0.20

0.30

0.10

0.00

-0.20

-0.30

-0.10

1.0 L/ha + CTL0.75-1.0 L/ha

Aviator235XproProtective

Curative

Dis

ease

cont

rol(

%)d

iffer

ence

Yie

ldt/

had

iffer

ence

1.0 L/ha + CTL0.75-1.0 L/ha

1.0 L/ha + CTL0.75-1.0 L/ha

Aviator235Xpro

1.0 L/ha + CTL0.75-1.0 L/ha

By applying Proline + CTL

followed by Aviator, rather

than a new SDHI at T1 and

T2, you can potentially trim

up to £15/ha from

programme costs and still

achieve the best possible

yields

• Proline + CTL as good as SDHI atT1 in protectant situations

• Proline + CTL cheaper, as effectiveand helps protect SDHI chemistry

• Switch to SDHI at T1 in high diseasepressure / curative situations

• Add CTL to Aviator at T1 only whenusing in protectant situations

• Don’t add CTL to Aviator at T1 incurative situations or when activerust present

Key Messages

Prothioconazolebrings more than justSeptoria control at T1SDHI

T1 sprays don’t have to contain an SDHI fungicide to give the best performance on Septoria,Bayer CropScience trials have shown, even in a season where disease pressure was high.

Is it reallynecessary to

switch to

Source data: ADAS 2014

fungicides at T1?

• Traditional timings provide goodcontrol if timed correctly

• Early T1s can cause problems

• Dissect plants to check for final leafthree emerged

• If T1.5 required, don’t use an azolefungicide

Key Messages

Good timingis all you need

MARCH

APRIL

MAY

Fungicide

Effec

tivee

GS39Week

sTimingGTimingG

PTZFlagleafSeptoriaSD

HI GS32

LeafthreeCurative

ControlPr

otec

tant

Eradicant

Wheat fungicide spray timings are coming under scrutiny as the unpredictable climate andincreasingly difficult to control diseases make their presence felt.

1514


The ravaging effect that Septoria triticican have on an unprotected winterwheat crop and the effectiveness of awell-planned robust fungicideprogramme in controlling it aregraphically illustrated in a newvideo from Bayer CropScience.The short film compresses a three-month timespan into just 90seconds, juxtaposing footage ofuntreated and treated plots ofSantiago from first node detectable(GS31) to just before harvest.

It was shot at Bayer’s Callow(Herefordshire) and Oxford FieldDays sites, which were subjected tovery high Septoria pressure lastseason.The result is a fascinatinginsight into the association betweencrop and disease development and spraytiming, says Bayer combinable fungicidesproduct managerWill Charlton.

“The viewer can clearly see how Septoriaclimbs an untreated plant, showing therelationship between rain events, growthstages and new infection, latent periodswhen disease is present but unseen, andhow the disease can explode onto anunprotected flag leaf when conditions areright.

“It also shows how a well-executedfungicide programme can keep Septorialower down in the crop for longer.Theresult is two very contrasting sets of imageson the screen.”

The dramatic footage will be uploaded ontoBayer’s website as a benchmark of Septoria

spread and control. It will be part of a newinteractive area that will also track thecurrent season’s crop growth and diseasedevelopment as it happens, saysMr Charlton.

The site willprovide anupdatedimage of the crop every 10 minutes, soviewers will be able to see a virtually livescenario whenever they log on.“Our trialsmanagers will comment on what they areseeing, and what they expect as a result, aswell as detailing spraying decisions andtimings,”he explains.

“The current footage will also have atime-lapse facility so that the results ofdecisions taken can be reviewed inseconds.

“People really will be able to see fungicideprogrammes in action, and we hope thiswill provide the basis for some usefuldialogue as the season progresses.”Keyupdates will also be relayed viaTwitter to

help broaden the debate, he adds.

The relationship between leaf emergenceand the key spray timings is one keymessage he hopes the newmini-websitewill achieve.“The videos will highlight thekey growth stages and which fungicideswere applied.Any problems with the

programme, such as delays,will be highlighted and theresults will be visible for all tosee.”

The programme will alsoincorporate yellow rust, saysMr Charlton.“Next spring wewill install cameras at ourtrials site at Chishill,Cambridgeshire, which isprone to the disease.

“Yellow rust often creates alot of noise in the press andelsewhere, and this cansometimes lead to the keyT1

andT2 timings being compromised.Weaim to show that sticking to these keytimings will usually control yellow rust, or,where it doesn’t, that an appropriatetreatment should be an addition to theplanned programme.”

Given the high percentage of wheats witha poor Septoria rating in the ground, themild outlook and the amount of inoculumstemming from last season’s outbreak,Mr Charlton believes there will be plenty toobserve in the straightforward treated-versus-untreated plots this coming spring.

“We could well be in for another seriousSeptoria year, some more dramatic footage– and hopefully plenty of discussion.”

Disease Control

Time-lapse cameras are providing a striking insight into disease developmentin wheat and are set to help growers improve their spray planning in the comingseason, thanks to a new initiative from Bayer CropScience.

Hereford: treated

Hereford: untreated

Picture perfect

Checkwww.bayercropscience.co.uk/timelapse frommid-March for live pictures of 2015 crops

Keeping leaves disease free for as long

as possible is vital to protecting yield,

says Dr Jonathan Blake, principal

research scientist at ADAS. So last

season when some growers struggled

to control Septoria on leaf two in

particular, it opened discussions about

whether an extra spray that

specifically targeted that leaf might be

required.

However, control of Septoria, even in highpressure situations, was achieved by manywheat growers thanks to their efforts earlyin the season, Dr Blake says.

“WhereT0s andT1s were correctly timed,the disease was well-controlled. But theT1spray had to be robust.”

Some of the difficulties encountered in thefield were to do with timing, he points out.“Last year, we had an early spring, so cropswere thought to be reaching theT1 timingearlier than usual.”

But those crops needed to be carefullychecked for whether final leaf three wasemerging, as that is the critical timing forT1sprays. Earlier sprays risk spraying beforeleaf three has emerged and then leaving toolong a gap beforeT2, because an earlierspring doesn’t mean the flag leaf willemerge much sooner, explains Dr Blake.

“Through the spring, crops becomeincreasingly dependent on day length ratherthan temperature for reaching growthstages. In‘early’seasons there is naturally alonger gap between leaf three and flag leafemergence, as above average temperaturescause leaf three to emerge early, but thenthe influence of day length slows theemergence of leaf two and the flag. TheT1toT2 gap then gets even longer if T1s areapplied before leaf three emerges. In suchsituations this could be stretched to four tofive weeks.

“Ideally growers should be aiming to have agap of not much more than three weeks tokeep Septoria out.”

Correctly identifying when final leaf three isperhaps the trickiest and most crucialdecision within a fungicide programme,admits Ben Giles, Bayer’s commercialtechnical manager in theWest.

“The best way to get it right is throughcareful dissection of the main stems of atleast three plants in a field. It is fiddly andrequires a steady hand, but it is the only wayto be sure that you are getting theT1 timingcorrect.

“With eradicant activity from azolefungicides declining,making sure sprays areapplied protectantly and that intervals arenot stretched is the key to getting gooddisease control.”

EarlyT0 sprays can sometimes put pressureon going too early with aT1, he adds.“TheT0 spray is an important treatment, as it

helps keep inoculum down and acts as abuffer against anyT1 delays.

“But any sprays applied before the last weekof March should be viewed as an additionaltreatment, rather than aT0.That way theT0application won’t be applied more than fourweeks before theT1.

“The idea is to keep the gap betweenfungicides down to three to four weeks.”

If the gap betweenT1 andT2 is going to bemore than three weeks, then aT1.5 may berequired.This is likely to only be in seasonswhere growth slows down around lateApril, as in 2012, or perhaps whereconditions are ideal for yellow rust to cyclequickly, Dr Blake says.

“If it is deemed necessary, a strobilurin athalf rate would do a good job on rust, anduse chlorothalonil for Septoria. Don’t betempted to increase the number of azolefungicides being used – this is just likely tohasten resistance development.”

1716

Crop Focus

controlsare not just for black-grass

Cultural controls are becoming an accepted part of black-grass control, buthow many growers consider their value when it comes to combating disease?

Cultural

However, the difficult season also highlightedthe value of cultural controls, such as moreresistant varieties and delayed drilling, tosafeguard yields and reduce the pressure onfungicides to maintain their efficacy.

Had these techniques been widely adoptedcommercially, howmuch better might thingshave been?

Clare Bend,Agrii’s Head of StrategicCommunications, can provide some clues.The R&D team at Agrii compared theperformance of four varieties drilled at twodifferent drilling dates at the firm’s AgriiFocussite inWiltshire last season. Each of thevarieties at the two drilling dates were treatedwith one of three different fungicideprogrammes or left untreated.

As with most of the country, the site wassubjected to intense disease pressure,particularly from Septoria tritici, and theimpact of delaying drilling in thesecircumstances was graphically illustrated,with the untreated plots from the laterdrilling date yielding 2t/ha more than theuntreated early drilled.“The importance ofvariety choice was further highlighted by thelater drilled untreated Crusoe yielding only0.3t/ha less than the fully treated early drilledKWS Santiago,”Mrs Bend points out.

Only where both good genetic diseaseresistance and a full fungicide programme

were used was it possible to maintain yieldsacross the two drilling dates, she says.“Itshows that the combination of genetics andchemistry were able to cope in what was anextreme season.

“However, where the genetic diseaseresistance package was weaker, for examplein KWS Santiago, the early drilled plots stillsuffered a yield penalty of nearly 2t/ha evenwhen the best fungicide programmes wereapplied as the disease could not be effectivelymanaged.

Bayer CropScience trials at Callow inHerefordshire backed those results, saysGareth Bubb, a commercial technicalmanager for the firm. In the variety trial,varieties rated a seven for Septoria resistanceyielded 16.09t/ha compared with 15.13t/hafor those with a Septoria rating of four.

KWS Santiago and Solstice were also sownat two different drilling dates, just 10 daysapart on the 20 and 30 September.“Those 10days made a massive difference. KWSSantiago gave an extra 1t/ha of treated yieldwhen drilled at the later date, while Solsticegave almost 2t/ha more.

Septoria ratings are based on Octobersowings, and this trial reinforced theobservation that for each week you drillbefore October a variety’s rating falls by0.5 t/ha.”

Spring 2015

Harvest 2014 clearly illustratesthe value of fungicides inprotecting yields. Despiteintense disease pressure

during the season in manyareas, commercial crops

performed exceptionally well,producing a record UK

average of 8.6t/ha according tothe NFU harvest survey

released in early October.

Integrated approachAmore integrated approach using bothgenetics and chemistry is needed to combatdisease, Septoria tritici in particular, says wellknown wheat breeder Bill Angus, of AngusWheat Consultants Ltd.

“Key fungicides are under a huge amount ofpressure because we are growing so manysusceptible varieties and drilling earlier.Unless we start thinking about raisingstandards on the Recommended List we facea losing battle.”

Septoria tritici is the key battleground, headds.“Yellow rust is very visible and a veryemotive disease, but we have good seedtreatments and foliar fungicides that allow usto control lower-rated varieties, unless thegenetic resistance breaks down completely,which is often predictable.

“Septoria tends to lurk low in the crop early inthe season, so is easily overlooked. Once itgains a foothold, you are stuck in a highinput/high risk regime for the season.We didget big yields this year, but at what cost?Thiscan only get worse as azole efficacy comesunder more pressure.”

A lack of genetic diversity is not helping, saysMrAngus. Over the past 30 years there hasbeen little incentive to change, due to thesuccess of azoles and other chemistry, he adds.“Some breeders have been operating a spray-it-and-weigh-it philosophy for too long.”

Change is in the air, he believes.“We need toproduce high yielding, highly resistantvarieties. Long term we need to broaden thegenetic base, for example introducing

resistance from wild relatives of wheat, tointroduce robust, polygenic resistance.

“The best way is to put promising material inthe ground and assess it, but this is veryexpensive. New technologies such as genechipping will allow breeders to assess millionsof combinations in the lab and grow only themost promising.”

Breeding programmesIn the shorter term, some breeders areachieving significant success by tapping intobreeding programmes beyond the UK.Skyfall, Relay and particularly Cougar, allfrom the RAGT stable, are showing goodresistance to Septoria tritici as well as the rusts,as are Revelation and Crusoe from Limagrain.

“But there are still only a handful available,”says MrAngus.“We should perhaps belooking more to the Continent to build onthis.”

More thought also needs to be given topositioning varieties within the rotation, assome varieties pre-dispose a following wheat

crop to disease, notably eyespot, he believes.

“Growers need to use genetics strategically.For example, consider the effect of growingvariety A followed by C, or B followed by C. IfA produces 11t/ha and C only 7, they wouldbe better off growing B at 10.5t/ha if C thenyields 9.”

Robigus derivatives should be avoided as thefirst of two successive wheats, whereas thosewith Xi19 in their background tend toperform better in that slot, says MrAngus.“Very few growers check wheat pedigrees, butthey should.

“Variety choice is an incredibly importantdecision, especially with the pressurechemistry is now under. Once the seed isplanted you can’t change it – it pays to get itright first time.”

• Cultural controls are not only forblack-grass

• Using cultural controls to helpprotect fungicides from resistancedevelopment

• Delayed drilling of susceptiblevarieties increased yields

• Varieties with higher Septoriaresistance yielded more thansusceptible varieties regardless ofyield potential in the high Septoriaseason of 2014

• Huge return on investment fromfungicides in 2014

Key Messages

The importance of variety

choice was further

highlighted by the later

drilled untreated Crusoe

yielding only 0.3t/ha less

than the fully treated early

drilled KWS Santiago

Average yields across all sitesRL Septoria rating Untreated Yield Treated Yield

4 8.46 13.82

5 9.09 13.92

6 9.83 14.29

7 11.29 14.57

Top Performing Varieties

18


Extremely high disease pressure,particularly from Septoria tritici and to alesser extent yellow and brown rust, madefor a testing environment for both varietiesand fungicides at the Bayer Field Dayssites around the country.

And the results highlighted that acombination of both varietal resistanceand effective fungicides were more thancapable of producing wheat crops withvery high yields, even when tested to thelimit.

At each site the performance of 30 wheatvarieties was tested, both untreated andafter treatment by each of three four-sprayprogrammes that reflected commercialpractice.

Assessing the results by RecommendedList ratings for Septoria tritici highlightedthe important role genetic resistanceplayed last season.Wheats rated a four forSeptoria on the new HGCARecommended List produced an averageuntreated yield of 8.46t/ha. For those witha rating of 5, that increased to 9.09t/ha,and then to 9.83t/ha for varieties with asix. Cougar, the only variety with a sevenon the RL, yielded an incredible 11.29t/hauntreated across the four sites.

These figures show the value of varietalresistance to Septoria in untreated crops,and the inherent benefit growers can getfrom choosing varieties with better diseaseresistance. But it was also interesting thatthe same pattern also emerged when

analysing the results of the treatedvarieties.

Again, those rated a 4 – Gallant and KWSSantiago – yielded the least on averageacross the four sites, at 13.82t/ha, whilethe fives averaged 13.92t/ha.Varieties witha six achieved 14.29t/ha while Cougar, theseven, yielded 14.57t/ha.

Those results showed that to some extent,at least, varietal resistance was a driver inthe performance of varieties last season,says Gareth Bubb, a commercial technicalmanager for Bayer CropScience.“Whatwas interesting is that some of the higheryielding varieties, which had lower diseaseratings could not live up to theirRecommended List yield rating under this

disease pressure, even when treated with awell-timed four-spray programme,whereas inherently lower yieldingvarieties with more resistance, such asCougar out-yielded them.”

But the results also highlighted the valueof fungicides.The average yield responseacross all varieties and all treatments was4.66t/ha over the untreated.At a wheatprice of £127/t that equates to an extra£492 /ha in margin over the cost of thefungicide programme.

The standard Bayer programme of Proline+ Bravo at T1 followed by Aviator at T2,started and finished by a standard Folicur+ chlorothalonil at T0 and three-quarterdose prothioconazole at T3, achieved thebest yield responses, producing just under0.4t/ha more than the same programmewith Adexar substituted for the Aviator.

The results were consistent across sites,says Mr Bubb.“Of the 30 varieties in thetrials, the Aviator programmes producedthe highest yield in 27.And with Aviatoralso being less expensive than Adexar, thisprogramme also produced the best returnon investment for growers.”

Adding a second SDHI at T1 did notproduce any additional yield indicatingthat where programmes are well-timed, asthese were, and intervals betweentreatments kept to no more than threeweeks, then the extra expense of a secondSDHI was not required.

The Cawood site inYorkshire despite being relatively late drilled, still came under highdisease pressure, with yield responses of over 4t/ha to fungicides across the 30 varieties.KWS Santiago, perhaps unsurprisingly, gave the highest yield response of 6.82t/ha, whileSkyfall, Crusoe and Cougar were at the lower end of responses.

But even on those varieties using fungicides still more than paid, with the lowest marginover input cost over £180/ha.

The top yielding varieties at the site were Revelation, Grafton, Leeds and Evolution,which all produced yields of over 14.5t/ha, when averaged across the three differenttreatment programmes.

This year’s Bayer Field Days begin withthe oilseed rape demonstrations in theMarch and April.These give growers thechance to view Bayer’s oilseed rapevarieties, including Fencer, which hasrecently been added to the HGCARecommended List.

Bayer staff will be available to explain howgrowing Fencer and its sister varietyHarper can make disease controlprogrammes simpler, as well as discussingits other attributes. Other trials at the

oilseed rape Field Day aim to demonstratehow to establish oilseed rape after theneonicotinoid seed treatment ban, and tolook at the impact of volunteers in oilseedrape crops.

At the summer demonstrations there willbe the usual mix of wheat variety andfungicide trials, herbicide and seedtreatment advice, and the opportunity totalk to Bayer staff about productperformance.

Wheat Crops

Oilseed RapeCrops

Oilseed rape

Thorney Dyke, Peterborough26 March (pm) & 27 March (am)

Wickenby, Lincoln30 March (pm) & 31 March (am)

Hinton Waldrist, Oxford9 April (pm) & 10 April (am)

Callow, Herefordshire14 April (pm) & 15 April (am)

Cawood, Yorkshire16 April (pm) & 17 April (am)

Coupar Angus, Perth21 April (pm) & 22 April (am)

Wheat

Chishill, Cambridgeshire and RAGTHinxton site - 16 June

Cawood, Yorkshire - 18 June

Hinton Waldrist, Oxford- 22 June (pm), 23 June (am)

Callow, Herefordshire - 25 June

Petersfield, Hampshire - 30 June

Long Sutton, Lincs - 2 July

Coupar Angus, Perth - 9 July

All open days are registered by BASIS & NRoSO

If you would like to visit one of our demonstration days please visit our#BayerFieldDays webpage at www.bayercropscience.co.uk/bayerfielddays,contact Bayer Assist on 0845 6092266 or 01223 226644 or look out for an invite in yourinbox or post in the months before the event.

*Average of three treated programmes

The average yield

response across all

varieties and all treatments

was 4.66t/ha over the

untreated. At a wheat price

of £127/t that equates to

an extra £492 /ha in margin

over the cost of the

fungicide programme.

Variety Treated yield (t/ha) *

Revelation 14.92

Grafton 14.62

Leeds 14.61

Evolution 14.57

Relay 14.55

Fungicide treatments: T0 – 31 March: Folicur (0.4 L/ha) + Bravo (1.0 L/ha)T1 – 24 April: Proline275 (0.55 L/ha) + Bravo (1.0 L/ha) or Aviator235Xpro (1.0 L/ha)T2 – 19 May: Aviator235Xpro (1.0 L/ha) or Adexar (1.25 L/ha)T3 – 11 June: Proline275 (0.55 L/ha)

Cawood Yorkshire: results

Cawood, Yorkshire

19

BayerFieldDays

Bayer

2120


Predicting a

seasonDr Phil Jennings of FERA has

pieced together live monitoringdata and weather records withisolate and mycotoxin analysis for thepast seven years and compared themwith what actually happened eachseason to help understand the riskfactors which lead to the colonisation

and infection of FEB pathogensand the production ofmycotoxins.

The starting point is the autumnwhere warm dry conditions allowFusariums andMicrodochiums toestablish in the crop debris and stembase respectively, providing a sourceof inoculum for the season ahead.

That initial risk can be reduceddepending on the winter, says Dr Jennings.“A particularly wet winter reduces the riskfromMicrodochiums and Fusariumgraminearum as these species don't like lotsof standing water.”

Inoculum build-upA good example of this was in 2000 whenautumn flooding continued through thewinter leading to hardly anyMicrodochiumbeing found in summer 2001.A similarsituation occurred in winter 2013 followinghigh levels in 2012 and inoculum wasagain reduced, he says.

A warm dry April and May allowsinoculum to build and then in late springit’s all about moisture, especially when itcomes to the maturation of F. graminearumperithecia.“If May is totally dryF. graminearum perithecia cannot matureand ascospores are not released.”

Finally the weather at flowering isimportant, with warm wet weather givingthe best chance for infection.“If all thesefactors are satisfied in one year, we getpretty hefty disease,”says Dr Jennings.

It is the correlation between all thesefactors plus the weather post floweringand around harvest that dictates thespecies favoured and the level ofmycotoxins produced. Comparisons of

recent years illustrate the differences inFEB and mycotoxin levels.

The clearest comparison is 2007 and 2008,says Dr Jennings.The spring conditionswere similar leading to comparable levelsof F. graminearum infection, but themycotoxin levels were very different.

That’s because deoxynivalenol (DON), thetoxin that is produced when the fungusinfects the ear, increases in concentrationas the ear is subjected to repeated wettingand drying during latter grain fill andripening.The more rainfall post infectionfrom GS80 onwards the more DON willaccumulate in the grain resulting in highercontamination levels. And this is whathappened in 2008 with above averagerainfall in July and August compared with2007.

The higher than average August andSeptember rainfall delayed harvest in 2008leading to saprophytic growth of Fusariumculmorum and F. graminearum on the grainresulting in zearalenone (ZON)production and the highest everpercentage of samples exceeding the EUlimit. In contrast harvest 2007 was not wetor delayed and ZON levels were low.

The 2010 and 2011 seasons highlight thatsimilar conditions throughout the growingseason with lower than average rainfall inJune resulted in similar low ear infectionand low toxin production in both years.

A comparison of the highest mycotoxinyear, 2008, and the highest FEB symptomyear, 2012, might have led to projectedmycotoxins in 2012 being much higherthan 2008, says Dr Jennings. Springconditions favoured development of F.graminearum, while the cool extendedflowering period in 2012 gave multipleinfection opportunities leading to veryhigh FEB infection. But unlike 2008 whereDON and ZON especially was very high,a wet July and August caused exceedancesin DON but the harvest, although it waslate was not delayed and therefore ZONexceedances were not as high as thoseseen in 2008.

Fusarium ear blight(FEB) severity is increasing,but is it possible to predictwhether a season will below or high risk?

Fusarium60

Untre

ated

20

30

10

40

50

0

52.3

13.3

GS59: nozzle 90º

Fus

ariu

mea

rb

light

infe

ctio

n

GS63: nozzle 90º GS63: nozzle 30º

16.1

5.8 7.0 4.7

16.0

11.0

7.2

26.0

Prol

ine

275 0

.55

L/ha

Tebu

cona

zole

0.75

L/ha

Brut

us1.

5L/

haPr

olin

e27

5 0.5

5L/

haTe

buco

nazo

le0.

75L/

haBr

utus

1.5

L/ha

Prol

ine

275 0

.55

L/ha

Tebu

cona

zole

0.75

L/ha

Brut

us1.

5L/

ha

12

Untre

ated

4

6

2

8

10

0

3.3

7.1

GS59: nozzle 90º

Yie

ldd

eliv

ery

t/ha

GS63: nozzle 90º GS63: nozzle 30º

6.3

9.6

7.9

9.1

7.0 7.4

8.5

5.6

Prol

ine

275 0

.55

L/ha

Tebu

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0.75

L/ha

Brut

us1.

5L/

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olin

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5 0.5

5L/

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75L/

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1.5

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ine

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Brut

us1.

5L/

ha

Fusarium ear blight infection Yield delivery t/ha

Mean of 2 inoculated trials (FERA and Harper Adams). AVG untreated stats; yield 3.3 t/ha,TGW 33.1 HLW 59.1, Fusarium infection 52.3%. Forward angles were used at one site andbackward angles at the other. No difference was observed between spray angle.

Mean of 2 inoculated trials (FERA and Harper Adams). AVG untreated stats; yield 3.3 t/ha,TGW 33.1 HLW 59.1, Fusarium infection 52.3%. Forward angles were used at one site andbackward angles at the other. No difference was observed between spray angle.

When to controlUnderstanding these seasonal risk factorsis very important especially when relatingto fungicide choice and timing to controlFEB.

AlthoughT3 is the most responsive timingto control FEB, studies at Harper AdamsUniversity identified that whereprothioconazole is used in the programmeat T1 and/or at T2 it delivers a secondarybenefit to foliar disease control with anadditional 20-40% final control of DON ateach timing, says HAU’s Professor SimonEdwards.

T1 andT2 products shouldn't be chosenwith Fusarium control in mind, rather as anadditional benefit if the product choice fitswithin the foliar programme.T3 should bethe main focus.

"And for T3 the optimum time ofapplication is at mid flowering, GS63-65when the flowers are open and the anthersare extended in the main canopy."

The difficulty with achieving this is that theoptimum timing is not static and isweather dependent, explains ProfEdwards. He encourages growers to go onearlier from GS59 onwards if wet weatheris forecast or hold off until GS65 if theforecast is dry. "But this is our worst timeof year to predict rainfall because oflocalised thunderstorms," he adds.

T3 Fusarium control is primarily protectant,with +/- 3 days activity and control isdependent on timing the applicationrelative to an infection event. In a wet yearwhen multiple infection events take placecontrol will be lower than if just oneinfection event occurs. In this instance 80-90% control is achievable depending oninfection pressure, he says.

Inoculated trials carried out by FERA andHAU last season highlighted that theoptimum timing is early to mid-flower,ideally prior to an infection event. Fusariumcontrol, reduction in mycotoxins, yield andgrain quality were all better when Prolineat 0.55 L/ha was applied at GS63 ratherthan the earlier timing (see charts above).

The trials also compared Proline withBrutus and Folicur at each timing, andconfirmed Proline as being the mosteffective product, while a further test ofangling the nozzle forward at 30 degrees atGS63 showed a small advantage overcrops treated with nozzles pointingstraight down.

• Conditions in lead up to spray timingcan be used to help predict risk

• Weather post-flowering and atharvest helps dictate species andmycotoxin levels

• GS63 key timing for application

• Proline (0.55 L/ha) gives best controlof Fusarium, Microdochium andreductions in mycotoxins

Key Messages

Independent agronomist Steve Cookroutinely treats Group 1, 2 and some highHagberg 3 and 4 wheats for FEB to protectpremiums.And that means planning theT3programme well in advance so that productis on farm before the weather forecastaround flowering is known, he says.

“T3 will always be a prothioconazole basebecause it controls the mycotoxin FusariumsandMicrodochium nivale.”Mr Cook plansfor about half rate and then tops up withtebuconazole to deliver a full rate ofFusarium actives. He also uses Amistar Optiwhere he is looking for brown rust andextra Septoria protection.

“Timing is critical as there is very littlekickback, just a day or so.As soon as thefirst anthers are out we are telling farmersto go if there is wet forecast. If it is dry wecan wait a bit and get better protection.”The risks from not getting the spray on arehigh.“Growers that didn’t get the timingright in 2012 might have lost a third of theear which just shrivelled so there is a yieldloss factor and specific weight as well. It’snot just about mycotoxins.”

And losing specific weight means losingpremium, he says.“The extra spendbetween a standard and FusariumT3 costs£10-15/ha yet we are protecting a premiumthat is potentially £20/t @ 9-10t/ha. So it iscost effective.”

That extra fungicide application will givegrowers additional yield worth two or threetimes the value in most years anyway fromlate infections of rust and Septoria andgreen leaf area retention, he adds.

Practical advice

22 23

Crop Focus

CheshireAndrew ShawAston Grange, Runcorn

Good establishment and strong autumnvigour set up oilseed rape crops at S & AShaw’s Aston Grange, Runcorn,Cheshire, and most of the 120ha nowlooks strong.The only slight concern is about 24ha thathas suffered pigeon damage, says AndrewShaw, a partner in the family farmingbusiness.

“But I’m not too worried – in the past,pigeon-damaged crops have produced someof our best yields.And this year we are trying30cm rows for the first time, double ourusual spacing, drilled at 2.8-3.4kg/ha. Plantshave developed strong root systems –provided I can get some nitrogen on theaffected areas in mid-February they shouldrecover quickly.”

Two passes with aVaderstadTopDown,shallow then deeper, created fine, moistseed-beds on the farm’s sandy loam and clayloam soils.“We were dreading flea beetle,”recalls Mr Shaw.“But we drilled in good time

– half went in around the 20 August afterbarley and the rest after wheat a few dayslater.

“We applied three lots of cypermethrin – onewith the pre-em herbicide, another withsome Falcon we applied to controlvolunteers, and then the last 0.5 L/ha ofProline we applied to keep Phoma and lightleaf spot in check.We saw very little sign offlea beetle attack – unlike some crops furthersouth ours got away with it well, this year atleast.”

All varieties – hybrids Compass andPR46W21 as well as conventional varietyCharger – showed excellent vigour in theconditions. He is also trying some of Bayer’snew oil-rich hybrid Fencer.

“Up until October you couldn’t really seeany difference between them,”he notes.“Since then, Fencer has edged away and the

difference is quitestriking.Whether

that will help yieldremains to be seen, but pigeons don’t seemto be bothering it as much.”

Fields are now being assessed forpropyzamide applications.“We don’t sufferfrom blackgrass – brome is our mainproblem,”says Mr Shaw.“We have to ploughbefore potatoes and we also plough beforewinter barley to help control. It seems to payoff – some fields won’t need any furtherherbicide.”

Folicur at 0.7 L/ha will optimise plantarchitecture at green bud.This will befollowed by Proline at 0.5 L/ha to controlSclerotinia – the aim is to apply oneapplication just before petal fall, though thatwill depend on the weather.

Overall the oilseed rape is pretty much onbudget,Mr Shaw reckons.“We average4.5t/ha and are aiming for 5t/ha, butregardless of how a crop looks or the price,we will to stick to our spending plans.

“Whether a crop is worth £350/t or £200/t,you can’t risk losing yield.”

Oilseed rape crops that avoided theworst flea beetle attacks haveestablished well. We speak tothree growers to see how thepest affected spend andhow crops aremeasuring up

Whether a crop is worth

£350/t or £200/t, you can’t

risk losing yield

OxfordshireColin WoodwardGreat Tew Farms, Chipping Norton

Good-looking oilseed rape crops will getthe attention they deserve this season atGreat Tew Farms, near Chipping Norton,Oxfordshire.Rains immediately after drilling promptedrapid establishment and ideal growingconditions for the 210ha of Harper and DKExtrovert, and crops haven’t looked back, saysfarm manager ColinWoodward.

“We sowed the rape on 21-24 August into apretty dry seed-bed, not ideal on our heavysoils. But 40mm of rain fell, as forecast, soonafterwards.All the seed was treated withMesurol, and half the area was dressed withchicken litter and the rest with anaerobicdigestate.

“The combination certainly helped with fleabeetle control. Crops grew away very evenly.”No follow-up insecticides were needed.

MrWoodward is already reasonablyconfident of achieving his budgeted output of£1250/ha, based on the farm’s five-yearaverage yield of 4.5t/ha and £270/t, includingoil bonuses.“We sold quite a lot early so weshould make that target,”he says.

Not surprisingly variable costs won’t betrimmed – crops would have to be very poorfor that to happen.“We cannot afford to takeour foot off the pedal – yield is the key profitdriver.We are only just about breaking even,

so we are pushing hard to achieve 5t/haacross the board.”

Making an impactDespite that, MrWoodward did save afungicide in the early autumn as Phomawasall but absent. He waited until the end ofNovember to apply 0.3 L/ha of Proline toprotect the crop from light leaf spot, now thenumber one OSR disease on the estate and areal threat to the thick crops.The fungicidewas applied with Astrokerb to clear outblackgrass and problem broad-leaved weeds.

Herbicide costs are slightly higher. Heavoided a pre-em application as he wasworried about the heavy rain washingchemical down to germinating seed, so heapplied Elk in September, but dry soilscompromised control.

An early spring growth regulator has beenpencilled in at green bud, given the forwardstate of the crop. Proline will be added forSclerotinia control where light leaf spotthreatens.

“It had a significant impact last summer – itwas hard to spot in the thick crops but wehad a lot of small seed. Overall yields slippedto 4.2t/ha,”says MrWoodward.

A follow-up fungicide with a different modeof action will go on at mid flower.Where nolight leaf spot occurs, he’ll apply thefungicides at mid-flower and petal fall, unlessit is very dry when a straight strob will beapplied as necessary.

CambridgeshirePaul DrinkwaterAbbots Ripton Farming Company,Huntingdon

Despite being hit hard by flea beetle,oilseed rape crops are back on track atAbbots Ripton Farming Company nearHuntingdon, Cambridgeshire.The attack happened at the start ofSeptember, recalls crop production managerPaul Drinkwater, who is growing threevarieties on most of his 460ha of OSR.PR46W21, semi-dwarf PX 113 on lighterland and DK Cabernet are the key varietiesand he is growing some Advance as apotential Cabernet replacement.

Fortunately, the early harvest allowed cropsto be drilled in good time; the farm’sheaviest boulder clay soils were direct drilledon 11 August and the lighter land completedtwo weeks later.“That was early for us, butwe knew we had a potential problem withflea beetle.”

The strategy worked.Although the pestinitially stopped crops in their tracks when

the weather warmed up, most were robustenough to recover and grow away and areon track to top the farm’s 4t/ha average.

“We were left with a few windows whereslugs took over but overall I’m notcomplaining – we’ve not lost any crops,”saysMr Drinkwater.

“We did use Mesurol on some seed but theattack came later and I suspect the effectshad worn off. If it’s available next year I’llstick with it to help crop emergence.”

The power of protectionOne unwelcome legacy is a higherinsecticide bill.“We applied twocypermethrin sprays, which had little effect,and went back in late September withPlenum.We’ve spent about £30/ha, fourtimes more than normal.

“We did save a bit on fungicide.We used

difenoconazole with the Plenum as therewas not much Phoma, and intended to addProline to our Astrokerb spray in November.But conditions weren’t right and then theweather closed in.”

Crops are not over-thick, thanks to seedrates of 3kg/ha or less, but plants are huge,says Mr Drinkwater. An early spring Folicurat 0.7 L/ha will damp down growth.However, if the lack of fungicide protectiondoes allow light leaf spot in he’ll switch toProsaro.

Sclerotinia protection usually consists of asingle Proline spray at mid flower.“It’s not abig problem, but it’s protection all the waywith this disease, so if it is wet we’ll go againat petal fall.”

Crops look set to achieve the farm’s 4t/haaverage, which, if sold at the budgeted£250/t plus oil bonuses will leave a smallprofit, says Mr Drinkwater. However, he’d bereluctant to curb inputs even on poor stands.

“You can never tell how a crop will turn out,but treat half a crop like half a crop, andthat’s what you’ll end up with.”

Spring 2015

flea beetlesto deliver returns

Treat half a crop like half a

crop, and that’s what you’ll

end up with

Overcoming

If undelivered, please return to: Bayer CropScience Ltd. 230 Cambridge Science Park, Milton Road, Cambridge CB4 0WB

pton

shire

Use plant protection products safely. Always read the label and product information before use. Pay attention to the risk indications and follow the safety precautions on the label.For further information, please visit www.bayercropscience.co.uk or call Bayer Assist on 0845 6092266 / 01223 226644. © Bayer CropScience Limited 2015

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CONTACTS North

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Septoria - Bayer Crop Science UK · TO KEEP GROWERS IN WHISKY Distilling Malting barley growers in the north of England and Scotland supplying distilling markets on contract can expect