blackgrass

Blackgrass | Direct Driller Magazine

Decisions, decisions, decisions…

Soil Health, Soils Farmer / By

Slender Foxtail has put in its annual appearance with great vengeance this year. It’s that time of year where we all can see the results of each other labour’s. With wheat now out in ear, fields that are normally clean are showing the effects of the long & wet winter. Grass weeds are out in force, particularly Slender Foxtail AKA Blackgrass. The lack of herbicide activity and lack of conditions to get the applications on in a timely manner are showing. No doubt the mild wet autumn also played a part in reducing the longevity of herbicides.

Getting to the Roots of Black-Grass’s Waterlogging Tolerance

Research, Soils Farmer / By

Written by Rothamsted Root structures and genetics give the weed an advantage over wheat and explain field patches. Black-grass thrives on heavy land, particularly where drainage is poor.  Now a new study has shown that this problematic weed uses specific adaptations to flourish even when soil is totally saturated for up to three weeks. The data …

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The evolution of tillage techniques on heavy arable land in the East Midlands

Farm Trial Results / By

Written by Dr Alastair Leake from The Allerton Project “There’s a reason why we use the plough” a colleague sagely advised me when I questioned this fundamental agricultural practice; “It works” – and I was treated to a history lesson to-boot. Having transitioned from growing heated glasshouse salad crops in hydroponics, the ultimate zero-till system, …

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Soil-Centred Worcestershire Sustainability Drive

Soil Health / By

Home-made compost, massively reduced tillage and determined cover cropping have been central to the single-minded drive to improve the arable sustainability of the Green Horizons Network farm at Salford Lodge, Pitchill just outside Evesham over the past decade. A combination of challenging silty clay land contract-farmed with heavy kit for many years and lighter sandy …

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De-risking OSR establishment

Cover Crops / By

Farmers are reporting positive benefits of drilling primed seed                    Despite 37 years’ industry experience, Agrii agronomist David Vine readily admits that growing oilseed rape successfully year-in, year-out can still be a huge gamble for many growers with significant challenges posed by slugs, pigeons, cabbage stem flea beetle (CSFB) and, given this year’s weather, the …

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Excellent results from the 2022 harvest, but what next?

Manufacturer in Focus / By

DIRECT DRILLER MAGAZINE – AUTUMN 2022 Excellent results from the 2022 harvest, but what next? With the harvest safely gathered in Jeff Claydon, Suffolk arable farmer and inventor of the Opti-Till® direct strip seeding system, discusses the results and looks ahead to next season. ——————————————————————————————————————————— 18 August 2022            It has been a very strange year …

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