Crops perform as expected following a ‘mixed bag’ season
Arable farmers have been faced with the ultimate mixed season for combinable crops, with weather playing a dominant role in yield and quality.
Getting crops in the ground last autumn was just the start of the issues.
We were met with a series of floods in the new year, followed by a prolonged drought during the early stages of crop establishment. Crop performance has varied depending on type, region and drilling dates, so it’s not the year to base next season buying decisions purely on variety performance – consulting the Recommended List for details and expected agronomic characteristics is advised.
The majority of crops drilled in February and March will have been greatly affected by the drought, so we are already seeing a wide variation of results with soil type having one of the greatest impacts.
Looking ahead to autumn drilling, I expect to see larger areas of wheat due to the OSR area dropping based on the current well-known issues.
Winter barley crops were looking disappointing as harvest approached, and this was echoed in the yields.
Despite the poor performance, favourites Surge, Valerie, Orwell and Cassia yielded well, and I expect their popularity to continue into 2021.
Jonathan Baxendale, Wynnstay combinable crops manager.
