Sunny outlook for grain demand
The tillage crops and horticultural industries contribute significantly to the national economy – worth close on € 1 billion and over 30,000 jobs.
However prices can be very volatile due to commodity speculation, currency changes, weather conditions, economic issues, wars etc.
Population growth, coupled with increasing demand for meat proteins, will drive this demand which has been increasing at roughly 20 million tonnes pa in recent years.
Fertiliser, fuel, machinery, compliance and other costs keep on rising so growers need to become even more efficient to maintain their enterprise margins for cereals, oil seed rape etc otherwise their farm incomes willdecline.
Teagasc trials over many years indicate that appropriate fungicide disease control programmes will give yield responses of up to 4.75t/ha in winter wheat, 3.0t/ha in winter barley and 2.75t/ha in spring barley. Quality of grain and straw will also be assured.
Aphids are the most significant pests of cereals in Ireland as they cause yield losses by transmitting virus diseases and by direct feeding on foliage and heads of cereal crops. Yield reductions, due to aphids, in winter barley can be as great as 40%. Yield reductions of 20% and 11% due to aphid transmitted virus and aphid feeding, respectively, on spring barley have been recorded.
Feeding by aphids on the heads of winter and spring wheat was found to reduce grain yield by 15%. In some seasons and on particular soil types, slugs may cause serious damage to winter and spring wheat. Reductions in plant populations and grain yield of 34% and 23%, respectively, due to slugs have been recorded at Oak Park.
Yield responses to herbicides in cereals depend on crop as well as weed species and intensity.
Teagasc trials indicate the following responses to effective broadleaved weed control – up to 6.0t/ha for winter wheat, 2.0t/ha for winter barley and 3.0t/ha for springbarley.
Ireland has over the last decade, the highest average wheat and second highest average barley yields in the world. In 2011 Irish growers produced some of the highest yields on record, with an average increase of 13% on the previous year.
Over the years varietal diversification, good plant breeding and the availability of effective fungicides have played a prominent part in cereal disease control. The use of break crops and good rotations are also good control measures.
Active control measures include use of chemical seed treatments for seed-borne diseases and chemical spray applications for leaf and ear diseases. Development of resistance by diseases to established agrochemicals has always been a problem.
There are lessons we can learn from last season say the Teagasc experts. These include the importance of early season growth for barley yield, which can be maximised through careful sowing and nutrient timing, early disease control and timely weed control.
The maximum potential length of grain filling is determined by accumulated temperature so farmers can, through nutrient use and disease control, ensure that the crop has the longest grain filling period that the season allows. Growers can maximise early season growth to increase grain number and they can also ensure that grain filling is not shortened by disease by using certified seed and effective chemical control strategies.
Agro chemicals are expensive so growers need to focus on minimising potential disease, pest and weed problems as this is the more cost effective policy. For example one can budget as follows as per recent Teagasc costings.
Speaking at the launch of a new information booklet on certified seed in 2011 Professor Jimmy Burke said; “Plant breeding techniques are continuously evolving and contribute 1.0% — 1.5% yield improvement per annum. Yields, lodging resistance, plant health, and overall grain quality have improved massively in recent decades.
Aside from higher yields, better quality and full traceability growers using certified Irish seed require less expensive fungicides and herbicides. Certified seed also keeps many dangerous crop diseases and troublesome weeds under control.
According to Teagasc the environmental and climatic conditions that helped growers to achieve higher yields in 2011 also contributed to levels of disease not observed for a number of years.
Significant septoria control problems were reported in the south west from mid to late June onwards. Sensitivity monitoring by Teagasc personnel of the septoria population throughout the country to epoxiconazole, prothioconazole and tebuconazole showed levels of sensitivity similar to those recorded in 2010.
Strains with reduced triazole sensitivity are now widespread throughout the country but no resistance to the SDHI fungicides has been detected.
As in previous years products containing a mixture of triazoles (e.g. Gleam) outperformed products containing a single triazole. This was most pronounced under curative conditions.
The SDHI based fungicides Adexar (epoxiconazole and fluxapyroxad) and Aviator (prothioconazole and bixafen), gave levels of disease control similar to or better than the triazole mixture Gleam (metconazole and epoxiconazole).
As part of disease control programmes the mixing or sequencing of triazoles and/or inclusion of the SDHI based fungicides at the T2 timing provided the greatest disease control (particularly later in the season) and yields.
With disease pressure already reportedly high in many early sown crops increased emphasis must be placed upon weather conditions, crop growth stage and disease pressure present in deciding product choice and rate at the key septoria fungicide applications at T1and T2.
The current EU regulatory system for Plant Protection Products (PPP’s) established a very high level of protection for man, animals and the environment. This Directive provides reassurance to consumers that PPP’s are applied safely and only where absolutely necessary and in the least amounts possible.
The EU evaluation of the active substance and individual products is divided into two categories, hazard and risk. First, the hazards of the chemical are assessed. This is accomplished by a detailed evaluation of studies carried out using either the active substance or the individual product.
Second, the risks that arise from PPP use are assessed using the most up-to-date scientific information, models and techniques. PPP’s are not authorized for marketing and use, unless it is shown that there will be no harmful effects on human health and no unacceptable impact on the environment.
Ireland has voluntary initiatives from Teagasc on sprayer testing and operator education, and the trade organisation IASIS run excellent training courses to increase their awareness and education on such issues as well as other crop protection topics.
A list of retailers licensed to sell crop protection products and of those qualified to advise on crop protection products is available on the IASIS website. It is very much in the growers interest to avail of these excellent advisers so as to optimise yields and minimise production costs.
