Suffolk farmers discussed best practice for seed and crop establishment at a recent HGCA Monitor Farm meeting hosted by Westhorpe farmer Brian Barker.

Nigel Day from Anglia Grain Services, Ian Robertson, Sustainable Soil Management and Alan Gray, J and H Bunn, joined in the discussions with 41 Suffolk farmers.

Topics covered included seed treatment, placement and nutrition during the meeting on 6 February, which was the third hosted by Brian.

Local growers had identified seed and crop establishment as one of the key issues they wanted to look at during the launch meeting last November.

The meeting built upon the previous month's meeting which discussed soil health and linked to how farmers could achieve good establishment using different techniques – through variety choice, seed placement, plant populations, pest protection and early nutrition. Farmers discussed the pros, cons and costs of different seed treatments, as well as the importance of variety choice and parentage. On establishment, the group discussed drill choice and land preparation to achieve consistent seed depth, the placement of nutrients and methods for stimulating early growth.

Brian Barker said: “We looked at the three important zones for crop establishment: around the seed, roots and first leaves. We broke out into small groups and discussed what everyone had tried and what their thoughts were. It made for some interesting discussions and off the back of the meeting one grower went away and changed his spring seed order to try some new techniques discussed. This is what the group is all about – sharing information.”

On growing and storing farm saved seed, growers at the meeting were reminded of the following key points:
• Seed is a living product – how it is grown, harvested and stored has a huge bearing on how it will grow in the field
• Take care with pre-harvest glyphosate
• Take care with moisture contents (cereals 15%, OSR 9%)
• Drying temperatures should be maximum 30°C
• Take care with mechanical damage
• Is the crop ripe and not just dry enough to combine?
• Seed size matters – bigger is generally better = big sieves
• Keep enough raw material to allow for up to 50% screenings in a bad year
• Seed density matters: denser = better = gravity separation

Tim Isaac, HGCA Regional Manager, said: “The key message that came out of this meeting was a reminder to attend to every detail in crop establishment – get it right at the beginning and you’re giving yourself the best chance of growing a good crop, get it wrong and you’ll be playing an expensive game of catch up for the rest of the year.”

Alan Gray, during his fertiliser market update, explained that the low oil price had no immediate effect on nitrogen prices, but haulage to farm could pose logistical problems for some.

The meeting concluded in the afternoon with a benchmarking session on overhead costs. Farmers were reminded that consistency in how costs are allocated is the key to ensuring accurate and valuable comparison between businesses.

The next meeting at HGCA’s Stowmarket Monitor Farm will be on 6 March 2015, where the topic will be weed control and how to protect against resistance.

For more information, visit hgca.com/stowmarket