Trials highlight varieties for later drilling

Field-Scale OSR Trials

Field-scale Agrii trials with 14 leading and up-and-coming winter OSRs across four late-sown iFarms from Yorkshire to Angus have highlighted DK Exsteel as one of only two varieties delivering gross outputs of over 6t/ha.

A seed yield of 5.54t/ha and 47.8% oil gave the grower favourite an average gross output of 6.19t/ha – 7% ahead of the trial mean and fully 9% up on the current UK Recommended List leader.

Performing even more impressively at 119% of the RL leader in the two iFarm trials in which it was grown, RL candidate DK Exposé produced a gross output of 5.94t/ha from a seed yield of 5.33t/ha and oil content of 47.6%. In these trials, it even outperformed DK Exsteel.

“With so much ground continuing to be too dry for reliable OSR sowing well into mid-August, a high-reliability hybrid like DK Exsteel with its especially rapid speed of development before winter as well as establishment vigour really comes into its own,” points out DEKALB head of seed, Adam Nears. “As does one with the particular growing resilience and sowing date flexibility of DK Exposé.

“While well-suited to early drilling, varieties with less rapid autumn development or a less flexible early growth habit can struggle when sown towards the end of August and into September. This season, in particular, it’s good to have confirmation of how relatively well these two key hybrids do from sowing as late as September 9.

“As well as the critical importance of sowing OSR into sufficient moisture, our annual benchmarking study with growers across the country shows that where CSFB pressure isn’t intense, later sowing can be very effective. It is also recognised as helping to limit any larval problems.

“It does require the right type of variety, though,” he stresses. “And one – like all DEKALB hybrids this autumn – covered by a first-class establishment assurance scheme …… just in case.”

Robust farm trialling demonstrates strength-in-depth

Average ‘Ex’ hybrid seed yields ranging from 4.8t/ha to 5.1t/ha across the 14 large-scale strip trials run with growers from Hampshire to the Scottish borders this season underline the strength-in-depth of all the main DEKALB varieties.

Together the seven varieties sown over an extended window averaged an encouraging 4.91t/ha overall, only averaging less than 4t/ha on two sites, doing more than 5t/ha on five and over 6t/ha on three.

“Confirming the much more favourable growing season, average yields on the six sites that also ran trials with us in 2021 were up by over 0.75t/ha this year,” notes DEKALB trials manager, Richard Williams.

“As expected, western and northern crops with better spring and summer moisture conditions generally fared better than those in the much drier south and east of the country.

“At 5.11t/ha, average yields on our five early September sown sites were noticeably higher than the 4.80t/ha and 4.83t/ha averages from those sites sown in early August or the traditional drilling window,” he points out. “This underlines the importance of sowing when conditions are right for the farm and is particularly encouraging for those waiting for sufficient moisture this season.”

Topping TuYV-resistant hybrid performance under the strictly commercial farm regimes were DK Excited and DK Exposé with average seed yields of 5.07t/ha and 4.94t/ha, outyielding a TuYV-resistant East/West RL hybrid standard by 5% and 2% respectively.

DK Excited showed its particular strength with a seed yield 23% ahead of the trial average at 5.99t/ha in Rob Atkin’s trial at Field Hall Farm, Uttoxeter in Staffordshire. It also took first place in trials in Hampshire, Suffolk, Herefordshire and Shropshire.

Meanwhile at Adbaston Hall, Newport on the border with Shropshire, John Billington saw DK Exposé stand out in his main trial field at 5.65t/ha – 15% ahead of the average.

The fact that the 5.25t/ha (107% of the average) it delivered also topped a second informal trial he ran in another field leaves him particularly impressed with the RL candidate.

CLEARFIELD PERFORMANCE UP NEAR THE BEST

The performance of Clearfield varieties is up near the best ‘00’ varieties this season, according to a whole range of trials.

At 5.48t/ha the five Clearfield hybrids included in official AICC trials averaged almost exactly the same as the 32-variety mean, with DK Imprint CL matching the 2021/22 UK Recommended List leader at just over 5.6t/ha.

In Agrii iFarm strip trials, DK Imprint CL only under-yielded the current RL leader by 3% at 4.93t/ha. It performed equally strongly in four-site DEKALB replicated trials and produced 6.35t/ha in the single field-scale strip trial in which it was included.

As a Clearfield variety, it was only beaten in this season’s DEKALB replicated trials by new prospect, DK Immortal CL at 5.25t/ha which also went on to deliver 5.10t/ha or 104% of the RL control variety mean in Agrii’s early lines OSR trial at Bridgend.

ESTABLISHMENT ASSURANCE

All DEKALB hybrids are now covered by Bayer’s market-leading establishment assurance scheme, offering growers refunds of £100 per 1.5 million seed bag through their suppliers for any blocks of more than 6ha sown before September 20 that fail to establish by the endof October. Full details of the minimum hassle scheme are available here.