Arm yourself with another layer of data to make better-informed disease control decisions.
Bayer has again teamed up with NIAB to provide free qPCR leaf testing to check for latent Septoria and yellow rust in winter wheat crops. Results are normally returned within 48 hours of samples arriving at the NIAB laboratory and with the convenience of the CropCheck scoring system, the service provides a good steer on the phase of infection of the leaves sampled.
CropCheck is there to provide further insight. Creating a protective disease control strategy across the farm can be challenging, made more difficult by continuing weather volatility. All too often disease severity only becomes apparent when symptoms express themselves, by which time it can be too late. Adding CropCheck results to other decision factors such as variety rating, drilling date, weather and site fertility can only help in evaluating disease risk and appropriate response.
Register your interest with your local Bayer Commercial Technical Manager to receive up to two tests in a season. Contact your local Technical Manager here.
CropCheck involves sampling a set of leaves from your crop and sending it to our laboratory partner, NIAB, where qPCR is carried out on your leaf sample. By identifying and quantifying disease before symptoms are visible, this gives you a new layer of information to use alongside other agronomic factors to help you better inform and adapt your future fungicide decisions.
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A CropCheck result is a single piece of information relevant to one leaf layer, at a singe point in time. Therefore, in order to make an informed fungicide decision it needs to be considered in the context of your whole agronomic scenario.
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This really is down to the individual but with GS32 (T1) and GS39 (T2) being the optimum winter wheat fungicide timings, just prior to these dates would be advisable. We recommend sending samples to NIAB 5 working days ahead of anticipated application dates to get CropCheck results back in time to adapt fungicide strategies if required. Sending samples to NIAB on a Monday means test results should be delivered in the same week.
For anyone requiring assistance with leaf layer emergence identification please click here to watch our video tutorial.
All sample kits will be sent out in good time for GS32 testing and full instructions are provided. There is a limit on the number of kits available so we would urge sign up at the earliest opportunity to avoid any disappointment.
With limited curative fungicide activity there is no longer a fallback position. If Septoria or yellow rust becomes established in the upper canopy then it is likely to result in a loss of green leaf area and ultimately yield, which can be significant in severe situations.
We also have to be mindful of our fungicide chemistry. Fungicides are designed to be used as protectants and exposing them to established disease is likely to hasten the onset of resistance.
