Iblon becomes the 'trusted broad-spectrum' fungicide

Across 200 hectares of quality wheats, the strong performance of Iblon® was one of the few positives of 2024 for Nottinghamshire farm manager Richard Cross.

“The disease protection delivered by Iblon® really impressed me. I used it on the quality wheat, and it did a brilliant job; it’s earned my trust,” he says.

The Oxton Estate north of Nottingham has about 700 ha of arable with maize, field vegetables and milling and feed wheat making up the bulk of the rotation. Milling wheat accounts for about two-thirds of the wheat area with the remainder sown to feed varieties.

Applying a new fungicide across such a large area of quality wheat might seem a little gung-ho for some, but two years of farm trials gave Mr Cross the confidence to make it his preferred choice at the T1 timing.

“In our comparison trials in 2022 and 2023, the broad-spectrum activity of Iblon® was stark. All fungicides were well-timed, and the difference was not obvious, but the yield uplift in the Iblon®-treated crop led me to review the programme for the quality wheat and the feed wheat drilled in the normal sowing window when disease risk is often greater,” he says.

On a crop of KWS Extase in 2023, Vimoy® (Iblon®) + Proline® (prothioconazole) delivered an extra 0.49 t/ha over the farm standard of Ascra® Xpro® (bixafen + fluopyram) + Arizona® (folpet).

The extreme rainfall of March to the end of May in 2024 led to the UK recording the sixth wettest spring on record at 301.7 mm and the wettest this century and yet, for Mr Cross, disease pressure was not as bad as first feared.

“Disease pressure in 2024 was not what it could have been. This may be due to a sound fungicide strategy combined with good application timing, but we didn’t see a spike in either Septoria or yellow rust that we had expected,” Mr Cross says.

The T1 of Vimoy® + Proline® followed a T0 of tebuconazole at 0.5 L/ha and preceded a T2 of Univoq® (fenpicoxamid + prothioconazole) and a T3 of Ascra® Xpro®. In contrast, the feed wheat crop received the same programme except for Ascra® Xpro® at T1.

“Two of the past three years have been notable for their wet weather during the main growing period, so these have been a good test of our fungicide programmes. This has given me confidence that Iblon® will perform strongly against both Septoria and yellow rust,” he adds.

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Vimoy® (iblon®) contains isoflucypram. Ascra® Xpro® contains bixafen, fluopyram and prothioconazole. Proline® contains prothioconazole. Arizona® contains folpet. Univoq contains fenpicoxamid and prothioconazole. Vimoy, Iblon, Proline, Ascra and Xpro are Registered Trademarks of Bayer. All other brands listed are Trademarks of other manufacturers and proprietary rights may exist. Use plant protection products safely. Always read the label and product information before use. Pay attention to the risk indications and follow the safety precautions on the label. For further information, including contact details, visit www.cropscience.bayer.co.uk or call 0808 1969522. © Bayer CropScience Limited 2024