Words by Nicola Pace, Ruralco Senior Agronomist
The shortest day has been and gone, and in true Canterbury fashion, it arrived with a surprising 22 degree day! While winter has certainly reminded us it’s here since then, the days are slowly beginning to stretch again.
July is firmly winter mode on farm. Crops are ticking along quietly, soils remain cold and wet, and attention turns to spring planning, monitoring crop health, and making the most of any suitable weather windows. It’s also a great time to clean out chemical sheds making lists of what we need to use in spring, reviewing crop protection plans and nutrition, and ensuring everything is in place before the season starts to ramp up.
As always, we are here to help you make the most informed decisions and get the best from your crops in the months ahead.
As with any agronomy, for further in-depth discussions or plans, please contact your Ruralco Representative.
Paddock Preparation
Winter is a key time to think about paddock preparation for spring crop plantings. What is my crop rotation? Does the paddock need a soil test or deep N test? What weeds do I have now for spraying out? What weeds or insects/slugs could be a problem for my spring planted crop? Preparation is key, as the best way to save money is to only have to drill a crop once and do it well.
Wheat
Some autumn wheats have already received their winter herbicides alongside insecticide timing. When applying winter sprays it is key to make sure the frost has lifted and the crops are as dry as they can be, otherwise the spray can run off the plant. With how mild the winter has been, we have still been applying aphicides as there have been plenty of flying insects around. At this time of year, a cheap insecticide is better than nothing as beneficial numbers are low.
Bromes and grasses are easy to spot at this time of year- especially around headlands, and when targeting brome, for full control we require two applications, 6 weeks apart.
While the crops are slow growing it is an ideal time to be doing plant counts and tiller counts. This is an important tool in the toolbox as to work out yield - we need to know how many tillers per m2 we are aiming for (dependant on what yield you are targeting), and then we can adjust our nitrogen programme to suit this.
Barley
Autumn barleys are quiet now with most herbicides requiring a bit of warmth to work well, insecticides are still worth applying and keep an eye out for any early scald with the wet weather.
Small Seed Crops
Grazing of ryegrass seed crops is in full swing, with any herbicide or wild oat spray applications being timed around grazing withholds for closing time.We are in key white clover timing for spraying weeds, with perfect propyzamide weather for any grass weeds, and broadleaf weed sprays work well while the clover is dormant.A late winter herbicide on white clover can help with bulk control if required.
Lucerne
We are in the lucerne spraying weather window with the biggest factor to consider being age of the stand. This will determine what sprays or rates we can use, as newer stands are not as resilient as older stands. We have plenty of options for spraying depending on weed spectrum, so please discuss with your Ruralco Representative. The earlier your sprays are applied, the earlier your spring growth will happen.
If you are preparing paddocks for spring sowings, be mindful of weeds like dandelions etc, which are hard to spray out of lucerne, and whether you should delay planting for a year or can spray out sooner.
Winter Feed
We are well into planning requirements for winter feed, with some fodder beet varieties already running short. If you want to ensure you get the variety you require, then please get in touch. Herbicide programmes have not changed, but a pre-emergent programme is more beneficial than chasing weeds post emergent.
Pasture Management
This is a key time of year to tidy up any thistles in pastures, while clovers are dormant. There are several different spray options dependant on your thistle type, so please get in touch to organise a paddock visit and recommendation.
Maize
Planning for maize planting is underway with Pioneer’s early order open until the 31st of July. Ordering before the end of July also gives you access to Pioneer’s 100% Seed Replant Benefit cover, providing replacement seed at no charge if your maize crop needs to be replanted.
Paddock selection is important also, checking your pH to make sure it is above 6 and identifying what weeds may need spraying out.
Soil Testing
Our full agronomy package allows us to have access to Ballance Agri nutrient specialist for soil testing, crop requirement plans and helping to get the best bang for your buck with your soil applications. Ballance have 7 self-service nitrogen silos placed around mid-canterbury which is ideal when the wind drops on a Saturday but before a rain to pop in and grab your prepaid nitrogen. For more information, please see https://ballance.co.nz/selfservicesilo or contact your Ruralco Representative.
Seed Ordering
A reminder that Ruralco have access to all major company proprietary small seed and cereal seed at very competitive prices, we can put together seed mixes, deliver seed or an agronomy package to help reduce the cost of production on farm.
With all the above scenarios talk to your Ruralco Representative for the best options for you and your situation.