• Pest more widespread than thought • Better field hygiene must be priority • Action needed to avoid yield losses Sugar beet growers are advised to ramp up soil testing to combat the increasing threat from beet cyst nematode. The pest is present in all four factory areas serving... Read more

• First case of resistant ryegrass in England • Experts call to protect future for herbicide • Growers and agronomists remain vigilant The discovery of glyphosate resistant Italian ryegrass has strengthened calls for better weed control practices to protect the herbicide’s long-term efficacy. ADAS weed science principal consultant John... Read more

• Potential to cut carbon footprint • Good source of domestic protein • Need to consider wider benefits More peas and beans in arable rotations could help farmers reduce greenhouse gas emissions and slash the carbon footprint of UK agriculture. About 90 growers and other industry experts gathered at... Read more

• Input-output ratio is key • Invest on merit, not habit • Know your crops and soils Growers looking to optimise margins from cereals this season should invest in crops where the money will have most impact, say experts. Lessons learned from a challenging harvest 2024 suggest that farms... Read more

Growers keen to embrace smart tech More arable farmers are turning to digital technology to help run their businesses – and generate better returns. Almost two-thirds of larger growers believe data-driven decision-making is important to their farms, according to study findings unveiled at the Hutchinsons Connected Farming Technology Conference... Read more

• Super-absorbent ideal for farming • Excellent diversification opportunity • Good returns if willing to sell direct A new opportunity has opened for farmers to supply miscanthus as a sought-after animal bedding – particularly for the equine market. Expansion is driven by the growing demand from Biosorb, a family-run... Read more

A new broad-spectrum fungicide will be available to growers for use across a range of winter and spring sown cereals this season. It follows regulatory approval for Plaxium – the first first three-way formulation fungicide from Bayer containing Iblon (isoflucypram). Mixed with fluopyram and prothioconazole, Plaxium offers broad-spectrum activity... Read more

Laureate still popular with growers Farmers looking to grow spring malting barley successfully in 2025 should manage risk by considering varieties that have performed consistently over multiple years. This should include difficult growing seasons – such as 2024, says Syngenta seeds technical expert Robert Jackson. Growers should also be... Read more

A wet autumn meant spring barley was a get-out-of-jail card for some growers last season. But many crops still delivered above average yields. Their performance owes much to the age-old issue of tiller retention, says Limagrain arable technical manager Ron Granger. Pictured below, Mr Granger outlines six ways to... Read more

• Impressive yield ‘twice national average’ • Resilience to variable weather patterns • More oats to be grown during 2025 A Lincolnshire farm saw Merlin spring oats yield an incredible 11t/ha last summer – over twice the national average. The unprecedented achievement was achieved by the Happy Days Farming... Read more