New double treatment to protect sugar beet seed

Growers can use sugar beet seed treated with two stacked ingredients for 2025 sowing to protect against soil pests and diseases increasingly causing problems at emergence.

Traditionally, Tachigaren (Hymeazol) has been used to protect against damping off. But the increased presence of maize in rotations plus a wet spring means other pathogens, including Rhizomania and Phoma are more frequent.

The UK is not alone. Mitsui’s Ankit Varma says similar trends have been seen across Europe for some time as climate change leads to a wider range of pathogens attacking seedlings.

“’For this reason we see Rampart (Penthiopyrad) used widely as a partner product with Tachigaren across Europe – for additional protection against Rhizoctania solani and Phoma betae.”

“Further, by stacking Rampart with Tachigaren we can minimise the chance of resistance to a single active ingredient and so provide up to five weeks of broader, systemic protection.”

The product is pending full UK approval. But Mr Varma says changes to UK plant protection products rules in December 2023 mean Mitsui can supply seed to the UK that is treated with this product in the EU where it is already approved and used successfully by beet growers.

After the 2023 decision, SesVanderHave has secured some stocks of seed treated with both products for its 2024 UK trials.

Damping off

“We have been incredibly pleased with the performance this spring as an effective safeguard against damping off,” says SesVanderHave’s Ian Munnery.

“Critically, it is good news for UK growers for spring 2025 that they can gain the same establishment benefits as we have been delivering to growers on the continent. The earlier you can get a crop in and growing, the better next spring.

“With extremely low bolting pressure this year, and the use of primed seed to mitigate the bolting risk we need to ensure the crop gets the best possible early start to support mature plant resistance and reduce the threat from damping off.”