• Good choice for cleaning crops
• Robust performance in the field
• Comparable yields are possible
Oilseed rape growers moving on from HEAR varieties are being encouraged to consider growing a Clearfield variety instead.
Volunteers rape plants left from HEAR varieties could see high levels of erucic acid in following crops – limiting their marketability, says Sarah Hawthorne of DSV UK.
A Clearfield variety is the perfect opportunity for cleaning up such crops, she adds.
Weed control
“Clearfield technology, based on a combination of Imazamox herbicide and oilseed rape varieties tolerant to it, has proved highly beneficial to oilseed rape growers in recent years offering effective control of pernicious brassica weeds.
“The system has provided reliable control of problem weeds such as charlock, runch and hedge mustard but has also opened up significant management opportunities for many growers in recent years including reducing erucic acid levels at harvest.
“With HEAR varieties becoming increasingly unpopular, growing a Clearfield variety could help reduce unwanted volunteers in following seasons that otherwise would be very difficult to control.”
All three Clearfield varieties on the 2024/25 Recommended List are now from DSV. All offering yields comparable to conventional options, says Ms Hawthorne. DSV Miraculix CL, for example, has a gross output of 94%, she adds.
“It’s a quad-layered variety that stacks four complex traits together – turnip yellows virus (TuYV) protection with RLM7 phoma and pod shatter resistance plus Clearfield.”
Breeding strategy
DSV Beatrix CL has a recommendation for the East/West region also with a gross output of 94% and a strong disease package, while the long established DSV Matrix CL is recommended for the whole of the UK with a gross output of 93% of control.
The development of Clearfield oilseed rape varieties has been an important part of DSV’s breeding strategy for some years with the company being the first to produce these without yield penalties.
“The combination of these high-performance varieties with Clearfield herbicide chemistry has proved highly beneficial to oilseed rape growers in recent years, offering highly effective control of pernicious brassica weeds.
“In particular, it has allowed robust and reliable control of problem weeds such as charlock, runch and hedge mustard, but has also opened up significant management opportunities for many growers.”