An estate farm has invested in a fully automated grain drying and handling system to replace its ageing post-harvest infrastructure. Farm manager Mark Heritage says his 1960s grain set-up could no longer cope with the scale and speed of modern harvest operations after bringing farmland back in-hand in 2022.... Read more
Organic and low-input farmers have a new option for tackling insect pressure in grain stores ahead of harvest following the launch of a plant-based insecticide. Approved for use in organic systems, Organ-X Pro is designed to control pests including flies, midges, ants, cockroaches and stored product insects such as... Read more
Timely pre-harvest preparation is paying off for large-scale grain store operators who enforce strict hygiene and treatment protocols. Colin and Sarah Godwin own and run Keysley Store – a full-service grain and commodity storage and drying facility. Harvest preparation starts as soon as the previous crop leaves the store,... Read more
Farmers and environmental campaigners have clashed over the future of pre-harvest glyphosate – and whether it should be used on crops for human consumption Commonly used as pre-harvest desiccant on cereals and oilseed rape crops, glyphosate has been found to be safe by multiple regulatory reports. But some scientific... Read more
New test helps assess onion disease risk
Arable 04/06/2026
A new DNA-based soil test designed to detect fusarium basal rot before planting has been launched commercially for UK onion growers. Developed by the University of Warwick’s Crop Centre in partnership with ADAS, the test identifies the soil-borne pathogen which causes the fusarium – offering a potential tool to... Read more
Hybrid rye ‘stacks up for season ahead’
Arable 03/06/2026
Switching to hybrid rye as an alternative to wheat this autumn could improve cropping security, says a plant breeder. Decent margins and market demand from anaerobic digestion plants has sparked renewed interest in hybrid rye for the coming season, says KWS seed specialist and product manager Rory Hannam. Once... Read more
Top soft wheat tightens grip on UK market
Arable 03/06/2026
Bamford has become Britain’s best-selling winter wheat – less than three years after joining the AHDB Recommended List. The achievement marks the first time since Robigus in 2005 that a Group 3 soft wheat has taken the top spot. Bamford accounted for more than 14 per cent of commercial... Read more
Two new winter wheat varieties give growers more opportunities to achieve higher yields amid an increasingly unpredictable climate and market conditions LG Defiance and LG Challenger are both Group 4 hard wheats from Limagrain Field Seeds. The breeder says they have shown consistently high yield potential across different regions,... Read more
A robust, multi-active T2 fungicide programme could be essential to protect wheat yield potential this season. Growers should combine single-site and multi-site chemistries for immediate and lasting disease control, suggests Adama UK technical manager David Griffiths. Doing so will protect the flag leaf and leaf two – and encourage... Read more
Wheat breeders are deploying new genetic techniques to tackle rising pressure from yellow rust, as resistance in widely grown varieties begins to fail. An estimated 40% of the UK wheat area is now planted with varieties highly susceptible to the disease. The shift follows the breakdown of the Yr15... Read more