Rapeseed weathers dry UK spring better than barley

Rapeseed farmers in the UK are, like peers in France, achieving better-than-expected rapeseed yields – but winter barley crops appear to have been worse affected by the dry spring.

Adas, the consultancy, said the UK rapeseed harvest could end up at up to 3.7 tonnes per hectare, beating last year’s record of 3.5 tonnes per hectare, after results from the early harvest revealed yields some 10% ahead of the average.

"The majority of winter oilseed rape is grown on heavier soil types and appear to be less affected by the dry spring, aided by good crop establishment in the autumn and a lower water requirement compared to cereals," Adas said.

The better-than-expected result echoes data from the French harvest, and have been blamed for a fall of some £10 a tonne in UK rapeseed prices over the past week to less than £370 a tonne, although doubts remain over production further east in Germany, usually Europe’s top rapeseed grower, and Poland.

‘Yields vary’

However, results from the first 30% of barley harvested showed the crop had been worse affected by the lack of spring rains, especially on less moisture-retentive soils, with yields coming in "highly variable" yields, and some 10% behind the average.

"Yields vary from 4.0-7.0 tonnes per hectare on light land, but are often higher on heavier land," where they were reaching up to 9.0 tonnes per hectare.

Adas forecast the UK winter barley yield ending up at 5.6-6.0 tonnes per hectare, compared with an average of 6.5 tonnes per hectare.

The crop could potentially prove the worst since at least the 1990s, falling below the 5.8-tonnes-per-hectare result recorded in 2001.

Also, test samples on winter barley had shown nitrogen content high in some malting samples, rising above 1.7%. But the specific weight of the crop was deemed "good", at 64-69 kilogrammes per hectolitre.

http://www.agrimoney.com/news/rapeseed-weathers-dry-uk-spring-better-than-barley–3411.html