Producers have been warned to pay close attention to their maize crop ahead of harvesting, following the variable weather conditions earlier in the year.
Speaking to Farmers Weekly at this year’s Dairy Event and Livestock Show, John Morgan from the Maize Growers Association said: "We always encourage farmers to assess each field individually – we are looking for 30-32% DM – and to be prepared to harvest in two chunks if there’s variation."
Richard Camplin from Limagrain added: "One thing we have noticed is that some of the plants are looking quite mature but the cobs are not mature now, so farmers need to really take particular care at looking at the cob before harvesting.
"People need to be aware that some crops may be looking further on than they actually are, and make sure to get into the centre of the field and check around a number of cobs to see how the crop is progressing."
Neil Groom from Grainseed said: "My advice is to wait for full maturity and not be tempted to go in early. You are going to feed it for 200 days so clamp something that’s going to be 28-30% DM and not something that’s just 24%."
Nigel Padbury from Syngenta added: "People need to keep an eye on the DM content because sometimes in wet weather it can creep up on you."
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