Kenmore, big yielder winter hardy and very good mildew resistance v , is the ground ok for Boron , I used to Direct Drill 20th May , get it in early then if you have problem due to dry weather you can redrill with Maincrop Turnips later on, the Was a lad called Richie from North Wales who did a lot of direct drilling swedes over the years but not heard from him of lateI'm looking into direct drilling swedes this month, what's best to spray off existing grass and how long would I need to leave it until DD the swedes in? And what variety of swedes do people recommend. Thanks.
Roundup or kyleo to burn off the old sward leave a good fortnight after spraying I always do before Direct Drilling.I'm looking into direct drilling swedes this month, what's best to spray off existing grass and how long would I need to leave it until DD the swedes in? And what variety of swedes do people recommend. Thanks.
Swedes are a lot nicer with roast beef thoughSwedes do seem to have fallen in demand in the last few years mainly to do with the risk of flea beetle plus Fodder beet has risen in popularity especially in this area to be grazed in situ.
Unsure on establishment costs of fodder beet versus swedes though.
Would love to grow swedes again but they just became to unreliable and weeds a bit of an issue as no good herbicides. I think your method of direct drilling is a good idea for swedes to conserve the moisture, I think with any brassica you want to be drilling in a more unsettled period with thunder in the forecast.Swedes do seem to have fallen in demand in the last few years mainly to do with the risk of flea beetle plus Fodder beet has risen in popularity especially in this area to be grazed in situ.
Unsure on establishment costs of fodder beet versus swedes though.
The DD system with burn off and brassicas system works very well and economical establishment.Would love to grow swedes again but they just became to unreliable and weeds a bit of an issue as no good herbicides. I think your method of direct drilling is a good idea for swedes to conserve the moisture, I think with any brassica you want to be drilling in a more unsettled period with thunder in the forecast.
What variety were they ?Ive DD swedes into grass past 2 years, worked well both times
Gowrie I thinkWhat variety were they ?
Ive DD swedes into grass past 2 years, worked well both times
I did a bit of an on farm trial with a few different swede varieties last year. Nothing scientific but planted Kenmore, Gowrie, Invitation and Triumph. Triumph was the most uniform and kept its leaf later than the others, Invitation almost as good. The Gowrie seemed to suffer from powdery mildew even though it is supposed to be one of the most resistant and the Kenmore had a lot of rotten bulbs and was very variable. This is in Devon so may of course be location dependent.
I think another important point with swedes is that I would often direct drill natural seed at 1kg/ha. Recommendation by the seed companies is 1kg/acre. I always feel I would rather have a thinner crop of massive bulbs than a thick crop of tennis balls, there is a lot of eating in big bulbs and wastage is less especially when the weather turns wet.