Fungicide costs

adam_farming

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Suffolk
Re: making up mixes by buying straights rather than using products "pre mixed":

Apologies if this is a stupid question, but I was once told by an agronomist (independent) that with beet herbicides it is better to use products that are mixes of several AI's, e.g. Betanal maxxpro etc, than a mix of separate products of the same actives, because in the mixed product there are also "extras" such as wetters etc that you don't get in the single products. I know thats to do with herbicides, beet particularly, but is it the same with fungicides?
 

franklin

New Member
So far, the only "evidence" that a proprietry mix of two products being better than mixing the two straights, has come from a distributor agronomist trying to sell me the stuff. Last time I checked, it was cheaper to mix Proline and Folicur (both Bayer) than buy a tub of their Prosaro.
 

adam_farming

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Suffolk
I get that its cheaper, and the guy that told me this also said that was the case, but what wasn't being taken into account is that there are extras in the mixes, or is that only the case with these mixed herbicides that have extra ingredients with some minor adjuvant qualities?
 

B'o'B

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Rutland
I get that its cheaper, and the guy that told me this also said that was the case, but what wasn't being taken into account is that there are extras in the mixes, or is that only the case with these mixed herbicides that have extra ingredients with some minor adjuvant qualities?
I think it is because they know the exact ratio of actives so they can tailor the adjuvants and wetters to that formulation without risking over doing it. I don't think fungicides have quite the same issues
 

adam_farming

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Suffolk
I think it is because they know the exact ratio of actives so they can tailor the adjuvants and wetters to that formulation without risking over doing it. I don't think fungicides have quite the same issues

I see, thanks for that, I thought that might be the case. Less risk with fungicides compared to delicate small sugar beet plants I guess
 

richard hammond

Member
BASIS
Just out of interest, how do you pick up a potential new farm? Do they call you in for a chat, or is it done through a friend of a friend?
Static i do appreciate the question was to @cricketandcrops but as an agronomist I will answer saying it is always by word of
mouth, if you need to go actively looking I think you are getting something wrong. It takes years to build up a good reputation but one
bad day to loose it all!.
 

Clive

Staff Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lichfield
Update of totals to date

OSR = £9.05/ha
Wheat T0,T1,T2 = £ 50.56/ha

happy with results, crops are clean

gate shut on OSR until harvest, wheat T2 was a bit late due to wind so should be able to get away with a cheap T3
 

Hampton

Member
BASIS
Location
Shropshire
@Brisel my controversial fungicide program is this:
T0 rubric at 0.5l/ha £8.50
T1 Chord at 1l/ha 23.50
T2 (next week so almost t3) either Sparticus 1l/ha £37 or Comet 0.4l/ha + Proline 0.5l/ha £33.
Total cost half at £59/ha, half at £55/ha.
Ran out of chord on a 20ac field, so that field got Keystone 1l/ha at T1 which I fetched from local firm. Haven't got bill for that yet, so don't know price.
Crops look very clean at the moment, relay, conqueror and kielder with very low disease pressure.
 

Brisel

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Midlands
Nothing overly controversial about that programme. You're an agronomist too! I'm just sitting here in Dorset in front of a computer screen...

I'd include CTL in there regularly unless you were needing curativity for septoria on a delayed timing. Just my opinion.
 

Hampton

Member
BASIS
Location
Shropshire
Nothing overly controversial about that programme. You're an agronomist too! I'm just sitting here in Dorset in front of a computer screen...

I'd include CTL in there regularly unless you were needing curativity for septoria on a delayed timing. Just my opinion.
I know, just stirring the pot. Every other year I would have used CTL too. What's disease pressure like down there?
 

down n'dirty

Member
Location
South Wales
Wet morning so looking at my wheat spend to date:-
Fungicide costs up to and including T2 are 53.97/ha (independent agronomist) and crops are looking clean.
However, the frightening part is when you look at the total ag-chem costs including herbicides, growth regs,trace elements etc. Here my costs rocket to £148/ha (also includes Round-Up pre planting)
be interested to know other peoples total ag-chem costs but realise that different parts of the country have different weed problems. The crop is Crusoe by the way and is being grown as a milling wheat.
 
Wet morning so looking at my wheat spend to date:-
Fungicide costs up to and including T2 are 53.97/ha (independent agronomist) and crops are looking clean.
However, the frightening part is when you look at the total ag-chem costs including herbicides, growth regs,trace elements etc. Here my costs rocket to £148/ha (also includes Round-Up pre planting)
be interested to know other peoples total ag-chem costs but realise that different parts of the country have different weed problems. The crop is Crusoe by the way and is being grown as a milling wheat.


Herbicides do depend on different fields but generally I've been going for wheat;

Roundup pre plant - 3l/ha plus acidifier/sticker about £12/ha
PDM pre em 2-3l ha £15/ha
Broadway Star £28/ha
Starane/ Jubilee £22 /ha

But some fields not had Broadway, some not had PDM and some not needed Starane etc. but cleavers, groundsel, rbwh can get carried away.

So its prudent to say herbicides probably are around £75/ha more or less. I have wondered if I should ditch everything and just do one dose of Pacifica or something that will do a good job on nearly everything just once.

I think I overdid the fungicide at T2 this year. I think its too pricey.
 

Clive

Staff Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lichfield
@Brisel my controversial fungicide program is this:
T0 rubric at 0.5l/ha £8.50
T1 Chord at 1l/ha 23.50
T2 (next week so almost t3) either Sparticus 1l/ha £37 or Comet 0.4l/ha + Proline 0.5l/ha £33.
Total cost half at £59/ha, half at £55/ha.
Ran out of chord on a 20ac field, so that field got Keystone 1l/ha at T1 which I fetched from local firm. Haven't got bill for that yet, so don't know price.
Crops look very clean at the moment, relay, conqueror and kielder with very low disease pressure.


£8.50+£23.50+£37 = £69.00 ???

or

£8.50+£23.50+£33= £ 65.00 ?

think your calculator needs new batteries ?
 
Update of totals to date

OSR = £9.05/ha
Wheat T0,T1,T2 = £ 50.56/ha

happy with results, crops are clean

gate shut on OSR until harvest, wheat T2 was a bit late due to wind so should be able to get away with a cheap T3

Or, just to be devil's advocate, could you say, if you pushed the T1 to T2 gap, that you may have let septoria in which you won't see yet and so you should be prepared for a more expensive T3 rather than a cheaper one?
 

Clive

Staff Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lichfield
Wet morning so looking at my wheat spend to date:-
Fungicide costs up to and including T2 are 53.97/ha (independent agronomist) and crops are looking clean.
However, the frightening part is when you look at the total ag-chem costs including herbicides, growth regs,trace elements etc. Here my costs rocket to £148/ha (also includes Round-Up pre planting)
be interested to know other peoples total ag-chem costs but realise that different parts of the country have different weed problems. The crop is Crusoe by the way and is being grown as a milling wheat.

wheat herbicide costs here vary between fields but best is £70/ha worst £80/ha to date with good result

I do spend quite heavy on trace elements here at £30/ha - low CEC soils really need them though IMO

Total sprays inc the fungicides will end up around the £150-160/ha which I would like to think is 1t of milling wheat (maybe hopeful there though given current prices !! )
 

Clive

Staff Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lichfield
Or, just to be devil's advocate, could you say, if you pushed the T1 to T2 gap, that you may have let septoria in which you won't see yet and so you should be prepared for a more expensive T3 rather than a cheaper one?

maybe - time will tell but as t1 had only been on 10-14 days I think the plant was still well protected
 

Clive

Staff Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lichfield
Oh, in that case it's fine! When you said late I thought you meant a much longer gap.

gaps have been fine just everything this season has been pushed a bit later so far (not by plan more circumstance with weather at time)

late cool spring has made this possible I guess without seeing more disease
 

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