If your growing it, how are you getting on with it? Costs to grow? Output? What it like grass weed wise?
Hybrid Winter Barley
- Thread starter warksfarmer
- Start date
- Location
- S.E
It does not work for ryegrass! There are simply too few herbicides and the drilling date is too early. Crop competiteveness isn't strong enough toout compete it.Only way around this is strong pre ems, delayed drilling/spring cropping
APJ
Member
- Location
- West Midlands(Shropshire borders)
Take a look at dsv seeds sensation winter barley if your after a barley with high vigour,
We are growing it for the first time, very impressed so far all been sown dd too, it’s never looked back week earlier to head too.
We are growing it for the first time, very impressed so far all been sown dd too, it’s never looked back week earlier to head too.
- Location
- the brecks norfolk
I haven't grown hybrids for a couple of years but from my experience the extra yield paid for the extra growing costs so I was no better off, I just ended up the same but had put more money into syngenta et al pockets.
Despite looking to produce huge amounts of straw it never yielded as much as cassia.
To be competitive with weeds it needs to be drilled at a conventional seed rate but cost prohibits that, I think the low seed rate is only a sales pitch to make the seed cost justifiable.
It does tiller well but you have to work hard at it and if things don't go to plan it ends up thin.
Saying all that I'm still tempted to try a bag of one of the new ones like thunderbolt just to keep a finger in the pulse of how they're progressing.
Despite looking to produce huge amounts of straw it never yielded as much as cassia.
To be competitive with weeds it needs to be drilled at a conventional seed rate but cost prohibits that, I think the low seed rate is only a sales pitch to make the seed cost justifiable.
It does tiller well but you have to work hard at it and if things don't go to plan it ends up thin.
Saying all that I'm still tempted to try a bag of one of the new ones like thunderbolt just to keep a finger in the pulse of how they're progressing.
- Location
- Bedfordshire
Some of mine is 5 ft high this year. Not sure that's a good thing, unless selling the straw.
Agree with all of above … I’ve been growing hybrid barleys for a number of years including pre hybrid seed barley for Syngenta… I’m not sure I’ll continue with hybrids … one very annoying trait is seeing a lot of barley heads in wheat 2 years after… !
I’ve grown a very small acreage of Rafaela barley, six row from LG seeds … curious to see how it yields … Anyone else growing it ?
I’ve grown a very small acreage of Rafaela barley, six row from LG seeds … curious to see how it yields … Anyone else growing it ?
- Location
- the brecks norfolk
A good friend of mine has grown it for a couple of years on heavy land and has been pleased with it, BYDV resistant I believe.
- Location
- the brecks norfolk
No I'd like to have a go with it but the contracts all seem 
I'm playing with spring triticale which I think has potential.
I'm playing with spring triticale which I think has potential.
- Location
- Chezvegas (chesterfield)
We have some just to try this year, looks slightly better than the bazooka that is on the headlands of the same field.
Will give it a fair trial and if it's successful it may replace the hybrids, plus you can home save it.
Thinking the same ! I have a decent acreage of bazooka and I think it looks thin … large head so grain fill is very important but with the pleasant weather we’re having I’m hopeful !
It has to be an effect of the cold spring… mine was sown early, early nitrogen but looks still thin .. I will do head counts when grain fill is complete and compare with past years .. fingers crossed
It has to be an effect of the cold spring… mine was sown early, early nitrogen but looks still thin .. I will do head counts when grain fill is complete and compare with past years .. fingers crossed
- Location
- the brecks norfolk
I had the same problem with bazooka, I'm an early N advocate and no matter what I tried I couldn't get it to be as thick as I would have liked it.
- Location
- Lincolnshire
Bloody volunteers.
DRC
Member
Seeing lots of hybrid rye in both fields of Extase .New seed on fields that've never seen Rye.
- Location
- Lincolnshire
I've winter barley volunteers in land that was barley four years ago. Were none in the spring oats last year. Grr. These are six row that appeared in the new c2 two row I grew.
- Location
- Bedfordshire
Yes, growing Rafaela 6 row (non Hybrid) again, last year yield was excellent and it looks better this time around.
- Location
- the brecks norfolk
What happened to funky???? I of a few growing it locally but I haven't heard anything about it for a year or two, it was supposed to be very good.
- Location
- Moreton-in-Marsh, Glos
I replaced all my 2nd Wheats (and even some 1st’s) with Hybrid Barley because it is so good at suppressing BG.
We get much higher yields of Barley than we would have Wheat at a fraction of the growing costs, even when you put in the costs of the seed.
However, you can’t Home Save Seed (though I know somebody that does so successfully!).
BYVD can be a problem. But 2 new 6 row conventional W Barleys, Rafaela and Sensation will yield as well if not better, suppress BG and are BYDV resistant. IMO these will end Hybrid Barley usage because we can use conventional seed rates and HSS.
And you can drill W Barley in September, without have to delay because of BG.
One thing you must not allow with Hybrids is to let them go yellow in Feb/March because they will lose tillers very quickly. So early N is a must. We Ice-road-truck a 1/3rd of the total on during frosty weather as from 14th Feb. All the rest goes on in one dose end of March/early April.
We get much higher yields of Barley than we would have Wheat at a fraction of the growing costs, even when you put in the costs of the seed.
However, you can’t Home Save Seed (though I know somebody that does so successfully!).
BYVD can be a problem. But 2 new 6 row conventional W Barleys, Rafaela and Sensation will yield as well if not better, suppress BG and are BYDV resistant. IMO these will end Hybrid Barley usage because we can use conventional seed rates and HSS.
And you can drill W Barley in September, without have to delay because of BG.
One thing you must not allow with Hybrids is to let them go yellow in Feb/March because they will lose tillers very quickly. So early N is a must. We Ice-road-truck a 1/3rd of the total on during frosty weather as from 14th Feb. All the rest goes on in one dose end of March/early April.