Late drilled cover crop

[Will7]

I am wanting to plant a crop as a companion to blackgrass on some wheat stubbles destined for spring beans. It will not get planted to till the end of Oct to allow for 2 glyphosate sprays on the blackgrass.

I was thinking of oats/ barley/wheat at 50kg/ha just to put out a few roots and use some moisture. I have 2 hoppers on the drill so was contemplating putting on some winter beans and a cereal. This will then get a dose of glyphosate pre-drilling.

Am I leaving myself open to disease carry over in the beans and not allowing a long enough take all break for the following wheat crop after the beans?

Thanks

 

[Dan Powell]

Maybe just oats if you're worried about take all break.

 

[Baling Hay]

Companion cropping blackgrass, I love it!

 

[SilliamWhale]

Can you get black oats?

 

[Andrew K]

How are you going to plant it Will, with the Versadrill?

 

[Will7]

Andrew,

The versadrill is no longer with us. I came to the conclusion that the loosening and seeding operations needed to be seperated so their timings were not compromised. It was either too dry and the legs did too much, or too wet and they acted like mini mole drainers. The drill was just too heavy as well.

I now have a secondhand seedhawk which will be used for wheat and spring drilling. The cover crops were going to be drilled with this but I will see how the season progresses. There is so much blackgrass coming I want to roundup it off soon and get another flush before winter.

As I am yet to plant an acre of wheat I am hoping the 8m drill will give plenty of output!

 

[Old Spot]

Why wait, blackgrass wont seed until next summer.

 

[Will7]

Old Spot,

If I understand you correctly this is my reasoning:

There is little point of establishing a cover crop and then destroying it 3 weeks later when the blackgrass is sprayed off, hence I want to drill a cover crop later than is traditionally accepted just try and keep the soil from going sad over the winter. The point of spring crops here is to allow as many flushes of blackgrass as possible to enable better control.

 

[Andrew K]

Will,

I gather the forecast for late Oct/early Nov is much better, will you add seedbed fert to the ground as you drill?
Agree with you about the Versadrill, a fine machine but difficult to get conditions that suit it.
SeedHawks like to travel at 10k max really.

 

[Will7]

Andrew,

I had heard the same. I am pleased not to have drilled anything, even if the land eventually gets spring barley. If I had drilled the wheat, I would be rounduping off large areas pre-Christmas. A little walk on some neighbour's early drilled wheat has proved me correct (IMHO).

The plan is to add a little DAP at drilling just to help the crop along and make up for the lack of N mineralisation caused by DD.

 

[Andy26]

As I am yet to plant an acre of wheat I am hoping the 8m drill will give plenty of output!

Makes me happier to read that! I've drilled a part field of wheat, that's it.