OSR straw and slugs

ajd132

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Suffolk
How much does OSR straw contribute to slugs? We have much more slug pressure since OSR coming back into the rotation. how much value does OSR straw have and how much does it contribute to slugs? I was wondering whether we should bale it sometimes.
I don’t want to bale it, but we tend to grow a big summer cover crop after osr which may also benefit from the straw going the same as the following wheat.
 

JD6920s

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Shropshire
I reckon if you have osr you’ll have slugs regardless of bailing the haulm or not, they just seem to go hand in hand.
We rake our stubbles at least twice and it definitely helps/reduced slug pressure in the following wheat crop.
 
Last edited:

Rob Holmes

Moderator
BASIS
I have had a lot of problems with slugs in OSR straw in the past, used to find them in the hollowed out stalks.
Now, I still chop the straw but will run through with a shallow cultivator (in our case, a Cousins Surface), then try and run through every 10-14 days later with the stubble rake. Makes a massive diffence

This is one pass with surface and 1st pass with stubble rake
8D03C655-5C91-4B1E-8F5F-05375C94D240.jpeg
 

ajd132

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Suffolk
I have had a lot of problems with slugs in OSR straw in the past, used to find them in the hollowed out stalks.
Now, I still chop the straw but will run through with a shallow cultivator (in our case, a Cousins Surface), then try and run through every 10-14 days later with the stubble rake. Makes a massive diffence

This is one pass with surface and 1st pass with stubble rake
View attachment 1014369
Yes I can see the benefit in doing this but I want to be drilling early zero till. Which does help with slugs no end as it grows away. If we scratch like that we have to wait much later to drill as blackgrass will be flushed.
to be fair it’s generally just patches which can be bad.
 

AT Aloss

Member
NFFN Member
I reckon if you have osr you’ll have slugs regardless of bailing the haulm or not, they just seem to go hand in hand.
We rake our stubbles at least twice and it definitely helps/reduced slug pressure in the following wheat crop.
Agreed even 1 pass with a rake after combining the OSR to take out slug eggs & get it chitted makes a difference, there's nowhere I've regretted using a stubble rake yet....
 

PSQ

Member
Arable Farmer
Two weeks after harvest we run through chopped straw with a set of ‘compact discs’, leave for 2weeks, and work with a Terrano to depth. Leave another 2 weeks and sow. Slug issues are much reduced, no pellets last year apart from 1 pass on headlands. Single pass of 3.5 kg/ha this year.
It would appear to be the 2 week intervals that are crucial, disturbing the slug life cycle so the population can’t explode.
 

Badshot

Member
Location
Kent
My wheat following osr established very well this year even with loads of slugs about, they are the volunteer osr happily.

However since Xmas there's been a mega hatch of slugs and I've had to go pelleting as they're grubbing it to the ground, it caught me out as I'd never given it a thought that they'd beat a well established and grown wheat crop.
DSC_2187.JPG
DSC_2188.JPG


The rows are still visible in most places, but left alone I don't think they would be for much longer.
That's some of the best, most fertile soil in the field where the slugs are worst. The crop is normally so thick and lush there it's touch and go to stand till harvest.
 

T C

Member
Location
Nr Kelso
We bale some OSR straw.
The problem is that pods in the straw fall through the swath or the baler pickup. This leaves a trash row.
Raking at an angle does help.
We now do similar to @PSQ and cultivate a coupe of times lightly before drilling.
 

Hindsight

Member
Location
Lincolnshire
How much does OSR straw contribute to slugs? We have much more slug pressure since OSR coming back into the rotation. how much value does OSR straw have and how much does it contribute to slugs? I was wondering whether we should bale it sometimes.
I don’t want to bale it, but we tend to grow a big summer cover crop after osr which may also benefit from the straw going the same as the following wheat.
Slugs and oilseed rape, rhubarb and custard, Morecambe and Wise, roast beef and horseradish source…….
 

E_B

Member
Location
Norfolk
I keep contemplating growing OSR. Would spread the workload, could chop the straw; increasing OM return to the soil and cut down on bale carting, good for structure, got the equipment to establish it, would help fit into the shitshow of ELMS more easily, good prices currently, something different, an extra take all break, increase the time between beans in the rotation, less space taken up in storage.

Then I think about slugs and I forget it.
 

ajd132

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Suffolk
I keep contemplating growing OSR. Would spread the workload, could chop the straw; increasing OM return to the soil and cut down on bale carting, good for structure, got the equipment to establish it, would help fit into the shitshow of ELMS more easily, good prices currently, something different, an extra take all break, increase the time between beans in the rotation, less space taken up in storage.

Then I think about slugs and I forget it.
It is very good at slug creation
 

Banana Bar

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Bury St Edmunds
I’ve been hugely caught out with slugs this year on a few bits that hasn’t had OSR in 10 years. I think it’s been a bad slug year although I realised this too late!
 

ajd132

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Suffolk
I’ve been hugely caught out with slugs this year on a few bits that hasn’t had OSR in 10 years. I think it’s been a bad slug year although I realised this too late!
Agree my worst bit is actually on some winter barley after spring barley that was brwckled over, so cut really low and chopped really badly. Should have baled it or raked it. It’s not awful but it’s pretty obvious from the chaff lines!
 
We try and bale OSR and there is some small demand from power stations. It definitely helps a little in slug control. Watch label restrictions of Astrokerb, if you've used it.
 

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