Thinking of growing spring oats...

[Selectamatic]

I am kicking the idea about of growing spring oats instead of the usual barley, as I may have found an outlet for them...

I have never combined oats, but can remember going with my father as a kid to cut some, with some difficulty, as they were not ripe, I remember the straw being bloody massive, a job to get it in the combine without it wrapping around reel, auger, shafts, drum etc etc.

Have those days gone? Can you get some that only grow to a sensible size these days?

I'd combine them, roll them and sell them as feed, bale the straw in little bales and sell for bedding.

I'd be growing them in my low cost method, sow with a combine drill, with some fert down the spout if needed, spray them once to kill off excessive weed, if needed. Otherwise, that would be it.

What are the pro's and con's of spring oats compared to spring barley please...

 

[multi power]

Oats do well on poorer ground, lower input etc

 

[franklin]

Like linseed, which has an undeserved bad reputation, spring oats are a piece of pee.

There are loads of recent threads on this. I can grow oats. My spring barley is usually sh!t. I am on heavy cold clay. I think that is the reason,

 

[Poacher]

I am kicking the idea about of growing spring oats instead of the usual barley, as I may have found an outlet for them...

I have never combined oats, but can remember going with my father as a kid to cut some, with some difficulty, as they were not ripe, I remember the straw being bloody massive, a job to get it in the combine without it wrapping around reel, auger, shafts, drum etc etc.

Have those days gone? Can you get some that only grow to a sensible size these days?

I'd combine them, roll them and sell them as feed, bale the straw in little bales and sell for bedding.

I'd be growing them in my low cost method, sow with a combine drill, with some fert down the spout if needed, spray them once to kill off excessive weed, if needed. Otherwise, that would be it.

What are the pro's and con's of spring oats compared to spring barley please...

Morning Selectamatic,

Just for information purposes get your potential spring oat seed covered with your merchant sooner rather than later. That applies to anyone thinking of growing spring oats who needs to buy certified seed for spring 2018. C2 Seed supply in the trade is already at a very low level and with the cost of imported varieties at a premium, seed prices in the new year are likely to be at surprisingly high levels. With that will come no variety choice either as we predict the trade will only be able to supply what varieties they can source from Europe. The added problem is that most of Europe has a major supply problem with spring seed availability too, hence the price warning and suggestion of getting your seed requirements covered whilst there is still some UK produced seed available.

Poacher

 

[Brisel]

Like linseed, which has an undeserved bad reputation, spring oats are a piece of pee.

There are loads of recent threads on this. I can grow oats. My spring barley is usually sh!t. I am on heavy cold clay. I think that is the reason,

What yield do you budget for please?

 

[franklin]

What yield do you budget for please?

3t/ac. But yields tend to be either 4t/ac or 2t/ac and not much fall in between.

 

[David.]

You could of course plant some winters if spring seed is stupid dear.
As an experiment I shall be planting Mascani and Canyon side by side on 5 ha.
Combining will not be too bad, varieties are shorter now and cut a dream with some sun in them; even if laid a bit, just don't go mad with N..

 

[Poacher]

You could of course plant some winters if spring seed is stupid dear.
As an experiment I shall be planting Mascani and Canyon side by side on 5 ha.
Combining will not be too bad, varieties are shorter now and cut a dream with some sun in them; even if laid a bit, just don't go mad with N..

David, winter Oats would perform ok sown in the spring but I'm not sure where any would come from. There maybe the odd parcel here and there but no quantity. Winter Oats were sold out with most seed suppliers in October. I remember not so long ago when Mascani was sown in Jan and Feb the mills had big problems with de hulling them due to them not going through their normal length of growth period.

 

[David.]

If you've to buy seed I expect you are right; I have some fss Mascani left.
Shall be interested to see how it pans out. Agronomist is saying that springs usually outyield winters at a range of sowing dates.

 

[Oat]

Spring oats are quite an easy crop to grow, but be careful with weed control. There are not many grassweed herbicides available, and for broad-leaved weeds it is mainly SUs and hormones.
DFF has off-label approval for pre-em use, therefore I would use this pre-em, rather than wait and see what comes up post-em and then find you can't manage the weeds.