Before even reaching for a rodenticide, the best practice is to carry out environmental management such as proofing buildings and tidying the site, then explore non-chemical control methods such as utilising natural predators or using instant-kill traps.

When chemical control is required, many don’t realise that bait rotation is vital to long-term success. Laurence Barnard comments: “Effective rodent control isn’t just about choosing the right bait. Of course, factors such as speed of control, potency, and palatability are incredibly important, but it is critical to alternate your baits.

“The reason for this is two-fold – some of the biggest challenges facing farmers are rodenticide resistance and bait shyness.”

Tackling resistance and boredom

Farmers should utilise rodenticides that contain either cholecalciferol or flocoumafen as the active ingredient, as there is no known resistance to either active. Ideally, usage should be rotated between the two to prevent any possible future resistance developing.

Switching between two highly palatable rodenticides will ensure they remain an attractive food source, encouraging rodents to continue feeding.

Laurence adds: “Of course, the rodenticide used must be highly palatable and potent. However, product stewardship is essential to ensure the future-proofing of effective solutions on the market and safeguard the pest management toolbox.”

How often to rotate baits

It is recommended that rodenticides should be changed every three to four months as best practice, with a minimum of every six months, to ensure a long-term, successful pest management programme.

Ideally, farmers should switch between rodenticides with a different active ingredient to ensure an effective treatment. BASF offers a range of resistance-busting rodenticides, such as the award-winning cholecalciferol-active Selontra and the highly powerful flocoumafen-active in Storm Secure and Storm Ultra Secure.

Neither Selontra nor the Storm products have any known resistance, and both offer a fast, effective solution to allow farmers to rotate their baits throughout the year without unknowingly contributing to rodenticide resistance or behavioural issues.

Top tips for an effective rodent programme

The best way to deal with rodents is to prevent them becoming active in the first place, so ‘rodent-proof’ your sites now to protect profits this winter.

Particularly at this time of year when temperatures begin to dip, rats and mice will be looking for warm harbourage where food sources are readily available, making buildings where animal feed or crops are stored very appealing.

1. Keep site clean and tidy. It may seem simple, but keeping sites tidy should become a regular part of any farmer’s maintenance routine. Keep pallets and sacks to a minimum as these make for the perfect harbourage, and remove any rubbish or unwanted stores of straw and hay as soon as possible to give rats and mice less time to move in.
2. Cut back vegetation and bushes around buildings. Rats fear open spaces, so by trimming back shrubbery by at least 1m around all buildings on land, they will be less inclined to cross an open yard to enter a building. This also allows farmers to readily observe any rat burrows, and gives natural predators more chance of spotting the pests too.
3. Rodent-proof buildings. Mice can get through gaps of 6mm and rats can get through gaps of 10mm. So carefully inspect any buildings, stores or outhouses for wear and tear in walls, piping, doors and windows. Use a hardwearing material like metal sheeting to prevent rodents from re-entering through any compromised areas, as rats can chew through everything from wooden posts to dry walls.
4. Inspect buildings for signs of an existing infestation. Visible footprints at ground level or on ledges, smear marks along ledges, walls or cables, damage in structures and equipment from gnaw marks, and droppings are all tell-tale signs of activity. Don’t forget to look at electrical wires and cabling – many farm fires have been caused by rodents chewing through electrical wires.
5. Store animal feed and grain safely. Taking measures to prevent animal feed or grain from being contaminated and consumed is an important step. Rats can carry up to 45 dangerous diseases which can pose a serious health and safety issue. Ensure stores are thoroughly cleaned and inspect every inch for any entry points or damage where rodents may enter and clean up any food spills immediately.
6. Monitor for activity. Using a Monitoring Paste will help farmers spot rodent activity before an infestation can get out of hand. It also means any rodents in the area will become more familiar with the object, reducing neophobia when the monitoring baits are replaced with rodenticide. An alternative monitoring method is to leave a patch of sand along a suspected rat run overnight and look for paw marks in the sand the next day.

Further expert advice is available and additional advice on BASF’s specialty rodent control solutions can be found on its website.

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The new tool covers all main arable and outdoor horticultural crops, and has been built to complement VI’s existing IPM Plan. It offers easy access to information about methods available for controlling relevant pests, weeds, and diseases, and makes it easy for farmers to deliver the IPM action under the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI).

The methods recommended by the tool have previously been tested and proven to be effective, with research reviews undertaken by experts from ADAS and SRUC.

Project lead and ADAS technical director for Crop Protection, Dr Neil Paveley, said: “Thousands of farmers have created plans for Red Tractor using the VI IPM Plan, and we have worked closely with the NFU and VI to provide this alternative, more crop-specific, IPM planning tool.

“With farmers now actively encouraged to implement IPM, this tool gives those who are completely new to it practical support to get started. And, for the majority of farmers who are already practicing IPM to some degree, the tool could open doors to alternative techniques that may be more effective or suit their farm better”.

Prior to its launch yesterday (28^th September), the tool has undergone extensive development and testing with over a hundred farmers and agronomists involved as part of a Defra Test and Trial, led by the NFU.

The tool allows farmers to create an IPM plan specific to their crop in just one hour. Christopher Rutterford, an arable farmer based in East Anglia, said the tool is simple to use an has an easy-to-follow layout.

“I was most impressed with it as a way of formalising our IPM actions and being able to present the results in a recognisable and acceptable way, in order to demonstrate our responsible crop protection procedures. I see it as a valuable means to systematise our own actions and to present these actions to others”.

For agronomists, the tool allows IPM plans to be completed for multiple farms that can be easily updated each year. Although the IPM planning tool was created to support growers applying for the IPM SFI action, it can also be used to support Red Tractor requirements.

Dr Paveley added: “The IPM Tool is based on many years of research and practical experience, and there is a huge amount of information available if growers want to go deeper into a topic, with links to guidance provided by AHDB, PGRO, BBRO and other independent organisations.”

Phil Jarvis, chair of the Voluntary Initiative, agreed that “IPM is an ever-evolving management process”.

“Providing tools and knowledge allows growers to make informed and important farming decisions. This tool compliments existing entry points, such as the VI/NFU IPM Plan, and assists farmers on the IPM journey”.

The IPM Planning tool is now available to use free of charge via the NFU website and growers are invited to provide feedback so developers can continue to improve the tool.

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As part of strategic plans to expand representation throughout the UK, Garford approached Ben Burgess & Co following the latter’s acquisition of JW Doubleday in August last year.

Garford develops and manufactures technologically advanced mechanical weed control products, including its range of Robocrop Precision Guided Hoes and Robocrop InRow Weeders.

“We are delighted and excited to be working with Ben Burgess & Co, and expanding our coverage across new territories,” explains Andy Baggott, UK & Ireland sales manager at Garford Farm Machinery.

“This is very much the first step towards expanding our dealership network across the UK and Ireland over the coming months, and the link up with Ben Burgess & Co is a perfect fit, extending and supporting our previous relationship with JW Doubleday since 2016,” he adds.

The full range of Garford’s innovative, precision guided equipment, developed and manufactured in the UK, will now be available across the entire Ben Burgess & Co estate, covering 11 branches across East Anglia and the East Midlands, including the four outlets previously serviced under JW Doubleday.

“This is very much an ongoing relationship, providing continuity in terms of support, structure and on-going after-sales support, while opening up new territory and geographical areas for our range, as well as for bespoke requirements,” adds Mr Baggott.

David Fairman, sales director at Ben Burgess & Co, comments: “Adding UK manufactured and designed technology and equipment to our product portfolio is a real positive for us, and also ties in with our commitment to sustainable agriculture.”

Increasingly stringent controls over the use of chemical weed controls, allied to supply chain issues, will see hoeing and intercrop cultivation become the norm and common practice again, according to Mr Fairman. In part driven by necessity, but also as UK agriculture embraces its environmental responsibilities.

“We firmly believe we are already seeing a natural swing back to mechanical weeding, not only for high value and high-intensive crops, but also across broadacre crops,” he says.

With around 75% of Ben Burgess & Co’s business focused on broadacre arable, providing innovative mechanical weed control products for this market represents a huge opportunity.

“While the specialist and high-value crop growers will always use inter-row and in the row weeding, we feel it is a really exciting place to be in around mainstream broadacre and large-scale arable operations,” adds Mr Fairman.

The agreement with Garford Farm Machinery & Ben Burgess & Co was signed in July 2023, and will include full-after sales support and customer relationship management, through Garford’s dedicated development and production facilities near Peterborough.

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The future viability of maize being grown in the UK has been called into question due to the government planning to impose a ban on all seed treatments, including Korit (ziram) bird deterrent, Redigo M (prothioconazole + metalaxyl) fungicide and Force 20 CS (tefluthrin) insecticide.

The ban would mean that, from 31^st December 2023, it would be illegal to import, sell or sow any seed which has been treated with any of these products, leaving crops at significant risk of failure.

“Without a suitable bird repellent, insecticide and fungicide, there’s a substantial risk that newly drilled crops could be completely wiped out by corvid grazing, or seriously hindered by insect damage and soil-borne pathogens,” explained Tim Richmond, maize manager for Limagrain Field Seeds in the UK and Ireland.

“Corvids are highly intelligent birds, and quickly understand seed drilling patterns, with any attempt to drill seed deeper to prevent bird damage likely to exacerbate the risk of seedling blight, making the application of a fungicide seed treatment such as Redigo M even more critical.”

To counter the ban, which has threatened the industry as a result of the UK’s departure from the EU, an industry working group – spearheaded by Limagrain UK – has been set up to lobby the government into taking action.

“Limagrain has taken a leading role in this sector-wide campaign which has also included the MGA, AIC and NFU,” Mr Richmond continued.

“A number of emergency authorisation (EA) applications have been made to the regulators for the continued use of these treatments for sowing in spring 2024, with a decision on whether the ban will be withdrawn or delayed due imminently.”

According to Mr Richmond, the Expert Committee on Pesticides is scheduled to meet in September, with a final announcement are expected to be made before the end of the month.

“As things currently stand, we’re confident that our ongoing discussions with the Farming Minister, the Rt. Hon. Mark Spencer MP, will have a favourable outcome and that all three seed treatments will still be available for use in 2024 – either as a result of the Emergency Authorisations being granted, or because of a change in the law to delay the withdrawal date,” he added.

Despite the imminent announcement, there remains significant uncertainty amongst UK maize growers, with some already suggesting they are preparing to sow an alternative crop such as wholecrop winter wheat.

“We appreciate that the clock is ticking and that for some growers any announcement might come too late,” Mr Richmond said. “But until a concrete decision has been made, we’d urge growers not to rush into making any changes to next year’s rotation.

“We will know more in a relatively short timeframe and will announce the Committee’s decision as soon as it has been made known to us. In the meantime, we are continuing to lobby for the new generation of maize seed treatments to be registered with the CRD as quickly as possible to ensure maize remains a viable crop in the UK in the long-term.”

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BYDV (barley yellow dwarf virus) infection can arise from two potential sources – directly from wingless aphids walking from infected plants in the same field or adjacent areas to the current crop, or indirectly where winged aphids migrate into newly emerged crops from further afield.

The earlier the infection occurs, the more damaging the virus can be at impacting yield to the newly emerged crop.

“Aphid vectors, especially Bird Cherry Oat aphids, are being caught in suction traps now, so any green stubbles will be attractive to the aphids – increasing the risk of transfer,” explained Hutchinsons southern technical manager, Neil Watson.

“There are several reasons for this elevated risk from the green bridge this autumn,” he says. “There is a potential reservoir of late BYDV infections in winter rather than spring cereals this season, which is the exact opposite of this time last year.”

The green bridge refers to the potential reservoir of aphids that have survived either on volunteer cereals or adjacent host crops which can infect the newly emerging cereal crop.

“Bushel weights are not as high as normal, leading to a greater potential of seed going out the back of the combine, ultimately leading to more volunteers, and the moist soil conditions are ensuring a rapid emergence of those volunteers,” Mr Watson continued.

As more growers turn to low-disturbance cultivation practices such as direct drilling, the risk of direct transfer also increases, while cover crops and environmental headlands can potentially harbour aphids, he added. The weather also has a role to play, with warm conditions working in favour of aphid numbers that are currently higher than normal.

As a result, managing the green bride is of vital importance if growers are to avoid large-scale losses from this yield-robbing disease.

“It’s key there is sufficient time between killing the volunteers through desiccation or cultivations and drilling the next crop,” Mr Watson pointed out. “As the volunteers start to die back, and they turn yellow, they could present a greater risk of attracting aphids than would normally be the case.

“If large numbers of aphids are present on volunteers or weeds which are cultivated during seedbed preparation, they can feed on new crop roots and transmit virus directly without appearing above ground level to provide a control opportunity,” he warned.

Using sticky traps to monitor aphid numbers in newly emerging crops is one way to get ahead of the curve. Mr Watson advises placing the traps downwind of the potential source of the flight into the crop, in a sheltered area that is five metres in from the headland at ground level.

He also noted that whilst environmental schemes and grass margins are supposed to increase the diversity of natural predators around the field margins, there is the possibility that through a lack of species diversity, they could harbour more aphids which cannot be treated until the end of the scheme.

“The increasing use of cover crops that inevitably include an element of cereals within the mixture will act as a potential reservoir. Woodland and waste ground could equally be a source of infection.”

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Spraying stubble with Roundup – Norfolk, October

Matt Siggs, Bayer

Guidelines from the Weed Resistance Action Group (WRAG) underline the importance of integrating cultivation and chemistry to achieve the best overall results. “The basic guidance is for a maximum of two glyphosate applications after harvest and before drilling. If you have time to make two applications, use cultivation in between to eliminate any survivors” explains Matt.

“Rates and application technique are important too, make sure the dose is sufficient for the hardest to kill weed in the field. And, don’t go too fast and risk sub-optimal doses which could leave survivors requiring further treatment.”

Farmers using zero-till approaches need to be particularly careful around glyphosate applications as they don’t have cultivation available as a follow up method. Matt suggests that farmers need to look at a range of methods to manage weeds. Having a diverse rotation with varied establishment dates, possibly using cover crops can all help avoid over-reliance on glyphosate.

Some of the key risk factors to be aware of include:

Population dynamics

High weed populations tend to increase the risk of resistance development. Take action to drive down numbers before using herbicides to reduce the risk.

Lack of diversity in control methods

Reliance on few or only one method of control greatly increases the risk of resistance developing. This applies to chemical and cultural control methods, the more diversity across the cropping cycle, the better.

Cultivating oil seed rape stubble in Cambridgeshire, using Great Plains (Simba) SLD600 with Case 550 Quadtrac

Repeat applications to survivors

A small number of weeds often survive a herbicide application. In all likelihood, this is not due to resistance but because of application or field effects. In any case, take no chances, ensure survivors are controlled with another chemical mode of action or cultural method. Repeat applications of glyphosate to surviving weeds is a major resistance risk.

Low rates

Insufficient application rate for the target weed and poor application timing means too many weeds survive the application. These surviving weeds are a potential resistance risk and an immediate problem for farmers aiming for clean, high-yielding crops.

Spraying cultivated stubble with Roundup – Norfolk, October

Poor application technique

Incorrect sprayer set up and operation can result in under or overdosing the product, affecting performance in the field. In the long term, this can contribute to resistance development. Examples of poor application technique include:

• Poorly maintained machinery which is not routinely calibrated and serviced
• Incorrect selection of nozzles for the job at hand and/or not replaced when worn out
• Operating at the wrong boom height and travelling too fast (+12km/hr)

Additionally physical losses from drift, run-off and bounce, and chemical losses due to pH, hard water and light degradation can all reduce the quantity of active reaching the target hence causing below par control.

Incorrect timing

Adverse weather conditions and weed growth stage can both impair glyphosate performance. For example, poor downward translocation will occur during the stem extension phase of growth.

Further information on the Roundup product can be found on Bayer’s website.

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Reports from across the country have shown a mixed picture where maize drilling is concerned, with some growers still waiting for the soil to dry out while others already have seeds in the ground.

Many growers have also missed the window for pre-emergence spray applications, which are strongly recommended by agronomists to curb the spread of early germinating weeds.

Certis Belchim technical manager James Cheesman said this could result in over-reliance on the traditional post-emergence herbicide timing at the 4- to 6-leaf stage of the crop, which is a risky scenario – particularly when planting late in the season.

“What we don’t want is broad-leaved species getting away from us and extracting moisture and nutrients from the soil and away from the maize. We know it’s a crop very sensitive to competition early on,” he explained.

To stop weeds from stunting early crop growth, he recommends a split dose post-emergence herbicide strategy, including where no pre-emergence product was applied. Otherwise, growers will be relying on a one-hit approach at 4-6-leaf, which carries the risk of weeds making a dent in final yield.

A good option is to apply a 0.75-litres/ha dose of Diva (pyridate) at the 2-leaf stage as a holding spray, with the addition of mesotrione if the early broad-leaved weed burden is particularly high.

The main post-emergence spray then follows, comprising mesotrione with a nicosulfuron product like Fornet 6 OD, plus the addition of another dose of Diva, where appropriate, whilst staying within the total maximum total dose of 1.5-litres/ha.

This approach will ensure crops are protected until canopies are sufficiently large to block out sunlight from emerging weeds. “It also allows you to wait for grassweeds to germinate without other broad-leaved species getting too big, then take them out with the final pass using an appropriate tank-mix,” Mr Cheesman added.

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The British Beet Research Organisation (BBRO) has laid out yellow water traps at its 12 trial sites and is monitoring aphids and beneficial insects at a further 34 locations across the sugar beet growing area.

The organisation’s head of science Dr Mark Stevens says winged aphids are appearing at all trials sites and numbers of wingless aphids which transmit yield-damaging beet poleroviruses are on the rise.

While crops drilled with Cruiser SB (thiamethoxam) should be protected from wingless aphid activity during that time, he warns sugar beat that doesn’t have that protection will be under pressure over the next few weeks as temperatures rise and aphid numbers continue to build.

According to Dr Stevens, aphid pressure is a particular concern this spring because much of the crop is behind where it should be at this time of year. This increases the risk of yield penalty at harvest, which is greatest when the crop is infected early in its development.

To minimise the risk of yield penalties, he recommends treating non-Cruiser crops with a foliar insecticide as soon as the spray threshold of 1 green wingless aphid per 4 plants up to 12 true leaves is met. However, he added it can be difficult to decide which product to use first.

“As BBRO monitoring suggests beneficial insect numbers are generally low, it is potentially better to go with InSyst (acetamiprid) first for rapid knockdown of aphids in small, vulnerable crops,” he says.

Growers can then follow up with Teppeki (flonicamid) if aphid numbers breach the threshold again. This will provide a period of systemic protection against aphids without extensive damage to beneficials, allowing then to assist with pest control for the rest of the growing season.

BBRO has also applied for access to a third insecticide active substance, spirotetramat, and hopes to obtain emergency authorisation in time for use in June.

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For most crops, choosing to use cyantraniliprole as a drench during plant raising could leave serious gaps in the crop protection portfolio later in the season, Simon warned.

That will be particularly apparent with current forecasts of a relatively early start to the aphid migration movement.

Handling early aphid emergence

“Aphids will be flying around two weeks earlier in Scotland and northern England and up to a week earlier over much of southern England, compared with when they would be expected historically.

“Early aphid emergence and higher than average aphid numbers could increase the risk of virus infection,” advised Simon. Infection early in the growing season typically has greater effect on plant health, vigour and final yield quality.

Although peach potato aphid typically exhibits the classic mid-season crash, where numbers drop significantly through late July, cabbage aphid has, for the past few seasons, continued to migrate into crops throughout the summer.

On crops such as Brussels sprouts, where virus would rarely be seen to be having a visual effect, growers would consider using spinosad as a drench for Cabbage root fly control and thus increase the number of foliar insecticide applications.

Protecting with Minecto One

Plan season long programmes with Minecto One to help keep Brussels sprout buttons free of pest damage.

Gap analysis of growers’ insecticide programme options for Brussels sprouts and cabbage show just how important a role Minecto One plays in maintaining a season-long protection programme from mid-June through to early October, especially with more open autumn conditions favourable for prolonged aphid activity.

“To enable the use of Minecto One, brassicas must not have been treated with cyantraniliprole as a plant drench during raising,” he advised. “Where growers have opted to use spinosad (Tracer) as a drench, then they can come straight in with Minecto One as a first spray for foliar pests earlier in the programme.”

The focus on the earliest foliar applications has become more intense since the loss of neonicotinoid seed treatments, with growers reporting increased issues of early aphid virus transmissions from less effective drench treatments.

“With the option for two Minecto One applications in a programme, along with two fast-acting Afinto treatments and two applications of spirotetramat, for example, agronomists can alternate modes of action with each application for good resistance management and achieve protection right through the season,” he advocated. Afinto stops feeding and reduces virus transmission, however aphids may remain active for a few days before mortality due to the mode of action.

Utilising spinosad drench, followed by an initial Minecto One, along with a second application mid-season, will also give growers a more effective option for thrip, beetles and whitefly later. In field trials the addition of a methylated rapeseed oil with Minecto One has been shown to increase activity on sucking pests. Whitefly, in particular, has been seen to be active well into November in recent years, Simon pointed out.

For short-season broccoli and cauliflower brassicas, with a sub 90-day growing cycle, spirotetramat should provide sufficient coverage for the year.

Simon Jackson, Syngenta technical manager, advisers growers to keep all options open for season-long pest control.

Furthermore, for production of storage cabbage, where early virus infection can lead to internal quality issues, the use of cyantraniliprole as a plant drench prior to planting out could prove a sensible precaution, but would be more reliant on the Afinto applications in early July and mid-August to boost protection.

This season there is a new EAMU for the use of Minecto One on kale and collards for control of diamond back moth (Plutella xylostella) and other caterpillar species, along with control of flea beetle (Phyllotreta sp) and cabbage stem flea beetle (Psylliodes chrysocephala) on oriental cabbage. Growers are reminded that EAMUs are also in place for thrip and leaf miner in leeks, with full details of all EAMUs on the HSE website.

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John Keer of Richard Austin Agriculture.

With wet soil conditions persisting this spring, producers have had limited opportunities to get potato crops established in the ground. John Keer of Richard Austin Agriculture said forcing progress has resulted in cloddy seed beds on bodied soils, which can bring unwanted side effects on the crop throughout the season.

“When you plant under marginal conditions, you aren’t going to get top quality or yield and there is very little you can do to row it back during the season.

“The last few springs have given us model planting conditions, but this season there are clearly a lot of crops that have been mauled in,” he noted.

Mr Keer believes the increased prevalence of clod and lack of finer tilth in these fields is going to significantly up slug pressure for many growers.

“Structure of the ridge is the single biggest factor. Wherever there’s clod, the slugs just love those surrounding channels, which enable them to move around more freely. They will inevitably be more of an issue this year,” he warned.

To protect crops against potential damage, he advised setting out traps promptly to monitor pest activity, particularly where seed was planted in suboptimal conditions.

This will help determine the best timing for applications of slug pellets, which ideally start as soon as tubers reach a golf ball size, then continue every second or third blight spray while slugs remain active.

“Use a durable, wet-extruded pellet, particularly if you are under irrigation. The cheaper, dry pressed formulations tend to fall apart soon after the first water application or rain,” Mr Keer remarked.

Kate Downes from Certis Belchim said Sluxx HP is an effective deterrent that fits into the durable category and is the ideal choice due its wet processed, pasta-based formulation with unique EDDS chelating agent.

“It has proven long-lasting efficacy under wet and irrigated conditions and its even pellet size means it can be spread accurately to distances up to 36m off sprayers, which is now a common practice across the potato area,” she added.

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