Protecting oilseed rape crops with mid-flowering sprays may pay dividends later.

Clayton Business Development Manager, Jessie Boden advises growers to consider the merits of applying flowering fungicide sprays soon this month to protect oilseed rape crops.

“With oilseed rape crops looking in good condition around the UK at the moment and prices holding around the £440450/tonne mark, protecting these crops during flowering against sclerotinia infections may be important this season to maximise profit margins.” says Jessie.

Crops this year are generally looking better currently than they have for a number of seasons following good establishment last autumn, and although sclerotinia pressure has been relatively low in oilseed rape so far, rainfall events in this period can quickly change this, so protection at this timing can be critical. With all crops in flower now, growers should consider mid-flower fungicide applications to specifically target and protect against sclerotinia.  Planning your optimal fungicide choice will be important, and ensuring very good coverage with flowering sprays is also key.

Clayton has a strong range of product options for oilseed rape growers utilising the actives prothioconazole and tebuconazole, which both offer very cost-effective, robust disease control options.

Products including Clayton Navaro^™, Clayton Pontoon^™, Clayton Trellis^™,

Clayton Finch^™, Clayton Tuskar^™, Clayton Tebucon^™250EW and Clayton Tebbit^™ all provide growers a good choice of straight or co-formulated options for these reliable and powerful triazole actives.