RNAS Growing Crop Competition 2008
Competition Results
Spring Barley Comes Out Top in RNAS Cereals Awards
Winner of the Royal Northern Agricultural Society’s cereal growing competition for 2008 is Ian Davidson, Moss-side, Oldmeldrum, with a field of Cocktail spring barley.
Mr Davidson, who is due to host the RNAS crop event on his farm next June, has won the competition several times previously with winter barley but has not grown spring barley for 25 years until this year. The competition, sponsored by UAP Ltd, has been won by Robigus winter wheat for the past four years.
The winning crop has received hardly any bought-in fertiliser – only 30 units of nitrogen per acre and no phosphate or potash – but generous quantities of pig slurry applied at 2000 gallons per acre after sowing and again after tillering.
“I couldn’t get the yield from spring barley in the old days but if the crop can be grown with so little bagged fertiliser – an important consideration at current fertiliser prices – I will consider growing more spring barley in the future,” said Mr Davidson.
“The crop is looking well and we’ve had to apply three dozes of plant growth regulator to keep it standing.”
Mr Davidson expects the crop to be ready for harvesting at the beginning of September and hopes to get the grain away for malting on a high nitrogen contract to Aberdeen Grain.
Judge, Alan Carlton of Taminco UK Ltd, East Yorkshire, admitted that the selection of spring barley for the top award might be surprising to some farmers.
“But it was such an excellent crop with full use being made of the pig slurry available on the farm,” said Mr Carlton. “In the past month, I have travelled all over Europe and, in such a difficult season, it’s very pleasing to see such excellent crop husbandry being applied by such enthusiastic farmers in the North-east.
“It has been a great privilege to judge the crop competition and I hope the weather will hold for the successful harvesting of these crops which look set to return big yields.”
Mr Davidson also topped the class for non-LFA winter barley with a Boost/Pearl blend while his nephew, Greg Davidson-Gall, Newton of Kinmundy, Mintlaw – winner of the competition for the past two years – had the best crop of non-LFA winter wheat with Robigus.
Runner-up for the top award and winner of the LFA winter wheat class was Philip Duncan, Tulloch, Forbes, Alford, with a field of Alchemy.
The young farmers’ class was won by Alison Mackie, Whiteside, Tullynessle, Alford with a crop of winter wheat.
Crops are judged for quality and potential yield, including uniformity, freedom from weeds and pests, grain size and estimated plant stand.
Preliminary judging of the 55 entries was carried out by George Farquhar of UAP who co-ordinated the arrangements for the competition in his capacity as a director of the RNAS.