Brought to you by Bayer Crop Science
Excellent weed control with Cossack Star
At Bert Bentum from Ommelanderwijk (Groningen), grain cultivation gets just as much attention as the other crops on his company. "Of course, grain is important for the structure and soil life. But for me it is also just a crop that should bring in money," says the arable farmer.
Although Bentum keeps a close eye on costs, he is not likely to cut back on weed control any time soon. "The crops must be clean, otherwise you will miss kilos anyway."
Sum of benefits
With a share of 25 to 30 percent, grain cultivation is well represented in Bentum's construction plan. But for many colleagues that has not been a matter of course for a long time, he notices. "More and more arable farmers are exchanging a piece of grain for onions, Parisian carrots or another intensive crop. Given the differences in yield, this is quite understandable, but whether that is sustainable in the longer term...?" in the middle, but for the time being stick to at least a quarter of the grain.
In addition to the fact that grain is good for the structure and soil life, a (successful) green manure can easily be grown on it. It is also an ideal crop for tackling root weeds. In addition, the arable farmer can also use a large part of the straw to cover the potato heaps. "It is mainly the sum of advantages that keeps grain cultivation attractive for me."
'Getting maximum out of cultivation'
When asked about the cultivation strategy for the grains, Bentum is very clear: "I just want to get the most out of the cultivation and I do everything for that." ) and he does not skimp on fertilization, and weed and disease control must also be 'sound and secure' in his opinion.
For weed control in winter wheat, Cossack Star, supplemented with Starane® Top and a wetting agent. Bentum: "We are on weedy soils here, so successful weed control is of great importance. Besides the fact that competition from weeds can easily cost several hundred kilos in yield, the (damp) weed seed can also lead to problems when threshing. That's why I never do weed control: it almost always costs more than it yields."
With Cossack Star Basically, weed control works well. "We already had good experiences with Alena, the predecessor of Cossack Star† And that hasn't changed much with Cossack Star: that drug works just fine'', concludes Bentum.
More information about our grain products, diseases and news can be found on the Bay website.
