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Historically high balance of rapeseed cultivation
Rapeseed cultivation is gaining interest. Not only because of the historically high rapeseed quotation of € 670 per tonne. Cultivation also provides many benefits for the soil.
The 2022 season will go down in the books as a special growing year for rapeseed. The high price level and the increased demand for rapeseed, which are related to the war in Ukraine, make the cultivation of this crop very interesting. Very high price levels are also expected in the coming years.
Three reasons why rapeseed is profitable
1. Sowing winter wheat after rapeseed = 10% more yield
Winter rapeseed is an early culling crop and therefore spreads the harvest. This also provides opportunities for progeny cultivation, for example of winter wheat. Subsequent crops benefit from the nitrogen mineralization from rapeseed and the improved soil structure. With winter wheat after rapeseed cultivation, this results in an increased yield of up to 10%.
2. Better rapeseed genetics, high yielding LG varieties
The high productivity of LG's latest varieties ensures that you get the most out of cultivation and the market. For three years in a row, the LG Ambassador has shown a stable, high yield in the SPNA variety trial of winter rapeseed. The breed is also known for its hardiness to bite. The numbers also show two upcoming toppers that are once again raising the bar for revenue: LG Aviron and LG Austin
3. Enrichment for the soil and good for biodiversity
Rapeseed improves the soil structure. The long tap roots store water and air in the soil, which benefits subsequent crops. The crop also scores highly in terms of biodiversity and sustainability. Bees, bumblebees and other insects benefit from the pollen and nectar present. Due to the increasing demand for sustainably grown, local products, rapeseed oil, among other things, is increasingly in the spotlight.
Yields of winter rapeseed varieties
The LG varieties performed very well in the SPNA winter rapeseed variety trial. The LG Ambassador has been the winner for years in a row when it comes to yield: 110 average over the last three years. That is 4,55 tons per hectare.
Crop rotation with rapeseed in the crop plan
Rapeseed is traditionally often used in a three- or four-yearly crop rotation with winter barley and winter wheat. This has to do with the earliness of winter barley as a pre-fruit and the higher yield of a cereal crop after rapeseed (up to 10% higher yield than in continuous cultivation). But rapeseed and sugar beet can also be grown in one rotation. This is not yet commonplace. Rotations with sprouts and beets prove that you can grow multiple beet cyst nematode (BCA) host plants within a rotation (1-to-4 rotations of beet host plants). In 90% of the cases on these plots there is no or only a slight infestation, even in sprouts that produce several generations of beet cyst nematodes.
For crop rotations with rapeseed, opt for BCA-resistant green manures and sugar beet varieties in the cropping plan.
Practical tips: minimize rapeseed storage in succeeding crop
Rapeseed is early culling and can withstand one generation of beet cyst nematodes, mits storage is contested.
What to do to minimize canola storage:
- Choose a variety with improved cut resistance (such as LG Ambassador)
- While threshing, keep checking for losses and adjusting the machine if necessary.
- After harvesting, wait for the seed to germinate, convert with a very shallow tillage and repeat if necessary.
- Apply point 3 in the form of a false seedbed for a BCA-1 green manure.
- Preferably grow a grain or grass as a fruit from which you can easily spray broadleaf.
What you absolutely must not do is deep tillage immediately after combining, such as turning or pulling with the fixed tine cultivator for grading. This way you bury the seeds and with every tillage a fraction of these seeds are activated. So it takes years before you get rid of the storage. If you choose an early culling crop to refresh your plot, choose winter barley.
