First winter wheat early, yields variable

The winter barley has been threshed and the wheat grains have also been shaken out of their ears in the first places. Due to the rapid maturation of the crop, this is a lot earlier than in other years. However, it is ideal for sowing green manures. What do the first yields of the wheat fields look like and which green manure crops do they choose? 

In Zeeuws-Vlaanderen and Gelderland, the first Gewastour growers have threshed their wheat. These growers agree: it is actually too early to thresh wheat. In Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, growers Brian Salomé and Jacky Dieleman are satisfied with the yield. In Elst, the grower had hoped for a higher yield.

Ripened too quickly
At Daan Tap in Elst (Gelderland), the first wheat was already threshed on July 11, which is exceptionally early for him. "I've never harvested winter wheat this early before," says Tap. Normally, the wheat is harvested there after July 25. The yield was not easy on the river clay. "It is an early variety and was sown at the end of September. Due to the weather conditions, the wheat matured quickly, so that the grain filling was not successful." During threshing, Tap also lost yield due to the small grains. "The ear consisted of many small grains due to the rapid ripening. When the sieves in the combine were at their narrowest, I still lost small grains."

After the wheat harvest, the straw is pressed and then champost is sprinkled over the plot. Then a green manure mixture from DSV TerraLife is sown. A mixture of many different species is chosen.

Wheat harvest in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen
In Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, Brian Salomé and Jacky Dieleman harvested their first parcels of wheat this week. The growers were satisfied with the yield, which amounted to approximately 10 tonnes.

"We are one or two weeks earlier than normal this year," says Dieleman from Philippine (Zeeland). Nevertheless, both growers are satisfied with the yield. "Normally I am satisfied with 9 tons of wheat per hectare, but this year we are above 10 tons," says a satisfied Dieleman.

He normally chops up all his straw, but this year he made the choice to have a piece pressed. The straw goes to a livestock farmer and Dieleman receives solid manure in return. "I chose this because we get more trouble from the weeds of cocksfoot. By selling the straw to the livestock farmer and getting solid manure back from him, we try to reduce cocksfoot. Now I know where my solid manure comes from and I have to to improve".

After pressing, the manure is spread and a green manure crop is sown. "Last year I sowed N-Fix, but I also want to make a mixture myself. What I find important in a mixture is that it contains nitrogen-fixing plants. Maybe this year we will also opt for coriander as a second crop after the winter wheat, but I'm not sure about that yet," says Dieleman.

Positively surprised
Brian Salomé says the early wheat is usually his lesser wheat in terms of yield. However, the yield of the early wheat is good this year. "I have now harvested 10 tons per hectare with my early wheat. So I'm curious what my other wheat will yield." Salomé also started threshing much earlier than in other years.  

Solid manure is spread after the wheat. "I choose to sow a green manure that does not contain fodder radish. The reason for this is that I then have NKG in the spring. I don't break the tubers of fodder radish very well. For that I opt for the warm season green manure mixture or N-Fixx from DSV."

Please wait in the north
Reinder Hogenhout from Kimswerd (Friesland) expects it will take at least another two weeks before the wheat can be threshed. "When the first wheat can be threshed in the south, we have to be patient for at least another two weeks." He is satisfied with his plots. "The wheat still looks nice and all upright too. I use growth regulator a lot because I want a good firm wheat. I don't need long straw, because I always chop the straw anyway," Hogenhout explains. "I fertilize the wheat with 100 kilograms of nitrogen and Blue-N has to do the rest."

Incidentally, it is not true everywhere that the wheat is still upright. Storm Poly blew down quite a few hectares in various parts of the Netherlands last week. Some plots are almost completely flat.

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