Year 2 where all first wheat was following pulses and slug pressure was less than year 1, lost crop due to slugs and blackgrass pressure still amounted to 22ha.(and very poor yields crops that were covered in blackheads but we couldn’t afford to write them off)
Year 3, autumn 2017 when just one 4m Triton drill was used no wheat crop was lost to slug. This was due to improved seed soil contact, consolidation without compaction from the closing tines restricting the slugs ability to traverse the seed slot. Emergence rate was noticeably faster even in the delayed drilling regime. A saving was made on slug pellet applications and blackgrass pressure was noticeably reduced due to less soil disturbance through the profile. (Yield av went up to 3.5t/ac milling wheat in a drought and some black grass)
(2018 autumn, whole 1050 acres drilled with one 6m Triton between Oct 25th and Nov 10th. No spring crops in rotation. All crops clear of black grass at present but early days)
(words in brackets – Simon Chaplin – Triton Seed Drills)
Taken the best day of the week to put in the last of our wheat. Four years ago we had to spray most of this field off for black grass but have seen very little emerge to date. Soils getting wet now but the #triton is going well. pic.twitter.com/nquifPcykI
— George Playne (@gogpan) December 4, 2018