Key Points
The Crop Sequence project was set up to examine the influence of five spring sown break crops on the performance of following wheat crops.
- Different break crops had a significant influence on the yield performance of first and second wheat crop yield but third wheat crop yield showed little influence of the previous break crop.
- Take-all (Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici (Ggt)) was implicated in a number of the yield differences recorded, particularly in the second wheat.
- First wheat, following spring sown barley and ryegrass, gave inferior yields to first wheat established after brassica seed crops, linseed and peas.
- There was evidence that whilst first wheat performance following grass was inferior to arable break crops such as peas, second wheat performance tended to be slightly better.
- Economics of the different crop sequences will be presented in a further Arable Update.