Humber sown 18 September,
now tillering.
Photo Farming Online

South East: Peter Cowlrick reports that all wheat drilling now completed, apart from few fields after grain maize. Emerged crops typically range between 1.5-3 leaves. Earliest sown and most advanced crops now starting to tiller (GS 21-22).

Aphids: winged aphids now being found in non-dressed crops.

Slugs: recent spell of dry and cool weather seems to have reduced surface feeding activity, allowing treated fields to largely grow away now without further grazing being noted. Still proving problematic on some fields and more particularly on clay cap areas within fields following oilseed rape.

Weeds: Blackgrass now flushing through in many fields where no pre-emergence herbicides applied and lower levels beginning to appear where herbicide applied pre or peri-emergence - most of these emerging plants appear to be showing herbicide affected growth symptoms.
Meadow grasses: large flush in fields after linseed/set-aside in particular.
Volunteer beans - significant flush in many fields after spring/winter beans.

South West: Stephen Harrison reports that earliest drillings have six or seven tillers. Later sowings now slower to emerge and proving attractive to surface grazing slugs - especially as they seem slow to move from 1 to 3 leaves. Warm days and cool nights combined with deep drilling have caused a lot of banding on young plants (football stocking effect). Five nights or so of slight frost have hardened off crops for post emergence herbicides.

Aphids: still just winged migrants no secondary spread seen as yet.

Gout fly: a few gout fly eggs seen.

Slugs: surface grazing in evidence on fields where no previous history and where seed drilled at depth in good seed beds.

Weeds: worst fields now have blackgrass at 2 leaves, albeit at low to moderate populations, after pre emergence herbicides.

Mildew: earlier development has abated as cold nights set in.

East Midlands: Martin Eudall reports that cooler weather has slowed crops down a bit and later drilled second wheats are just chitting. Generally most crops at GS 13-15 with the odd forward crop at GS 21/22. Rain last week helped emergence in cloddy areas of fields, and most fields now have sufficient plant numbers.

Gout fly: new gout fly eggs can be found but generally numbers now low with many later emerged crops free.

Slugs: first signs of destroyed patches, but currently few and small. Worst following ploughing after oilseed rape. Damage generally is so far only slight as slug pellets have controlled slugs in high risk crops. Later crops being monitored, and where good soil cover around seed, risk will be as crops emerge.

Weeds: blackgrass emerging but main question with dormancy is how much more to come? Flush of volunteer rape and beans.

West Midlands: Bryce Rham reports that winter wheat being drilled after maize, and most will have completed drilling by beginning of next week. Wheat after oilseed rape is still, in the main, growing very slowly - particularly minimum tilled crops. Seedbeds after maize are very dry. First frosts are allowing spraying of post emergence herbicides to proceed at a pace as crops have now been hardened off. Some farms now drilled and sprayed up on all crops.

Aphids: none seen.

Frit fly: some damage after winter and spring oats. Levels are significantly lower than last year with only one field treated to date.

Gout fly: Gout fly eggs easily found on emerged crops. Later drilled wheats not showing signs of eggs as yet.

Slugs: levels of slugs on second wheats so far not too bad. But am also getting slug feeding after oats. Some fields or part fields have been re sown after oilseed rape.

Weeds: crop discolouration occurring after some herbicides, crop will grow away from transient discolouration.

Eastern Counties: Helen Baxter, reporting from Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire, says crops are now emerging rapidly. Colin Allott, Essex, reports that September drilled wheats now at 1-2 tillers stage, with majority at 1-2 leaf stage. Recent frosts have slowed down growth.

Aphids: populations building on early drilled crops.

Gout fly: Gout fly eggs found on emerging crops.

Slugs: Some fields after rape now completely shredded and being redrilled.

Weeds: blackgrass at 2-3 leaf stage. Pre-emergence herbicide already applied and doing a reasonable job of controlling broad leaf weeds.

North East: Phillip Tuplin reports that latest sown at GS 11, and earliest at GS 21. Most crops still in range of GS 11- 13. No rainfall at all his week. Had some warm days but a touch of ground frost in places overnight. Most crops evenly emerged but as always there are areas thinned by slugs and slow emergence where seedbeds less good. Have also seen areas of crop failure due to water logging resulting in 'burst' seed where had heavy rain about 7 days after drilling.

Aphids: low levels seen.

Gout fly: a few Gout fly eggs seen.

Slugs: some crops being grazed soon after emergence.

Weeds: Pre-emergence herbicide applications have worked well on most fields but a flush of blackgrass coming through now on some.

Phoma lesions on Astrid.
Photo Farming Online

South East: Crops range from 2-8 true leaves - bulk of crops are now around 5-6 true leaves.

Downy mildew: damaging levels on late emerging rape cotyledons - killing plants outright.

Phoma: symptoms now being found widely with many crops showing infection levels of around 5-20%, irrespective of supposed varietal resistance.

Flea beetle: very little renewed shot holing being found now.

Aphids: none seen.

Slugs: good seedbeds and dry soils have minimised problems to date this autumn in most cases, only exceptions are heavier soils/trashier seedbeds where crops have been re-pelleted again following rain.

Weeds: significant flush of blackgrass in a few fields, - in general though, emergence to date has been minimal in many fields.

South West: Late established small plants suffering badly from cold nights and Downy Mildew. Well established earlier sowings are still racing away.

Flea beetle: no further damage.

Phoma: majority of crops at threshold levels regardless of varieties inherent resistance.

Aphids: can be found in many rape crops.

Slugs: a lot of leaf grazing on larger plants, which these plants are well capable of withstanding.

Eastern Counties: Pat Turnbull reports that light land rape now at 6- 8 leaves +, growth is vigorous covering ground well. On heavier soil we still have the two different stages of growth depending on emergence date. These are frequently present in the same field. More forward plants 6 leaves + and growing away well. Late emergers struggling to 1 to 2 true leaves but growth is slow, some are being lost to downy mildew or frost. Waterlogging in areas on some fields has caused rape to go backwards and turn purple.

Downy mildew: causing cotyledons to die but next leaves just beginning to appear.

Phoma: first signs. Norfolk: many crops now at or close to threshold levels. Lincolnshire: none seen. Essex: now widespread Phoma spotting.

Slugs: High populations increasing after the recent rains becoming a major problem in some crops.

Weeds: emergence of blackgrass has been low.

East Midlands: Crops have moved on with forward crops at 7 leaves but still many patches at 2 leaves.

Phoma: levels remain generally low with no more than 5% but with many fields clear at present.

Flea beetle: now much less serious, especially after recent rain

Slugs: although some leaf grazing vast majority of crops now past any problems with thankfully only one field needing some re-drilling.

Pigeon damage: damage on one crop with pigeons being more active than would expect at this time of year - some bad leaf stripping seen - as the land is close to built up area bangers cannot be used as they go missing!

West Midlands: Most forward crops at 100% ground cover and up to 12 leaves. Still a lot of crops which will depend on recently emerged plants to survive to form a crop. Biggest concern with these late crops is the slow growth and how are the pigeons going to be kept off, also weed control is going to be an issue due to the uncompetitive nature of the crop, and finally - timing, when to apply the phoma spray when confronted with a field at 2 true leaves.

Phoma: still only finding very low levels but now visible on most crops (not late emerging crops to date, probably too small to pick signs up!)

Flea beetle: only slight damage seen so far.

Slugs: problems in some fields where emergence has been delayed and plant population low.

North East: Most forward up to 5 - 7 leaves now. Crops evened up well now but plants still very small in many crops. Rate of growth of these small crops is very slow, and not helped by frosty nights.

Phoma: more obvious now, but seems to be appearing in most forward crops.

Flea beetle: seen some severe damage this week on a late emerged crop despite seed dressing.

Slugs: no further damage seen.

Weeds: worst fields have significant germination of blackgrass now, which is at 1 - 2 leaves.

Eastern Counties:

South East: All crops range from 1 leaf to GS13. No diseases present.

South West: Earliest crops at 2 leaves. Some crops paled a little by peri-emergence herbicide treatments in high day/night temperature range.

Midlands: Majority of crop now drilled and growing quickly most advanced at GS 13. Low levels of aphids.

North East: Crops in range GS 11-21. Crops emerging evenly. Low levels of aphids in some crops. No diseases present.

Eastern Counties: Early drillings emerged and growing well. Later drilled now at 1-2 leaves. Net-blotch at low levels.