I always get jittery in early September, particularly if the weather’s fine as it’s largely been this year. With that said, we’ve had over 100mm of rain in September so far, but the land was so dry it’s been able to take it. You see, min-till sowing belongs to September and, if you are not sown up by mid-October, you’ll be harnessing the horses to the plough.

Foggy mornings and shorter days with poorer drying, as autumn wears on, make for sticky min-till seedbeds and covering the seed can be a problem.

For this reason, it’s tempting and probably sensible for people like me with acute plough phobia to start sowing cereals early.

But, as Andy Doyle will tell you, sowing cereals in mid-September isn’t particularly smart. In fact, min-till aside, it’s really becoming a mug’s game.

Disease control

Grassweed and disease pressure is higher, as is the risk of aphid-carried barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV) over an October sowing date. And unfortunately, there are now no ready solutions to these risks. We are meant to be putting more emphasis on cultural control of these problems rather than a chemical solution, which is good, but you have to be practical. There was a very effective and highly targeted seed dressing for BYDV, but the bureaucrats in Brussels banished it a couple of years ago.

Seemingly, it’s all part of their drive towards organics and reduced chemicals with the ensuing reduced yield which I believe is fundamentally wrong, particularly at the present time when food security is such an issue.

It’s tempting and probably sensible for people like me with acute plough phobia to start sowing cereals early

Are they not learning anything from their monumental energy security cock-up? Like depending almost entirely on Russia for gas and ignoring offshore wind and indeed nuclear energy for years? Sense will now have to prevail with European food production policies. They’ve had their wake up call.

However, back to simpler matters, before I get too excited. Early sowing is a balancing act and in good weather, I’m pacing the yard to get going. And as if this wasn’t bad enough, before the middle of September, Meath no-tiller Louis McAuley tweeted a picture of a trailer laden with 20t of seed clearly ready for off. I’d say it sent every min- and no-tiller into panic mode and me running to the toilet.

I’d wait until Monday 19 September, no later, and make a start then (that’s when we started last year, but BYDV took 0.3t/ac off wheat after beans).

Besides, the emerging oilseed rape would be out of intensive care by then, with the completion of all the usual multiple trips down the tramlines with slug pellets, graminicide and fertiliser and the endless will-it-or-won’t-it crop walking.

And yes, I have to agree, these fields should look the prettiest of the whole lot and with less Roundup, less volunteers and maybe less grassweeds

There are patches of charlock in the rape, but there’s nothing that can be done now with the withdrawal of another active this year. The list goes on.

Home-saved first wheat (Graham) following rape was the first into the ground in perfect conditions. I’m pleased with the shallower seedbeds we’ve created with the Farmet Fantom tined cultivator.

The dust gradually disappeared as the showery week went on, but I nibbled away at the heavier low-lying fields and those with a mat of chopped straw, which prevents drying. There’s less panic with the others and especially those with brome issues.

For this reason and others, we’ve ploughed the fields for winter barley, which should be sown this week. And yes, I have to agree, these fields should look the prettiest of the whole lot and with less Roundup, less volunteers and maybe less grassweeds.

What’s not to like? Eh, the diesel and labour costs and bumpy headlands make me not just jittery but plain sick. And there’s the small matter of carbon release…