This season is providing an ideal opportunity to plant oilseed rape. The winter cereal and oilseed rape harvest has happened in stages and winter cropping area is down, so farmers are moving through work relatively quickly.

It will also be a while before many people harvest their spring cereals, so this provides an ideal opportunity to plant oilseed rape on farms. Last year, the weather did not suit. But, so far, ground conditions are good and many crops are cleared from fields to allow for sowing.

The area of oilseed rape has moved from 8,600ha and 8,700ha in 2019 and 2020 to 10,000ha in 2021, 14,500ha in 2022 to 20,500ha in 2023 and about 15,000ha in 2024.

The autumn of 2022 provided ideal sowing conditions and the autumn of 2023 proved the opposite, which resulted in a swing in crop area.

At present, the planting season for 2024 is ideal and if you plan on planting oilseed rape, sow it as soon as possible to get it up and running.

Sowing

Oilseed rape should be planted at 60-80 seeds/m2 and this should establish 30-50 plants/m2.

Consult with your merchant before sowing. Some varieties will have good vigour to establish quickly.

The thousand seed weight should also be accounted for and adapt to sowing conditions and date as the season goes on.

A cash catch crop

Oilseed rape is often referred to as a super catch crop. It can be planted early, when you would plant a catch crop. It grows quickly and sets down roots quickly.

It has many benefits of a catch crop with the major advantage that it’s a cash crop, which you have produce from and which will deliver a benefit to the following crop.

Early sowing will take as much nitrogen as possible from the ground, which has been left after the previous crop. This should result in less nitrogen being applied to crops in the springtime.

Early growth will get crops hardy for the winter and better able to fight pests.

DK Expose.

Why you should plant oilseed rape

  • Provides a break from cereal crops.
  • Fast establishment.
  • Takes up leftover nutrients.
  • Allows for the use of alternative herbicides to control problem weeds.
  • Some herbicides offer control of resistant blackgrass, so this is a great opportunity to control the weed.
  • Relatively low-input crop.
  • More and more varieties emerging with good resistance to diseases and viruses.
  • Good tap root to break up compaction.

    • Why oilseed rape may not suit your farm

  • Oilseed rape has become much more grower-friendly in recent years with pod shatter resistance and other traits.
  • It still needs to be cut as soon as possible when it’s ready.
  • However, you need high clearance with your sprayer.
  • Adjustments needed to the combine.
  • If you have a brassica weed problem, the Clearfield varieties often yield less than conventional or hybrid varieties.
  • If you have planted brassica cover crops on your farm, there may be a risk of clubroot.

    • Aurelia.

    Recommended list

    The recommended list (Table 1) for oilseed rape is generally a little bit behind, as the crop is planted just a few weeks after it is harvested.

    As a result, there will be varieties available for sale which are not on the Department of Agriculture’s recommended list.

    All varieties on the list are hybrid. Ambassador and Aurelia remain ones to watch on the list for crop yield.

    LG Aviron looks impressive on relative yield at 108 on the recommended list. LG Aviron and Dart both carry scores of eight for resistance to light leaf spot. There is a big difference between plant heights across the list. Take a good look through it.

    Talk to your merchant on other seed that is available. For example, DK Expansion is on the recommended list, but DK Expose has yet to make the cut and looks impressive.

    Other varieties coming down the line that are worth a mention are LG Armada and LG Aukland.

    Clearfield varieties

    Clearfield varieties are extremely useful on farms where brassica weeds are a problem, or where brassica catch crops have been planted, as they allow brassica weeds to be controlled in oilseed rape crops, but farmers should be aware that, in general, these varieties are not as high yielding as hybrid varieties.

    o Clearfield varieties feature on the recommended list.

  • Oilseed rape can be planted from now on.
  • Consult with your seed supplier on available varieties.
  • Varieties are evolving all the time with new traits making it a more attractive crop to grow.
  • Great break crop for nutrient uptake and weed control.