The Tillage Edge Teagasc

Contractors play a vital role in the tillage industry and this week on The Tillage Edge podcast, Michael Hennessy chats to two contractors, Patrick Nolan, who is working close to Athy, Co Kildare and Padraig Noonan, close to Conna in Cork.   
 
Both men outline the pressures to completing work during the past 10 days with Padraig saying they have completed most of the spring planting, however he mentioned a shift from tillage to grass in his area which is reducing the overall area this year.
 
Patrick Nolan has more tillage area to plant and feels he is a little more behind due to other demands such as emptying slurry tanks.  Both contractors agree the poor winter pushed more work to the spring making it harder to satisfy all customers at once.  
 
 
For more episodes and information from the Tillage Edge podcast go to:https://www.teagasc.ie/crops/crops/the-tillage-edge-podcast/ Produced on behalf of Teagasc by LastCastMedia.com

Life Scientific, is an Irish company researching, developing and manufacturing off-patent plant protection products for the global market.  
 
For this week’s Tillage Edge, Michael Hennessy was joined by Ruth Stanley, the Ireland and UK country manager, to tell us a bit more about the company, and by Scott Lovell, from Croplink, who distribute some of their products.
 
Ruth and Scott explain how Life Scientific's manufactured generic products essentially mirrors the original product on the market.  
 
Ruth says their R&D team spends a considerable amount of time investigating the exact makeup of the product allowing an exact replica which is acceptable by the registration authority.
 
For more episodes and information from the Tillage Edge podcast go to:https://www.teagasc.ie/crops/crops/the-tillage-edge-podcast/ Produced on behalf of Teagasc by LastCastMedia.com

Teagasc Tillage Specialists, Ciaran Collins and Shay Phelan, joined Michael Hennessy on the latest Tillage Edge podcast to talk about winter crop management over the next couple of weeks.  
 
First, Ciaran touched on the complexity of applying multiple products to crops which have not received any treatment yet. 
 
He says that winter barley which is due to receive broad weed herbicide, plant growth regulator and wild oat herbicides, will need to be assessed carefully as loading the tank can result in crop damage.  
 
Shay talked through the actions needed for winter wheat and he stressed the need to assess growth stages and leaf development as crops are variable across the country.
 
The Teagasc Tillage Helpline on 059 918 3533 is still open from Monday to Saturday, 9am – 9pm, for farmers who wish to get some help and support from the Teagasc Tillage advisory team.
 
 
For more episodes and information from the Tillage Edge podcast go to:https://www.teagasc.ie/crops/crops/the-tillage-edge-podcast/ Produced on behalf of Teagasc by LastCastMedia.com

The continuing poor weather is forcing many farmers to change their cropping decisions and on this week’s Tillage Edge, Ciaran Collins and Shay Phelan, both Tillage Specialists in Teagasc, discuss the benefits and risks of making cropping changes.
 
Shay explains that the choice between planting seed which cannot be returned and leaving it in the shed for next year is made even more difficult as the weeks pass by.  
 
Both Ciaran and Shay point to calculating a Gross Margin for a crop and maximising the payments like straw incorporation measure and the protein scheme.   
 
For those who might like to chat through these options, chat to your advisor.  Teagasc has also opened a Tillage Helpline at 059 918 3533 which is open for the next couple of weeks Monday to Saturday, 9am – 9pm.
 
For more episodes and information from the Tillage Edge podcast go to:https://www.teagasc.ie/crops/crops/the-tillage-edge-podcast/ Produced on behalf of Teagasc by LastCastMedia.com

Jim McCarthy joins the Tillage Edge again this week with the latest on managing the 16,000 hectare farm in Romania and to share some insights on the global grain trade.  
 
Jim discusses the agronomy of growing crops in Romania and how the farm is growing most of their crops using less nitrogen but with an increased use of digital farming methods.
 
Jim says the use of precision farming allows grain maize to be planted in exactly the same row as N fixing cover crops allowing a saving of nitrogen.  
 
He points to the reduced grain prices leading to a larger than normal number of farmers who are now in financial difficulties but points out that the Romanian government has stepped in to help these farmers until this harvest.  
 
For more episodes and information from the Tillage Edge podcast go to:https://www.teagasc.ie/crops/crops/the-tillage-edge-podcast/ Produced on behalf of Teagasc by LastCastMedia.com

Buffer zones are important to protect waterbodies and Hugh Rooney, a Teagasc ASSAP advisor, joins this week’s Tillage Edge to talk about how buffer zones are necessary and what benefits these areas can bring.    
 
Hugh explains that protecting waterbodies from nitrates, phosphates, sediment, pesticides and organic matter are all crucial to help the healthy status of rivers.
 
He highlights the areas on the farm where three metre buffer zones are necessary and also talks about the need for six metre buffer zones for late harvested crops like potatoes, beet, maize, root vegetables, etc.
 
For more episodes and information from the Tillage Edge podcast go to:https://www.teagasc.ie/crops/crops/the-tillage-edge-podcast/ Produced on behalf of Teagasc by LastCastMedia.com