Quality spring oat poised to enter market

Smothering black-grass

Agrii has done trials work on spring oats in the past few seasons as part of its larger black-grass control strategy.

Work at its black-grass hub at Stow Longa, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire has shown that in strip trials where black-grass ear counts have been done, spring oats are arguably the most competitive spring cereal available, according to Skye van Heyzen, innovation crops manager at Agrii.

“We looked at spring oats, spring barley and spring wheat and which reduced black-grass ear count the most and it was spring oats. Oats are good at smothering the ground and dealing with adverse conditions better than other species.”

There may also be an allelopathic effect – where root exudates from oats adversely affect black-grass development, he says.

Cover crop potential

The conclusions of trials work done on black oats as a cover crop prior to growing vining peas could be applicable to spring oats planted in autumn as a cover crop.

Nine field trials were conducted by PGRO in Yorkshire’s East Riding, led by the organisation’s Dr Lea Herold over three years, covering the vining pea seasons of 2017, 2018 and 2019.

The species chosen for cover crop mixes were winter vetch, oil radish, black oats with berseem clover and phacelia with black oats.

Black oats proved themselves as the best cover crop before vining peas throughout these trials, says Dr Herold - and there is no reason why this would not also apply to spring oats.

“Mixes dominated by black oats have shown the most positive effects on soil structure, foot rot development and yield in vining peas.”

In the trials, black oat-based mixes resulted in better topsoil structure compared to no cover or competing species. Compaction was also moderately relieved with the use of black oats.

Dr Herold says: “When compared to conventional practice, employing a predominantly black oat based cover crop increased pea yield in five out of six trials where yield was measured. On three of those occasions, a yield increase of approximately 1.5 tonnes/hectare was achieved. Foot rot was subdued by black oat cover crops in a few trials and never exacerbated.”

For more information visit: www.pgro.org/downloads/FinalsummaryInvestigatingcovercropsinviningpearotations.pdf