Getting timing right is vital
By using tissue testing growers will be able to understand what is limiting their crops and remedy this with foliar nutrition alongside fungicide applications.
Given the late season the need to reduce activity is ever more important. Therefore, timing tissue testing could be vital this year.
Following the wet winter, crops will be lacking in a wide range of nutrients and tissue testing is the most accurate way to see what these are before they have any negative impact on the crop.
Magnesium, nitrogen and sulphur are the most obvious nutrients that will have leached over the winter, but zinc will also be a big consideration this spring as it’s commonly locked up in wet and cold soil conditions.
For example, last year 65 per cent of the crops we tested were deficient in zinc and I predict this will be the same if not more this year.
It is important to check the tank mix compatibility of foliar nutrition products before mixing with fungicides.
By applying foliar nutrition at key spray timings, growers can bypass any issues that may arise by getting vital nutrients into the crop to maximise their potential, while reducing travelling.
Chris Bond is a nutritional specialist at agricultural sciences company FMC
