As drilling of oilseed rape gets under way across the country, new varieties are proving to be popular amongst arable farmers this season.

Harvest began early across most of the UK this summer due to the warm and dry weather. While this means many farmers are preparing for a prompt start to drilling later in the season, most won’t begin drilling cereals until mid-September, according to Matt Shand, Head of Seed at Wynnstay.

“Despite the early harvest not many people have made early decisions on what varieties they are going to put in the ground, however, we have seen more people selecting new ones which have been added to the recommended lists,” he says.

“In group one winter wheats we have seen huge demand for KWS Vibe, which is new this year. The whole industry has been waiting a number of years for this seed to become available. It’s not necessarily the highest yielding but it has better genetics and disease resistance. We have nearly sold out of it due to its popularity.”

In group two winter wheats, KWS Arnie is another new variety that has attracted a lot of interest. “This is a high yielding variety,” says Matt. “It is a step above for Group 2 quality wheat. We only had a limited amount available, but it will be a good one for people to try to compare yields.”

KWS Extase and KWS Palladium continue to be popular choices and pick up repeat orders in this category as well. Meanwhile in group three, the new KWS Solitaire has had some interest, although there is not much availability in the marketplace.

In hard wheats, many seem to be turning to familiar varieties like KWS Scope and LG Beowulf. “Scope is brand new this year; it is one of the stiffer varieties and it has a high yield,” Matt says. “It’s disease resistance is also strong and it has a high specific weight at around 78kg/hl, so it’s a classic barn-filler in which we’ve had strong interest.

“Beowulf has had a good year,” he adds. “It also has high specific weights with the added bonus of orange wheat blossom midge resistance.”

Kitty from Senova is a new addition to the winter barley market which is now available. “It’s a good variety for mixed farms, which produces a big, bold grain and the highest specific weight of 72.7kg/hl,” Matt explains.

“We also have LG Capitol, which is an exclusive variety for the Alliance Group, a conglomerate of five different businesses of which we are part. It’s been on the recommended list for around two years and we are seeing strong demand as it fits a lot of our customers, so we will increase availability next year.”

Also in its first year is KWS Inys, the first six-row hybrid from KWS, while SY Kingsbarn is also available. “We have a limited supply of Inys,” says Matt. “Hybrid barleys continue to appeal to growers looking for consistency across variable seasons, and Inys offers a promising option with the latest genetics.”

New to the shelves is KWS Hinsta. “Our OSR market is quite small but we have taken orders for Hinsta. A popular variety we sell is LG Aviron, and LG Academic has gained a lot of attraction due to its higher yields,” he adds.

“We also have Bayer’s DK Excentric, which is tried and tested, and KWS Campus, our conventional variety offering. I anticipate a small growth in the OSR area this year.”

Wynnstay advises growers to secure newer varieties early to avoid disappointment, as demand is already being seen. For technical information or pricing, contact either a local Wynnstay office or representative.

Wynnstay Seed Astley: 01939 210777

Wynnstay Seed York: 01904 202607

• For more information visit www.wynnstay.co.uk