FV 462: Horticulture Strategic Centres for Field Vegetables

Summary

Summary: The strategic centres delivered variety evaluation trials for brassicas, carrots, onions and vining peas. These trials provide independent performance evaluation of yield quality, shelf-life and storage potential of the four crops and provided the go to place for grower’s selection of varieties.

Additional grower-led demonstration trials for these four crops were also carried out to tackle priority practical grower questions. Crop association R&D representatives provided the steering on the topics addressed and their design.

Sector:

Horticulture

Project code:

FV 462

Date:

01 January 2019 - 31 July 2022

Funders:

AHDB Horticulture with in-kind contributions from several horticultural growers

AHDB sector cost:

£297,869

Total project value:

£436,304

Project leader:

Bruce Napier, NIAB; Angela Huckle, ADAS; Bill Herring, Duchy College; Becky Howard, PGRO

About this project

Core objectives:

Varietal evaluation and grower led demonstration trials on priority agronomic topics

Vining peas

Assessments : yield relative to a standard at TR105 and TR125, maturity relative to a standard at TR105 and TR125, size-grade specifications, haulm length, standing ability at harvest and disease susceptibility to downy mildew.

Assess frozen produce for colour (uniformity, number of blond peas) and Brix assessment for sweetness

Grower-led trials covered bean seed fly control and biostimulants

Onions

Sites: a light sandy soil in Norfolk and a heavier silty soil in Essex both trials in commercial crops

Field records: emergence and vigour, leaf habit, fall-over (maturity date) and diseases when present.

Harvesting: The date when 80% fall-over (maturity date) has occurred should be recorded

Harvest records: graded yields, appearance, defects, quality and disease (typed where possible at grading)

Storage: Material from spring sown bulb trials to be stored with no sprout suppressant under ambient conditions and assessed on two occasions.

Commercial storage: Nets with samples of selected varieties of onions, will be stored in a commercial box cold store

Data analysis: Data reported at harvest and post-storage

The reports below include summaries from the Grower led demonstration trials including herbicides and reduced rates of Force to control Bean Seed Fly.

Carrots

Site: within a commercial crop selected by BCGA each year

Trial layout: blocked by breeder/seed company, single un-replicated plot per variety for demonstration

The reports below include summaries from the Grower led demonstration trials including different seed rates and assessment of breakage.

Brassicas

Variety trial hosted by commercial growers in Cornwall

Trials include autumn cauliflower, winter cauliflower, summer cauliflower and spring cabbage. Two planting dates are included, harvesting twice a week with weekly pest monitoring

In addition to the core cultivars, new confidential introductions will be recorded, as requested by the seed companies. This will encourage new cultivars to be tried and tested under local conditions

Grower-led trials in Lincolnshire covered control of weeds, aphids and fungal pathogen during cabbage head storage

Grower-led trials in Scotland covered weed control, downy mildew control, soil assessments, cover crops and N responses

A film has been produced to give an overview of trials activity at the Brassica Strategic Centre in Scotland https://ahdb.org.uk/strategic-centre-field-vegetables-brassicas-scotland

Monitoring of brassica pests such as diamondback moth and swede midge is also taking place at several Strategic Centres and is reported in the AHDB Pest Bulletin