A TICK-LIST of agricultural innovation for growers and agronomists to check out is was provided by NIAB TAG at this year’s Cereals.

The research and advice body profiled the impact of technology on crop management, including the use of modelling tools, remote sensing equipment, big data, crowd-sourcing and precision farming techniques.

All that featured alongside perennial favourites such as its winter wheat and winter oilseed rape variety demonstration plots.

The innovative theme continued with a look at the latest plant disease research with diagnostic techniques in oilseed rape and field beans, along with the application of field pathogenomics in the detection of new races of yellow rust.

Visitors also found out how NIAB’s genetics and breeding team is increasing diversity and improving yields in wheat with the latest resynthesised superwheat, tetraploids and MAGIC elite and MAGIC diverse lines.

NIAB’s technical director, Bill Clark, commented: “We often hear that the need for innovation in arable agriculture has never been greater, driven by the challenges of global food security, climate change and resource conservation.

“But UK growers need to see these innovations in action, understand how they can and will be put into practice on farm and the economic and agronomic benefits in their use, all of which we will be showing on our stand at Cereals.”

On remote sensing, NIAB will show how it is developing these technologies for use in research plot measurements, seed inspection and certification and in the field including monitoring crop growth and mapping problems such as black-grass or disease.

One favourite exhibit has moved this year. The success of the soil hole has meant it has been promoted to its own area 100m from the main stand. NIAB TAG’s Ron Stobart and NIAB CUF’s Dr Mark Stalham, working with Rothamsted Research soil scientists, will be demonstrating in a larger walk-through pit for visitors.

Mr Stobart Added: “Our 8m long, 4m wide and 1.2m deep walk-through soil pit is a unique opportunity for visitors to check out the site’s soil profile at eye level and study the rooting of a range of cover crop and cereal crops.

“We are going to show how a well-structured soil can help water infiltration and aid moisture retention, demonstrate how to increase soil aeration for root growth and biological function and help growers improve the workability of their soil.”

A subsoiler will also be pulled through the soil providing a backdrop to advice on cultivations and rotations.

BASIS celebrates 25 years of its Professional Register with its biggest Knowledge Trail at this year’s Cereals. More than 20 companies will participate in the trail, compared to 14 companies in 2015.

Members can earn up to a maximum of six points, made up of two CPD (continuing professional development) points for attending either day of Cereals and up to an additional four CPD points by completing the Knowledge Trail activities at participating exhibitor stands.

When seed treatments were first developed, seed and soil borne diseases were rife in UK crops and yield losses could reach 100% – a century later, on-seed technology has come a long way, affording sophisticated control of diseases and protection for crops from the start.

n At Cereals, Bayer – the world’s largest producer of seed treatments – will be demonstrating how seed treatments have developed over the last century, from the development of the first mechanical seed treater in 1926 and the launch of Mesurol in 1961 (a product still widely used today), all the way to present day treatments such as Raxil Star and Redigo Deter.

In the next few years, Bayer’s pipeline includes three new seed treatments for cereals, including a fungicide and two insecticides, one of which is particularly effective in the control of slugs, with the added benefits of improved safety towards non-target insects.

There will also be two new OSR treatments – a fungicide with particular activity against downy mildew and phoma, as well as an insecticide for control of soil and early foliar pests.

To demonstrate the change in on-seed technology over the last century, a working bicycle seed treater will be on Bayer’s Stand 705. This dates back to the 1980s and was for small volumes of seed in developing countries. Technology has developed since then – in comparison, the latest Bayer Evolution treater operates at 25 tonnes of cereal seed per hour.