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Spring Barley

Hordeum vulgare

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General Description

In 2007, 226,000 hectares of spring barley was grown in Scotland. With an average yield of 5.63 tonnes/hectare, Scottish production was 1,273,100 tonnes. Source of statistics: The Economic Report on Scottish Agriculture 2008

A key market for spring barley in Scotland is the malting market.

Quality requirements are becoming more precise, especially as characters affecting processing are taken into account.  In the malting barley market, some varieties are acceptable for distilling but not for brewing.  Some varieties are inclined to dormancy; this can prejudice their use by maltsters. 

Others are prone to splitting and skinning; both conditions may lead to rejection by maltsters.  The IoB Approval system is moving away from regional lists to malt use lists; in future, varieties are likely to be approved for brewing, distilling or both.

Crop Development

Description
0-9 Dry seed
10-19 Seedling growth
20-29 Tillering
30 Stem elongation (ear at 1 cm)
31 1st node detectable
32 2nd node detectable
33 3rd node detectable
37 Flag leaf just visible
39 Flag leaf fully emerged
41-49 Booting
51-59 Ear emergence
60-69 Flowering
71 Watery ripe
73 Early milk
75 Medium milk
77 Late milk
83 Early dough
85 Soft dough
87 Hard dough
90 Ripening

Crop Diary

Use these links to see issues affecting the crop during the year

February

Pest risk in early sown spring barley

The temptation to get your spring barley in early should be tempered by the threat from pests. The cool soil conditions will slow down emergence and give more time for pests to kill off emerging plants. More..

April

Watch for early mildew in spring barley crops

Popular malting spring barley varieties, including Optic and Oxbridge are susceptible to powdery mildew. More..

May

Disease Protection At Mid Tillering

With crops sown in March now tillering, it is time to consider a fungicide to protect crops from disease. More..

June

Yellowing in crops

Spring crops have been stressed due to cold spring and some are poorly tillered, solook for leaf yellowing maybe associated with poor nutrient uptake. Barley Yellow Dwarf Virus (BYDV) can also show up as leaf tip yellowing, but is more common on the tips of the upper leaves. It is too late to take action now against this aphid transmitted disease. More..

Protect crops from Ramularia at boot stage

Ramularia and abiotic leaf spots can cause extensive losses in yield and quality in spring barley. More..

July

Cereal leaf beetle common in spring barley

Cereal leaf beetle damage is present in spring barley crops. More..

Ramularia showing up in spring barley - July

Ramularia leaf spots are developing in spring barley. 2007 was a high risk year following the wet weather in June. More..

August

Check Harvested Grain For Ergot

With the harvest now underway, look for black contamination in grain caused by ergot. More..

December

Check Spring Barley Seed For Disease

If you are home-saving spring barley seed, now is the time to test seed for germination and seed-borne diseases. More..

Seed

Start with healthy clean seed.  At the very least, test seed for germination.

Key seed borne diseases you also need to check for are loose smut (Ustilago nuda) and leaf stripe (Pyrenophora graminea).

Harvest

Screenings and nitrogen content are two important quality factors for brewing and distilling

Storage

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Diseases, Pests and Weeds Affecting Spring Barley

Barley Leaf Stripe

Barley leaf stripe is a seed borne disease which is currently rare More...

Loose Smut

Loose smut is a seed borne disease which affects winter and spring barley. More...

Net Blotch

Net blotch is an important seed and trash borne disease in barley. More...

Rhynchosporium

Rhynchosporium is the most damaging disease in barley in the wetter areas of the UK. It can attack both winter and spring varieties. More...

Barley Powdery Mildew

Powdery mildew is one of the major diseases affecting barley. There are currently many spring barley varieties which show good varietal resistance, but the popular malting barley variety Optic is very susceptible to this disease. With so much of the spring barley area using this variety, it has led to an increase in this disease in recent years. More...

Ergot

Ergots are fungal resting bodies which contain toxic alkaloids; they are very poisonous to both humans and livestock. Ergots are purplish black in colour, and a similar size to grain, but smaller pieces of ergot may also be present. More...

Ramularia

Ramularia leaf spot and abiotic leaf spots (also known as Physiological Leaf Spots PLS) can cause extensive damage to the upper leaves in spring and winter barley once crops are past the flowering stage of growth. This can cause extensive losses in yield and quality. More...

Barley Yellow Dwarf Virus

Barley Yellow Dwarf Virus can affect a wide range of cereals and grasses and is spread through aphids More...

Leatherjackets

Leatherjackets are a common pest in grassland. The name leatherjacket is given to the grubs which cause the damage, but the adults are known as crane flies or daddy-long-legs. More...

Contact

Dr Fiona Burnett
SAC (Scottish Agricultural College) Work Crop & Soil Systems Research Group King's Buildings
Edinburgh
EH9 3JG
TelWork 0131 535 4133

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