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Four New Technical Notes Added to SAC’s Catalogue

SAC News Release Ref. No: 12N10
Published: 17 Jan 2012

Bumblebee (opens in new window)

Tan spot (opens in new window)

The catalogue of SAC’s short, practical field guides has been extended with the recent addition of four new Technical Notes. These are produced with funding from the Scottish Government under the Veterinary and Advisory Services (VAS) programme.

For many years the Technical Notes have offered a highly valued service to the farming community, rural professionals and their advisers.

Originally in printed form they are now mainly on line, including these four:

TN638: Diagnosis of Herbicide Damage in Potatoes

Authors: Mark Ballingall
ISBN: 1854829114 Published: Apr 2011

Glyphosate is a herbicide with a wide variety of uses including preparing crops for harvest, controlling weeds like couch grass, drying out oilseed rape plants and cleaning up stubbles and fallow land. It can be used in potatoes as a pre emergent weed killer or for killing ground keeper potatoes left from the previous season. However, where it comes into contact with a growing potato crop through spray drift or sprayer contamination, it can be lethal to the crop at high doses or contaminate tubers at low doses. This note helps identify signs of problems.

TN639: Management for bumblebees - how farmers can bring back the buzz

Authors: Sandra Stewart and Bob Dawson
ISBN: 1854829157 Published: Jun 2011

Bumblebees are a crucial insect group for pollination of vegetables, fruit, oilseeds, legumes and fodder crops. In the UK there have been major declines in many social bumblebee species over the past 70 years, and two national extinctions. Over a third of social bumblebees are UK Biodiversity Action Plan priority species. Through maintaining healthy bumblebee populations we ensure that bees and other pollinators can quickly respond to the presence of mass flowering crops – providing an ‘on call’ service. This note gives advice on measures to ensure the right habitat for bees.

TN641: Utilising Maternal Trait EBVs of Beef Bulls

Authors: Kirsty Moore, SAC
ISBN: 1854829203  Published: Sep 2011

The qualities of Beef bulls have a major impact on the quality of the UK suckler herd as all calves born to suckler cows are sired by a beef bull. To improve the efficiency of the national herd it is essential that the bulls used to breed heifer replacements, the breeding females of the future, be it from the suckler herd or the dairy herd, carry the genetics capable of improving the maternal characteristics required.

TN642: Tan spot in winter wheat

Authors: Neil Havis
ISBN: 1854829211  Published: Nov 2011

In 2010 and 11 an outbreak of tan spot, caused by the fungus Pyrenophora triticirepentis occurred in wheat crops in East Lothian, Scotland. While this disease is a common problem in Denmark and France it has not been recognised as a major threat to Scottish wheat crops until now. This Technical note will help you identify the disease in local crops and provide advice on how to manage it.

To access technical notes visit the link on the right.

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News Release Issued By

Mr Ken Rundle
Senior Communications Officer
SAC (Scottish Agricultural College) Work SAC, King's Buildings, West Mains Road,
Edinburgh
EH9 3JG
TelWork 0131 535 4196

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