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Beet foliar fungicide redefines winter feed management

Beet foliar fungicide redefines winter feed management

Beet foliar fungicide redefines winter feed management

Around the country, beet foliar fungicide Custodia® delivers winter feed flexibility and enhanced beet performance.

Launched a season ago, Custodia fungicide supports greener, healthier and more vigorous leaves by protecting against Cercospora leaf spot (Cercospora beticola)¹, rust and powdery mildew. Importantly for those grazing beets, it reduces the stock withholding period down to just 28 days compared with the previous industry standard of 42 days.

Dunedin-based ADAMA Commercial Manager Damian MacKenzie, says extra grazing flexibility is vital when feed is tight. North Otago growers particularly find it suits their systems. “The 28 days withholding is perfect for them. With early beet sowing in North Otago, it means there’s better cover over the autumn shoulder and into the early winter.”

Damian says protecting the beet leaf for as long as possible provides a better return on investment for farmers and benefits the stock. “Using Custodia means green leaf growth is prolonged which optimises plant health and yield.” He says it also means beet leaves are more palatable for longer – a real advantage for stock health.

January, February and March are the key windows to boost beet growth, but it is also when disease will typically begin to appear in the crop. ADAMA recommends Custodia be applied at the first signs of Cercospora leaf spot, rust or powdery mildew. It can be re-applied after 14 days if needed. 

ADAMA’s Hamilton-based Commercial Manager Doug Speers, says Custodia has also contributed to a high-performing beet crop in his region, though with a different farming system. In this case, the bulbs were lifted for chipping and were included in dairy cows’ feed rations. Doug says while the focus was on the bulbs, the successful outcome wouldn’t have been possible without the leaves doing their bit.

Powdery mildew could have seriously compromised the yield and bulb quality. However, Doug says thanks to regular crop inspections the fungus was spotted early and Custodia was used to deliver effective control.

ADAMA’s whole crop (leaves and bulbs) approach to beet protection includes another recent addition, Mavrik® Aquaflo Insecticide (Mavrik). Mavrik offers control of major beet pests, Nysius and cutworm, while having minimal impact on beneficial insects foraging in beets or surrounding crops.

ADAMA’s complementary beet herbicides are based around the use of a robust pre-emergence spray with a follow-up to control any subsequent weeds. Spearheading the programme is Goltix® Gold which if effective against hard-to-control beet weeds including fathen and wireweed. Other compatible herbicide products in the beet programme include Torero™, Ethosat® and Rifle®.

For further information on ADAMA’s beet protection range, contact your local PGG Wrightson Technical Field Representative.

1. Some strains of Cercospora beticola (Cercospora leaf spot) may be resistant to QoI fungicides.

Registered pursuant to the ACVM Act 1997 Custodia® #P009607, Mavrik® Aquaflo Insecticide #P007278, Goltix® Gold #P009741, ToreroTM #P009879, Ethosat® #P008169 and Rifle® #P008582. Always read the registered label before use.