This presentation formed part of the Farming Futures workshop 'Focus on: Beet'. 18 November 2008

1. Broom’s Barn Research Centre
Farming Futures
meeting
Climate change
Mike May
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

2. Agenda
• Welcome – Clare Wyatt & Mike May
• Climate change
- Mike May - introduction
- Eric Ober – water use
- Mark Stevens – crop protection
• Farm Walk
• Summing up discussion with coffee
• 16.45 finish
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

3. Climate change
• Range of changes include
• Drier and warmer(?) summers
• Wetter winters
• More extreme weather events (wind, rain,
temperature
• These affect most aspects of farming –
e.g. cropping/land use, agronomy,
rotations, energy, biodiversity.
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

4. Broom’s Barn Research Centre

5. Broom’s Barn Research Centre

6. Crop Protection under a
changing climate
Dr Mark Stevens
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

7. Effects of climate change (1)
• Increased pest / disease survival
• Changes in predator survival
• Synchrony between pest & predator
• Increase diseases in spring
• More generations of pests per season.
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

8. Effects of climate change (2)
• See more warm climate diseases/pests
• Earlier incidence of current pests/diseases
• Faster crop & weed growth
• Increased risk of root rots
• Harvest in wetter autumns?
• Storage under warmer conditions?
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

10. Warmer springs & summers (1)
• More generations of Beet
Cyst Nematodes
• Multiplication/season
increases
• Actions
- Increase rotation length /
avoid host crops
- Consider trap crops in
summer?

11. Warmer springs & summers (2)
Silver Y moth
• Overwinter nearer UK
• Actions
- Greater vigilance
- Treat if threshold reached
- Action across host crops.
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

12. Warmer springs & summers (3)
Red spider mite
• Likes hot weather (>25°C)
• Actions
- Able to consider varietal
tolerance.
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

13. Warmer springs & summers (5)
Rhizomania

15. Distribution of rhizomania
in Europe
1952 Italy
1971 Yugoslavia
1972 Greece
1973 France
1974 Germany
1978 Czechoslovakia
1979 Austria
1979 Romania
1982 Hungary
1983 Switzerland
1983 Bulgaria
1983 Netherlands
1984 Belgium
1987 UK
1988 Spain
1997 Sweden
2000 Denmark
2002 Poland
1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000

16. Climate change on rhizomania
• Warmer springs & summers
• Rhizomania inoculum levels in soils increase
• Need to:-
- Use tolerant varieties on infected or high risk
fields (build up less on tolerant varieties)
- Maintain adequate rotation
- Control weed beet
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

17. Peach-potato aphid
(Myzus persicae)
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

18. Warmer wetter winters (1)
• Increased aphid survival
• Increase in virus levels
• Actions
- Use seed treatments
(new ones better persistence)
- Ensure good hygiene
(e.g. cleaner loader clamps, set-
aside).
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

19. Comparison of predicted incidence of
virus yellows with actual in East: 1965-2005
Percent crops infected with virus yellows
100 With pest management
Without pest management
80
60
40
20
0
1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005
Year

20. Myzus persicae at Rothamsted 1965 - 2007
(2007 is shown in red)
First suction trap record
July
r 2 = 0.793
June P < 0.001
May
April
-1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Jan - Feb mean screen temperature °C
Broom’s Barn Research Centre
Richard Harrington RRES

21. Total numbers of Myzus persicae caught in
3500
water traps
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
3000
Number of M. persicae
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
May June July Aug
Week number
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

22. Virus Yellows - effects on yield
Beet yellows virus Early June infection
50
40
Yield decrease (%)
Beet mild yellowing virus 30
20
10
Beet chlorosis virus 0
BYV BMYV BChV

23. Warmer springs & winters
• Further actions
- Seed treatments work
- BUT need to protect them
- Stewardship across crops
- Rotate insecticides in rotation
(e.g. potatoes, brassicas)
- Reduce infection by good hygiene.
Broom’s Barn Research Centre

24. Broom’s Barn Research Centre