marsh man Posted March 14, 2018 Report Share Posted March 14, 2018 Been out looking at several fields of rape today and I couldn't believe how some of the fields have Green up since Saturday , marvellous what a few mild days do and that is without any top dressing , by the end of the month you will need some tall cradles or look out for the badly eaten off patches which should be shorter . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDog Posted March 14, 2018 Report Share Posted March 14, 2018 Some rape here was top dressed a month ago. Parts of the fields are tall and green. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shotguneddy Posted March 15, 2018 Report Share Posted March 15, 2018 Gets earlier every year Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dead eye alan Posted March 15, 2018 Report Share Posted March 15, 2018 Fields far to wet here to top dress tram tracks full of standing water, on the bright side we have beens going in as soon as dry enough to sow. yippee!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted March 15, 2018 Report Share Posted March 15, 2018 There is a small OSR field in Cottesmore that is so stripped of leaf the farmer is considering re-drilling it, it has become a sacrificial field, his other OSR is greening up nicely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDog Posted March 15, 2018 Report Share Posted March 15, 2018 28 minutes ago, TIGHTCHOKE said: There is a small OSR field in Cottesmore that is so stripped of leaf the farmer is considering re-drilling it, it has become a sacrificial field, his other OSR is greening up nicely. If he redrills it with rape you could have some good sport in May and June. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted March 15, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 15, 2018 Today is more rain with a very cold weekend forecasted , certainly no sign of drilling yet , my memory is not as good as it used to be but it was either last year or the year before that they started irrigating early Spring with everything being so dry , still it would be boring if every year was the same concerning the weather , one of our main forms of conversation in this country . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motty Posted March 15, 2018 Report Share Posted March 15, 2018 6 minutes ago, marsh man said: Today is more rain with a very cold weekend forecasted , certainly no sign of drilling yet , my memory is not as good as it used to be but it was either last year or the year before that they started irrigating early Spring with everything being so dry , still it would be boring if every year was the same concerning the weather , one of our main forms of conversation in this country . I believe that part of the beauty of pigeon shooting is the fact that it can differ so much from year to year. It has become very apparent that this year will be very different to last, with the likelihood that many late drillings will take place. I think that some folk may overlook the impact that the weather and subsequent farming regimes may have on pigeon behaviour. On the subject of rape, I have several fields to shoot that have had massive pigeon damage. Some fields that were standing a foot tall and barely touched by pigeons, have now been reduced to mere stalks.I will now have to have a good think about which fields to hit, and when. I have witnessed some breaking up of the giant flocks, having some moderate success last weekend on a difficult to shoot, small rape field. Most of the birds came gliding in as if on rails, to get shot down a few feet over the decoys. Things are changing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old'un Posted March 15, 2018 Report Share Posted March 15, 2018 (edited) 1 hour ago, TIGHTCHOKE said: There is a small OSR field in Cottesmore that is so stripped of leaf the farmer is considering re-drilling it, it has become a sacrificial field, his other OSR is greening up nicely. Is it a field you shoot? Must admit I don’t think I have ever seen a field of winter rape that as not come back after hard grazing by pigeons. Edited March 15, 2018 by old'un Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted March 15, 2018 Report Share Posted March 15, 2018 Yes, I have been out to it several times, never seen many birds there and the Farmer has been placing ropes of bangers in the hedgerow to try to keep them off, spoke to him and he is seriously considering re-drilling. It is the worst I have ever seen a field hit and should have provided some good shooting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aga man Posted March 15, 2018 Report Share Posted March 15, 2018 The rape is not growing much here at the moment and no hope of top dressing being applied as most of the land is so wet and it is raining as I type. I agree with motty that this year will be different to last, I have done very little pigeon decoying so far this year and I am praying things change soon as sitting indoors listening to cackling women is doing me in. On Tuesday I travelled 100 or so miles working and following a day of heavy rain, I noticed almost every round about and grass verge had pigeons feeding on them. Clover no doubt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted March 15, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 15, 2018 4 hours ago, old'un said: Must admit I don’t think I have ever seen a field of winter rape that as not come back after hard grazing by pigeons. Rape always seem to make a miraculous recovery after pigeon damage , I am not saying all fields don't suffer from any loss of yields but come harvest time there is very little evidence of any reduction in growth. I would imagine the damage to the plants are from now onwards when it starts to regerminate and the middle get eaten out , I didn't realise that there are several different varieties of rape and pigeons are not that keen on the ones that taste bitter , I was reading where they grew a variety called Excalibur that had very little damage from pigeons , whereas a variety called Castille was one that suffered the most damage . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old'un Posted March 15, 2018 Report Share Posted March 15, 2018 23 minutes ago, marsh man said: Rape always seem to make a miraculous recovery after pigeon damage , I am not saying all fields don't suffer from any loss of yields but come harvest time there is very little evidence of any reduction in growth. I would imagine the damage to the plants are from now onwards when it starts to regerminate and the middle get eaten out , I didn't realise that there are several different varieties of rape and pigeons are not that keen on the ones that taste bitter , I was reading where they grew a variety called Excalibur that had very little damage from pigeons , whereas a variety called Castille was one that suffered the most damage . Yep, its this time of year when the rape is hearting up that most of the damage is done by pigeons, mind you having said that, slugs can do as much damage, if not more. I remember one year a field of rape that was to far ahead and the farmer went over the field with a grass cutter, he said it was the best yield he had off that field. Varieties of rape, first encountered what farmers were calling industrial rape back in late 80s early 90s the pigeons would hardly touch it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shotguneddy Posted March 18, 2018 Report Share Posted March 18, 2018 On 15/03/2018 at 12:54, TIGHTCHOKE said: There is a small OSR field in Cottesmore that is so stripped of leaf the farmer is considering re-drilling it, it has become a sacrificial field, his other OSR is greening up nicely. Do u shoot it if so good day for it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motty Posted March 18, 2018 Report Share Posted March 18, 2018 1 hour ago, Shotguneddy said: Do u shoot it if so good day for it Is it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted March 18, 2018 Report Share Posted March 18, 2018 On 15/03/2018 at 14:39, old'un said: Is it a field you shoot? Must admit I don’t think I have ever seen a field of winter rape that as not come back after hard grazing by pigeons. On 15/03/2018 at 15:15, TIGHTCHOKE said: Yes, I have been out to it several times, never seen many birds there and the Farmer has been placing ropes of bangers in the hedgerow to try to keep them off, spoke to him and he is seriously considering re-drilling. It is the worst I have ever seen a field hit and should have provided some good shooting. 1 hour ago, Shotguneddy said: Do u shoot it if so good day for it As above 3 minutes ago, motty said: Is it? No, not at all, I am happily at work with the heaters on watching a strong easterly wind providing a substantial wind chill factor and regularly testing the kettle! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motty Posted March 18, 2018 Report Share Posted March 18, 2018 2 minutes ago, TIGHTCHOKE said: As above No, not at all, I am happily at work with the heaters on watching a strong easterly wind providing a substantial wind chill factor and regularly testing the kettle! Don't blame you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted March 18, 2018 Report Share Posted March 18, 2018 I'll probably go out on Monday or Tuesday as the temperature is due to rise a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pigeon controller Posted March 19, 2018 Report Share Posted March 19, 2018 We have two farms that have direct drilled into stubble and the rape is very sparse and not growing well at all. I'm hoping it will give us some sport when all the other fields are too tall. They have talked about redrilling the sparse areas , I hope!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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