Agricote Brassica
Agricote Brassica contains insecticide and fungicide, to help protect against Nysius, springtails, aphids, stem weevil and damping off diseases. Establishment is a critical time for brassica crops because plant density determines potential yield, and it is the time plants are most vulnerable.
Nysius control
Agricote Brassica gives excellent control of Nysius. Data supporting this comes from a trial run by AgResearch. Dynamo turnip seed was sown and Nysius were added when seedlings were just emerging, then again 7 days later.
Damaged seedlings after 2 separate 7 day periods of Nysius attack*
All three seed treatments tested gave very good control of Nysius damage compared to sowing bare seed (see graph). Under high insect pressure in this trial, Agricote Brassica greatly reduced the number of damaged plants from 50% (bare seed) down to only 11%.
Springtail control
Agricote Brassica gives excellent control of springtails. In an AgResearch trial Dynamo turnip seed was sown into pots and springtails were added when seedlings were just emerging (which is when most springtail damage occurs).
Damage and scarred seedlings after 7 days of springtail attack*
Results show Agricote Brassica provided a high level of springtail control. It greatly reduced the number of plants damaged from 98% (bare seed) down to 34%, and reduced the feeding scars from 41% (bare seed) down to 7%. Feeding scars can later result in stem break in kales or rapes
Aphid control
Agricote Brassica gives seedlings excellent protection against aphids during establishment. In an AgResearch trial, Dynamo turnip seed was sown into pots. Twenty aphids were added to each pot 8, 15 and 22 days after emergence. At the end of the trial plants were visually scored for damage on a 1-3 scale.
Plant health scores and live aphid numbers after three separate 7 day periods of aphid attack*
Combined results from the three aphid feeding periods show plants had little plant damage when Agricote Brassica was used. This treatment also killed all aphids.
Fungal pathogens
Agricote Brassica contains fungicide to protect establishing seedlings from ‘damping off’, a disease complex caused by soil-borne Fusarium and/or Pythium fungi in the North Island, and Rhizoctonia in the South Island. Damping off can lead to poor, patchy crop establishment.
These build up in successive crops, so are worse in second year or subsequent crops. Newly sown brassica seedlings are most susceptible to damping off. Typically, they wilt and die, showing small lesions at or below soil level. Plants may initially survive Rhizoctonia but later may turn purple and die due to ‘wire stem’ damage.
Sowing rate
Agricote Brassica treatment results in a 5% weight increase. Normal sowing rates apply as a 5% reduction in the amount of seed sown is offset by the increased success in establishment.
