5 days ago
Tillage: Winter oilseed rape recommended lists 2026
August is the month when winter oilseed rape crops can be sown out. Recent years have seen significant improvements in yields achieved on Irish farms.
And there is every prospect of this trend being maintained.
For the 2025/2026 season, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) have fully recommended three varieties: Ambassador, Aurelia, and LG Aviron. Provisionally recommended are Dart and LG Auckland.
All five are hybrid varieties of oilseed rape.
Ambassador and Aurelia have been fully recommended since 2022. They are the current control varieties used by DAFM for the purpose of trial work.
Ambassador is a good yielding variety with good early vigour. It has very good lodging resistance and good stem stiffness. The variety is late to flower and is early maturing. It has moderate light leaf spot resistance.
Aurelia is another good yielding variety with good early vigour. It too has very good lodging resistance and good stem stiffness.
The variety is late to flower and is early to mature. It has good light leaf spot resistance.
LG Aviron is comparable, in many ways, to the other recommended varieties: it yields well, with good resistance to lodging and light leaf spot.
Significantly, Aviron has the highest relative seed yield of the recommended varieties.
A total of 24 winter oilseed rape varieties were included in the DAFM national list/recommended list trials.
After a short stop last weekend, the combines are back out again and some farmers are already close to finishing the harvest.
According to Teagasc, it has been a good season so far, with many crops beating their five-year average yields.
The star performer so far is winter oilseed rape. Yields of 5t/ha are common this year, with some fields pushing over 6t/ha.
At these yields, and with good prices compared to cereals, oilseed rape is shaping up to be one of the most profitable tillage crops of 2025.
With straw being cleared quickly, many growers are already planning their winter oilseed rape area for next season.
One reason oilseed rape has been so reliable in recent years is improved breeding. Most modern varieties now come with pod shatter resistance and good disease resistance built in.
As a break crop, it also offers big benefits, while its deep taproot helps improves soil structure.
The crop is also very efficient at making use of organic manures, which can save a lot on fertiliser and help build a strong canopy.
Winter oilseed rape also opens the door to using different herbicides for controlling tough grass weeds.
