Oilseed rape: from Hybrid to Harvest

With our innovative R&D pipeline, fantastic hybrid varieties alongside proven crop protection products, Corteva is helping Irish farmers to maximise the potential of their crops.

SEPTEMBER 2025 UPDATE

It is once again a season of (at least) two halves. After an early cereal harvest, many growers drilled winter oilseed rape early, and where moisture was present, those crops have established well.

However, many growers held off drilling due to a lack of moisture. Therefore, some crops have only recently been planted.

The recent wet weather may have encouraged a second flush of OSR that was perhaps planted slightly deeper to germinate. The crop therefore will contain a range of growth stages.

Belkar^® can be applied at 0.5L/ha from 15th September once 90% of the crop has 6 true leaves (GS16) or at 0.25L/ha if the crop is smaller than this. Growers must remember that the application rate should be governed by the growth stage of 90% of the crop.

Belkar controls a wide spectrum of broad-leaved weeds, including mayweed, fumitory, cleavers and shepherd’s purse. It has a wide range of tank mix options available including graminicides to control volunteer cereals, fungicides, insecticides and crop nutrition products including boron.

The recent moisture and warm soils have also brought slugs out in force. If you’re seeing signs of grazing, it’s time to monitor with traps and apply pellets once you hit the threshold of one slug per trap.

OSR continues to be a strong break crop option, with prices around €460/T and new high oil content varieties offering excellent margins. It also gives us a valuable opportunity to tackle tough grass weeds in the rotation using Kerb^® Flo and Astrokerb^®, which contain propyzamide - a key active with no known resistance.

Click through to explore expert guidance, stewardship tips, and weed control strategies for a successful OSR season in our latest article.

Find information on oilseed rape herbicides

Corteva is committed to delivering the tools Irish farmers need to secure oilseed rape’s valuable position for years to come.

Astrokerb®

Kerb® Flo

Belkar®

Korvetto®

Latest OSR news and technical advice

Herbicide programme options for oilseed rape

Corteva’s portfolio of oilseed rape herbicides offer flexible, reliable control across a wide spectrum of weeds and timings. They can fit into the programme based on the season and target weeds. Download the topic sheet here.

Corteva's oilseed rape business update - July 2025

Check out latest OSR update to find out more about this season's top Pioneer hybrids & our wide range of solutions for OSR growers. Read it here.

Instinct® nitrogen stabiliser

Nitrogen use efficiency is about getting the most from every kilo of applied nitrogen. It's well-known that significant amounts of nitrogen can escape from fields as nitrate into water courses, and the atmosphere as nitrous oxide. If nitrogen is not in the soil, crops can’t access it, which limits yield potential and is environmentally unsustainable. Instinct keeps more nitrogen in the soil for longer, improving nitrogen use efficiency. Find out more here.