Crop & Environment Research Centre

Climate & Crop Production

The influence of large-scale climate systems on local climate is becoming better-understood and increasingly exploited in agricultural forecasting in some countries, notably Australia. Hitherto, knowledge of their influence on UK climate has been limited and nothing has been known of their consequences for agriculture. Recently, one system - the North Atlantic Oscillation - has been shown to influence summer rainfall in the UK in addition to the well-known effect on winter temperature, click here to find out more. Because wheat grain quality is reduced by rainfall, this effect has been exploited, with funding from HGCA and other sponsors, to develop long-range forecasts of quality and the premium paid for breadmaking wheat.

Further research is attempting to understand and exploit the effects of large-scale climate systems in a range of agricultural contexts.

Cereal quality in Finland

Cereal quality can deteriorate rapidly as the weather worsens in late summer in northern latitudes. In a parallel study to the UK work, effects of climate on wheat, rye and barley quality in Finland are being explored in collaboration with the Finnish Research Institute MTT, funded by Centre for International Mobility, Finland (CIMO).

Contact: Dr Peter Kettlewell or Philip Hollins

Fungal spores

Fungi which grow on ripening wheat, such as Cladosporium, release spores around harvest time which can be allergenic to sensitive people leading to late summer asthma. The risk of high Cladosporium spore concentrations is being studied in relation to climate, in collaboration with the Midlands Asthma and Allergy Research Association and the Asthma and Allergy Clinic, Cardiff.

Contact: Dr Peter Kettlewell or Philip Hollins

Crop diseases

Summer rainfall is a major influence on several crop diseases. Climate influences are being investigated on beet powdery mildew (in collaboration with Broom's Barn) and cereal foliar and root diseases (in collaboration with the Central Science Laboratory).

Contact: Dr Peter Kettlewell

Potato planting and harvesting progress

Both potato planting and harvesting are delayed by bad weather, leading to shortage of home-grown supplies to the supermarkets. National statistics on potato planting and harvesting have been provided by the British Potato Council for studying the potential for forecasting from climate.

Contact: Dr Peter Kettlewell

Grass Growth

Summer grass productivity is highly dependent on rainfall. Relationships between climate and grass growth are being quantified in data from the Institute for Grassland and Environmental Research - North Wyke and Rothamsted Research.