How to get the best from your Maize crop

Oakbank have supplied Maize seed to some of the most prestigious shoots in Britain.  When we put our brand name onto the seed bags, you can be assured that we have every confidence in both the seed quality and the ability of the chosen variety to perform very well.  Oakbank Maize has a number of characteristics that we consider very important, but the most important factor of all is how the crop is managed from cultivations and drilling, through to fertiliser and agronomy.  We have all the information that you may require, but it is down to you to use this knowledge to get the best from your crops.

We are happy to discuss any of these issues with your contractors or farm staff and we provide a detailed agronomy sheet for each product that you purchase from us. We also supply a number of additional products that may be useful for your game plots including SoilSet and Maerit.

• Maize grows best in a well drained soil with no compaction, so try to get your plots subsoiled on a regular basis.  
• The soil pH level should be between 6 and 7, with lime applied where the pH is getting low.
• Maize is very poor at dealing with competition from weeds.  Spray off any perennial weeds with Glyphosate pre-drilling, then take advice from a BASIS qualified agronomist about the best product for your situation.
• If you have FYM (farm yard muck) available it works wonders for Maize crops, providing fertility, improving soil structure and giving the crop a great start.  It should be ploughed in well, making sure all the crop residue is buried.
• If no FYM is available it is vital that you apply sufficient fertiliser for your crop to be a success.  Soil testing is always money well spent as it allows you to target inputs correctly and can identify requirements for key micro nutrients that could have a dramatic effect on th crops performance.
• Drill suitably treated seed only when the soil temperature has reached 10 degrees Celcius. Oakbank recommend using a 20" row width and a seed rate of 50,000 seeds, as this will give better cover later on than those drilled at 30".  If you are using a wider row width, then reduce the seed rate accordingly or you will end up with too many seeds in each row.
• Maize is often best left unrolled, but beware of slugs and apply pellets accordingly.  It is important to keep all pests away during the early stages of growth, including Corvids, Hares, Rabbits and Pheasants.  We have even seen Suirrels digging up seeds from woodland edge plots!
• If you do get problems, contact Oakbank for advice as soon as possible on 01480 890686