Crop Report#2 German 2022 spring barley – july 15
There ist no table for this report!
Based on initial seed sales and acreage estimates in May by the agricultural organizations of the different German states, the German Brewing Barley Association (Braugersten-Gemeinschaft e.V.) issued a conservative acreage forecast that needs to be revised upwards as the 2022 harvest approaches. The most likely German spring barley area planted in the spring now amounts to roughly 350,000 ha (some 865,000 acres) plus about 25,000 ha (about 61,775 acres) of spring barley that had already been planted in the fall of 2021. This brings the year-over-year increase of German spring barley cultivation to roughly 20 percent. Among the key explanations for this shift are the agronomic advantages that spring barley cultivation offers at a time of elevated costs of fertilizers and agricultural operations, as well as attractive producer prices and high premiums for malting quality crops.
Relatively early sowing in the spring, under dry and loose soil conditions, allowed the crops to emerge and develop well in most parts of Germany, except for much of the north and east of the country. There, a lack of precipitation was a constant cause of trepidation right from the start. Fortunately, during the early phases of inflorescence, heading, and corn filling, there were occasional rains that ensured an acceptable uptake of nutrients. Nonetheless, because of an excess of drought and high temperatures, stock densities remained thin; stalk growth was slightly stunted; soils cracked severely; and plants retarded their fruiting. The south of Germany, on the other hand, home to about one-third of Germany’s barley cultivation, fared much better because sufficient amounts of rain were well distributed. Stocks grew up very healthy in spite of occasional interludes of drought conditions, which even had the benefit of almost entirely suppressing disease infestations.
The range of varieties cultivated this season are in line with the recommendations of the Berliner Program. These include Avalon, Leandra, Amidala, Accordine, and Jessie. In addition, RGT Planet and several other varieties are being raised in smaller volumes under contract.
Experts have already released early harvest forecasts based on yield counts of individual plots during barley field inspection tours in all German growing regions. This year’s projections are for a slightly below-average harvest. Nonetheless, given the currently very high malting barley premiums, there may still be a good selection ratio of malting barley from this year’s spring barley harvest.