Oilseed rape seeding 2019 – widespread drought. Like last year, but different!
Background
Since last year, it has been too dry and hot in large parts of Germany, although at the start of May, when the oilseed rape was flowering, it was cold and frosty, which means that pod-setting suffered. Then there was the heat wave at the end of June, right in the middle of ripening. Yields have often been between 35 and 40 dt/ha, so considerably better than last year and in the range of the long-term average yield, but not the expected massive improvement. More had seemed possible.