For maize growers in the south west, the yield and energy potential of this year’s crops will be dependent on good seedbed preparation, appropriate crop nutrition and the selection of suitable varieties.

With the marginal conditions of the region, maize varieties need to have good early vigour and an early maturity, if good DM and starch yields are to be reached. The LG variety Acumen has been grown for several seasons and performed well in trials and on-farm, and is highly recommended by agronomists and nutritionists in the region.

Acumen maize has been grown commercially for the past few years and has quickly achieved popularity thanks to its reliability across the seasons – this is due to its early maturity, good early vigour and its potential to deliver good yields of dry matter and starch.

Limagrain’s distributors of Acumen seed in the south-west continue to evaluate its relative performance both in official trials and using their own commercial experiences. And they continue to recommend Acumen to their maize growing customers for a number of reasons.

Agronomist Ian Nash has been particularly impressed with the early vigour of Acumen , he says: “Good early vigour is an essential attribute where maize is grown at marginal sites. It ensures the crops gets off to a good start, and means the young plants can better withstand cold weather – and we’ve had some cold springs!

“At Limagrain’s demonstration trials site near Launceston last year, Acumen stood out from the rest for its early vigour and establishment.”

Brian Symons of Pickards believes Acumen ’s combination of early vigour and early maturity makes it a superb variety for the growing conditions of the region. He says: “In a normal year, Acumen is ready for harvesting late September or early October. So it gives growers scope to sow it slightly later and still achieve a mature crop.

“We’ve also noticed that Acumen is more resistant to eyespot than most other varieties.”

Neil Potts of Matford Arable Systems Ltd agrees: “Acumen is a genuinely early variety, and ideal for marginal sites. Too many maize varieties appear to be early maturing but they don’t perform when grown on these sites.”

Glen Johns, nutritionist at Harpers Home Mix, says: “It’s the starch in maize that’s the most beneficial factor for rations. With Acumen the cobs ripen fully first, before the crop starts to die down. So Acumen crops achieve good starch yields, and because of this, it can be considered a very ‘rumen-friendly’ variety.

“Where maize silages have achieved the target 30% starch content or more, they give a terrific boost to livestock rations. Even where rations already have grass and wholecrop silages in the forage component, then adding maize silage into the mix can still push milk yields up by around 2 litres/cow/day.

“In fact, livestock farmers should be thinking about growing more maize this year, not less. And it’s not an expensive crop to grow, costing around £352/acre not including rent.”

In 2013, the keys to success for south west maize growers will be ensuring good agronomic practices are followed and suitable varieties are selected. When it comes to variety choice, then Acumen has all the attributes needed: early maturity, very good early vigour, good DM yield and in particular, a high starch yield. It’s an excellent - and highly recommended - choice for south west growers!

For more information on Acumen visit www.limagrain.co.uk/maize/. Acumen maize seed is available in the south west from: J. Pickard & Co (Burrington) Ltd, (North Devon and Somerset) Tel: 01769 520279 Ian Nash (Cornwall and Devon) Tel: 07887 552412 Matford Arable Systems Ltd. (Cornwall and Devon) Tel: 01392 424265 Harpers Home Mix Ltd. (North Devon) Tel: 01409 254 300.