Pesticide usage: outdoor vegetable crops 2019

2019 Pesticide usage

Vining peas

• An estimated 8,142 hectares of vining peas were grown in Scotland in 2019, an increase of four per cent since 2017
• 100 per cent of the crop was treated with a pesticide (see Figure 9 for types of pesticides used)
• Pesticide formulations were applied to 34,818 treated hectares with 27,875 kilograms of pesticide applied in total (see summary table below)
• Vining pea crops received on average 2.2 pesticide applications (Table 1). These included 1.4 herbicide applications (applied to 96 per cent of the crop area), 1.2 insecticide applications (applied to 60 per cent of the crop) and one fungicide and one sulphur application (applied to 74 and 24 per cent of the crop respectively)
• Timings of pesticide applications are shown in Figure 10
• The only reasons specified for herbicide and insecticide use were general weed control (18 per cent) and aphids (11 per cent).  There were no reasons recorded for fungicide or sulphur use
• The most common varieties encountered were Corus, Naches and Romance, accounting for 26, 12 and 10 per cent of the sample area respectively

Summary of pesticide use on vining peas:

Pesticide group	Formulation area treated	Weight of pesticides applied	Percentage of crop treated	Most used formulations
	ha	kg	%	ha
Fungicides	6,050	5,569	74	Boscalid/ pyraclostrobin (3,583)
Herbicides	12,976	12,842	96	Imazamox/ pendimethalin (7,490)
Insecticides	5,712	739	60	Pirimicarb (4,846)
Sulphur	1,938	7,751	24	N/A
Seed treatments	8,142	973	100	Cymoxanil/fludioxonil/ metalaxyl-M (7,364)
All pesticides	34,818	27,875	100

Broad beans

• An estimated 1,804 hectares of broad beans was grown in Scotland in 2019, an increase of one per cent since 2017
• 100 per cent of the crop was treated with a pesticide (see Figure 11 for types of pesticides used)
• Pesticide formulations were applied to 17,229 treated hectares with 6,499 kilograms of pesticide applied in total (see summary table below)
• The broad bean crop received on average 5.1 pesticide sprays (Table 1).  These included 3.3 fungicide applications, 3.3 insecticide applications and 1.1 herbicide applications (applied to 100 per cent of the crop)
• Timings of pesticide applications are shown in Figure 12
• No reasons were supplied for pesticide use
• The two varieties encountered were Listra and Talia, accounting for 79 and 21 per cent of the sampled area respectively

Summary of pesticide use on broad beans:

Pesticide group	Formulation area treated	Weight of pesticides applied	Percentage of crop treated	Most used formulations
	ha	kg	%	ha
Fungicides	8,042	3,894	100	Boscalid/ pyraclostrobin, (1,800) Cyprodinil/fludioxonil (1,800)
Herbicides	1,988	2,164	100	Imazamox/ pendimethalin (1,800)
Insecticides	5,928	283	100	Lambda-cyhalothrin (3,600)
Seed treatments	1,272	157	70	Thiram (1,272)
All pesticides	17,229	6,499	100

Brussels sprouts

• An estimated area of 932 hectares was grown in Scotland in 2019.  This represents an increase of 13 per cent since 2017.  In 2019, 930 hectares were recorded in the Brussels sprouts census category and two hectares in the 'other vegetable' category
• All the Brussels sprouts crop was grown from transplants
• 100 per cent of the crop was treated with a pesticide (see Figure 13 for types of pesticides used)
• Pesticide formulations were applied to 31,255 treated hectares with 5,896 kilograms of pesticide applied in total (see summary table below)
• The 100 per cent of Brussels sprouts crop treated with a pesticide received on average 18.5 pesticide applications (Table 1).  These included 8.1 insecticide applications, 7.5 molluscicide applications and 7.3 fungicide applications (applied to 100 per cent of the crop) and 2.8 herbicide applications (applied to 69 per cent of the crop)
• Timings of pesticide applications are shown in Figure 14
• The only reason specified for fungicide use was disease control (five per cent of use).  Reasons for insecticide applications were supplied for three per cent of total use. Two per cent for aphids and one per cent for caterpillars. General weed control was the only specified reason for herbicide use (four per cent of use).  No reasons were recorded for the use of biological control agents, however, Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita is typically used for slug control
• The most common variety encountered was Petrus which accounted for 59 per cent of the sample area

Summary of pesticide use on Brussels sprouts:

Pesticide group	Formulation area treated	Weight of pesticides applied	Percentage of crop treated	Most used formulations
	ha	kg	%	ha
Fungicides	8,656	2,161	100	Prothioconazole (2,367)
Herbicides	2,420	1,796	69	Clomazone (644), Metazachlor (644) Pendimethalin (644)
Insecticides	13,131	905	100	Indoxacarb (2,655), Lambda-cyhalothrin (2,553)
Biological control agents	63	N/A	7	Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita (63)
Molluscicides	6,985	1,034	100	Ferric phosphate (4,269)
All pesticides	31,255	5,896	100

Calabrese

• An estimated area of 1,489 hectares of calabrese were grown in Scotland in 2017, a decrease of 25 per cent since 2017.  This included 1,487 hectares recorded in the 'calabrese' census category with the remainder recorded in the 'other vegetable' category
• All the calabrese crop was grown from transplants
• 97 per cent of the crop was treated with a pesticide (see Figure 15 for types of pesticides used)
• Pesticide formulations were applied to 9,934 treated hectares with 4,893 kilograms of pesticide applied in total (see summary table below)
• The 97 per cent of calabrese crop treated with a pesticide received on average 5.3 pesticide applications (Table 1).  These applications included 3.0 fungicides and 1.9 herbicides, (applied to 92 per cent of the crop) and 1.3 insecticides (applied to 84 per cent of the crop)
• The timings of pesticide applications are shown in Figure 16
• Nine per cent of fungicide use was for downy mildew, four per cent for mildew and five per cent for disease control.  Forty per cent of recorded fungicide use was copper oxychloride, applied as a trace element but which also has fungicidal properties.  General weed control was the only specified reason for herbicide use (58 per cent of use).  Reasons for insecticide applications were supplied for 63 per cent of total use.  Of these 36 per cent was for diamondback moth, 18 per cent was for caterpillars and nine per cent for general pests
• The most common variety encountered was Parthenon, accounting for 79 per cent of the sample area

Summary of pesticide use on calabrese:

Pesticide group	Formulation area treated	Weight of pesticides applied	Percentage of crop treated	Most used formulations
	ha	kg	%	ha
Fungicides	4,301	1,402	92	Copper oxychloride (2,751)
Herbicides	3,312	3,179	92	Metazachlor (1,369)
Insecticides	1,980	54	84	Indoxacarb (1,454)
Molluscicides	120	25	8	Ferric phosphate (120)
Sulphur	221	233	9	N/A
All pesticides	9,934	4,893	97

Other brassica crops

• Other brassica crops encountered in the 2019 survey were red, savoy and winter cabbage and cauliflower. In the other vegetable census category, broccoli, curly kale, kohlrabi and black kale were recorded (in previous publications cabbages were reported separately but this was not possible in 2019 due to reduced area of crop encountered in the sample)
• The total estimated area of other brassica crops was 626 hectares
• 100 per cent of other brassica crops were grown from transplants
• 84 per cent of the other brassica crop was treated with a pesticide (see Figure 17 for types of pesticides used)
• Pesticide formulations were applied to 3,581 treated hectares with 719 kilograms of pesticide applied in total (see summary table below)
• The 84 per cent of other brassica crops treated with a pesticide received on average 4.0 pesticide applications (Table 1).  These included 2.0 each of fungicide, insecticide and herbicide and 1.3 molluscicide applications (applied to 78, 73, 13 & 82 per cent of the crop respectively)
• The timings of pesticide applications are shown in Figure 18
• Aphids and caterpillars were the only specified reasons reported for insecticide application (one per cent each).  Reasons were supplied for 10 per cent of total herbicide use; with general weed control at four per cent, annual meadow grass three per cent, volunteer rape two per cent and crop destruction one per cent. No reasons for fungicide applications were supplied

Summary of pesticide use on other brassicas:

Pesticide group	Formulation area treated	Weight of pesticides applied	Percentage of crop treated	Most used formulations
	ha	kg	%	ha
Fungicides	963	269	78	Azoxystrobin (656)
Herbicides	301	288	13	Pendimethalin (76)
Insecticides	1,656	69	73	Indoxacarb (610)
Molluscicides	662	93	82	Ferric phosphate (662)
All pesticides	3,581	719	84

Carrots

• An estimated 3,353 hectares of carrots was grown in Scotland in 2019, a decrease of 11 per cent since 2017.  This consists of 3,325 hectares recorded in the 'carrots' census category and 29 hectares in the 'other vegetable' category
• 87 per cent of the crop was treated with a pesticide (see Figure 19 for types of pesticides used)
• Pesticide formulations were applied to 56,300 treated hectares with 20,851 kilograms of pesticide applied in total (see summary table below)
• The 87 per cent of carrot crop treated with a pesticide received on average 9.6 applications (Table 1).  These included 6.8 fungicide applications, 3.6 insecticide applications and 2.7 herbicide applications (applied to 84, 84, and 85 per cent of the crop)
• The timing of pesticide applications is shown in Figure 20
• Reasons for fungicide applications were supplied for 34 per cent of total use; 16 per cent for disease control/prevention, 10 per cent for Sclerotinia, six per cent for crown rot, two per cent for cavity spot and one per cent for Alternaria.  Reasons for insecticide/nematicide applications were supplied for 54 per cent of total use; 40 per cent for carrot fly, 13 per cent for aphids and one per cent for nematodes. All physical control was garlic-based and the only reason supplied for use was carrot fly control (34 per cent of use)
• 29 per cent of herbicide use was for general weed control; three per cent for broad-leaved weeds, one per cent for wild oats and one per cent for inter-row weed control. Other reasons accounting for the final one per cent included fumitory, volunteer cereals, annual meadow grass and cover crop control
• The most common variety encountered was Nairobi, accounting for 81 per cent of the sample area surveyed

Summary of pesticide use on carrots:

Pesticide group	Formulation area treated	Weight of pesticides applied	Percentage of crop treated	Most used formulations
	ha	kg	%	ha
Fungicides	26,500	7,967	84	Prothioconazole (4,678)
Herbicides	15,387	9,028	85	Metribuzin (3,619)
Insecticides	10,150	1,413	84	Lambda-cyhalothrin (7,726)
Sulphur	383	1,570	4	N/A
Seed treatments	3,754	91	82	Cymoxanil/fludioxonil/ metalaxyl-M (2,397)
Physical control	125	782	3	Garlic (125)
All pesticides	56,300	20,851	87

Note: there were small amounts of (<1%) herbicide applications in November
which are not shown on this figure.

Turnips and swedes

• The total estimated area of turnips and swedes grown in 2019 was 1,405 hectares, representing a two per cent decrease from 2017.  1,359 hectares were recorded in the 'turnips & swedes' census category and 46 hectares were recorded in the 'other vegetable' census category
• Three per cent of turnips and swedes were grown from transplants
• 96 per cent of the turnip and swede crop was treated with a pesticide (see Figure 21 for types of pesticides used)
• Pesticide formulations were applied to 13,081 treated hectares with 2,504 kilograms of pesticide applied in total (see summary table below)
• The turnip and swede crop received on average 5.6 pesticide applications (Table 1).  These included 3.1 insecticide and 2.3 fungicide applications (each applied to 86 per cent of the crop area) as well as 1.5 herbicide and 1.2 molluscicide applications (applied to 94 and 46 per cent of the crop respectively)
• The timing of pesticide applications is shown in Figure 22
• General disease control was the only specified reason for the use of fungicides (six per cent).  Reasons for herbicide applications were supplied for 29 per cent of total use; 27 per cent for general weed control and two per cent was for stale seed bed preparation. Caterpillars and diamondback moth were the only reasons given for insecticide use (two and four per cent respectively)
• The most common variety encountered was Magres, accounting for 77 per cent of the sample area surveyed

Summary of pesticide use on turnips and swedes:

Pesticide group	Formulation area treated	Weight of pesticides applied	Percentage of crop treated	Most used formulations
	ha	kg	%	ha
Fungicides	3,334	848	86	Azoxystrobin (1,381)
Herbicides	3,404	1,353	94	Clomazone (1,307)
Insecticides	4,492	142	86	Deltamethrin (2,329)
Molluscicides	800	161	46	Ferric phosphate (484)
Seed treatments	1,051	1	75	Thiram (1,051)
All pesticides	13,081	2,504	96

Other vegetable crops

• Other vegetable crops encountered in the 2019 survey were beetroot, celeriac, chard, garlic, leeks, lettuce, onions, parsnips, podded peas, rhubarb and spinach
• The total estimated area of other vegetable crops was 883 hectares.  This includes 10 hectares of multi-cropping
• 26 per cent of other vegetable crops were grown from transplants
• 84 per cent of other vegetable crops were treated with a pesticide (see Figure 23 for types of pesticides used)
• Pesticide formulations were applied to 10,002 treated hectares with 7,241 kilograms of pesticide applied in total (see summary table below)
• The 84 per cent of the other vegetable crop treated with a pesticide received on average 6.8 pesticide applications (Table 1).  These included 3.9 fungicide applications (applied to 84 per cent of the crop area), 3.2 insecticides, 2.1 herbicides and 1.0 molluscicide application (applied to 76, 84 & 12 per cent respectively)
• The timing of pesticide applications is shown in Figure 24
• The only reason supplied for herbicide applications was general weed control (13 per cent).  General disease control (five per cent), downy mildew and mildew (less than one per cent each) were the only specified reasons for fungicide use.  Reasons for insecticide applications were supplied for nine per cent of use; six per cent for caterpillars and three per cent for aphids

Summary of pesticide use on other vegetable crops:

Pesticide group	Formulation area treated	Weight of pesticides applied	Percentage of crop treated	Most used formulations
	ha	kg	%	ha
Fungicides	3,752	1,003	84	Azoxystrobin/ difenoconazole (1,205)
Herbicides	2,519	2,669	84	Pendimethalin (959)
Insecticides	2,204	603	76	Lambda-cyhalothrin (1,704)
Growth regulators	284	682	32	Maleic hydrazide (284)
Molluscicides	108	12	12	Metaldehyde (97)
Seed treatments	568	< 0.5	64	Cymoxanil/fludioxonil/ metalaxyl-M (568)
Sulphur	568	2,272	64	N/A
All pesticides	10,002	7,241	84

Note: there were small amounts (<1%) of fungicide applications on other vegetable crops in March 2019

which are not shown on this figure.