UK growers' clamour for seed to fill a mammoth spring planting programme, forced by the worst autumn sowing period in living memory, is being answered in part thanks to the benign winter in the likes of Germany and Poland.

UK merchants have been scouring Europe for spring seed for farmers left with unusually large spring sowings programmes, after the second wettest year on record left autumn planting plans in tatters.

That they are managing to meet demand is largely down to the benign winter weather on the Continent which, unlike last year, has limited the need for resowing, and created a surplus of spring seed for shipment to the UK.

Tables turned

"Seed merchants are getting their seed from as far as the Czech Republic or Germany," Matthias Wree, at malting barley consultancy RMI Analytics, told Agrimoney.com.

At Gleadell, the UK merchant, seed manager Chris Guest said: "It is the complete opposite of last year, when we were sending them spring seed.

"This time, their winter crops are well established."

The quest for seed is taking merchants not only into foreign countries - with France and Poland also mentioned as sources, as well as Denmark for spring barley - but unusual varieties too, at least for spring wheat, which looks set to grow from a minority crop into a mainstream one this year.

While many varieties of spring barley, of which the UK is typically a major grower, are common throughout Europe, such as Syngenta's Propino, Quench and Shuffle, spring wheat varieties tend to be a more localised.

"Usually it is such a small market, it is not so well supplied by the major firms," Mr Guest said, noting that UK spring wheat seed demand was typically less than 5% that of winter wheat.

While one variety, Tybalt, is already well known to UK growers, Gleadell also has sought labels better known in countries such as Poland.

Bad scenario

The switch to different varieties has prompted concerns about the usability of much of the UK spring wheat crop this year, given that much of it will be of types unfamiliar to domestic millers.

However, merchants were sending samples of unusual wheats to millers well in advance of harvest, to ensure they were familiar with the quality profile, Mr Guest said.

A bigger problem may face farmers who have scrimped on spring seed, and opted to plant winter varieties instead, even into this month, a grain, and seed, trader told Agrimoney.com.

While growers may be prepared to cope with a crop not ripening until September, the trouble may come if it does not produce grain at all.

"Some may not vernalise," the trader said, a reference to the need for cold weather for winter varieties to germinate or grow a head.

"If farmers have planted too late, and not expose their seed to cold temperatures, they may just be left with silage."