Farmers are making their cropping plans for the year, and are looking at ways to reduce diseases with their crop rotations.

Brent Flaten, Integrated Pest Management Specialist with the Ministry of Agriculture, says you can run into issues with having a tight rotation for crops like durum, which is susceptible to fusarium headblight, or canola which is susceptible to sclerotinia.

He added growing conditions in recent years have caused problems in some rotations.

"For example we've had some experiences during these wetter years where if you have both peas and lentils in a crop rotation you're not too tight in the same crops but both of those crops are susceptible to aphanomyces root rot."

Flaten adds crop sequencing can help reduce diseases, but doesn’t necessarily prevent it. 

He adds being too tight with crops like durum, canola and pulses that are susceptible to those diseases can be an issue, but proper crop sequencing can help reduce the risk.

"If you have airborne spores blowing in from diseased stubble next to the crop you are seeding in 2017 you could still get disease but it tends to be a lot less than if you're having a tight rotation and have that diseased stubble in the field that you are actually seeding."

Flaten adds there are other benefits beyond disease management with crop rotations, including increased soil nutrients when following a pulse crop with a cereal.