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There are plenty of questions about cereal seed treatments, like how they work, what are the benefits and why should growers invest in treating their seed.
Shad Milligan, Seedcare technical lead, west, for Syngenta Canada answers the most common questions western Canadian cereal growers have, and offers seed treatment solutions to help maximize yield, improve crop quality and make this year’s crop the best yet.
1. What are the benefits of treating cereal seed?
Anything you can do to give your crop its best start will pay off. And that includes treating seed. Protecting cereal seed as soon as it meets the soil is important to optimize emergence and stand establishment by protecting against soil-borne diseases and insects. Treating seed is also an opportunity to maximize seed quality with improved germination and plant vigour, improved seeding rate accuracy and targeted plant stands. Don’t forget, a better start means healthier plants above and below ground, including improved root development that will help plants utilize crop nutrients at every development stage. Seed treatments will help you realize yield potential thanks to more uniform emergence and better abiotic stress management throughout the growing season.
2. Why should you treat your cereal seed?
Soil is a hostile environment for seeds and seedlings and seeds are a natural host for pathogens, like seed-borne diseases.
It is also home to insect pests. A single generation of wireworms can live in the soil for three to five years, meaning you can expect to see several growth stages present at the same time, posing a risk to new seeds and seedling roots.
So why not add protection to give crops their best start? Early protection and control of seed- and soil-borne diseases offers cereals an initial advantage that will pay off through the entire season.
3. How do seed treatments work?
Seed treatments provide a targeted, environmentally sustainable solution to manage early-season diseases and insects. Protecting seeds ensures plants get off to a healthy, vigorous start that leads to improved crop quality and yield potential.
4. Why does protection from soil-borne diseases matter?
Protecting against soil-borne diseases means you can achieve target plant stands and more accurate seeding rates. Seed treatments also contribute to faster emergence in difficult conditions and reduce the risk of yield loss from poor stand establishment that can never be fully re-couped as the season progresses. Effective disease control contributes to the development of healthy root systems and the plant’s ability to utilize water and nutrients and withstand stress – especially drought.
5. My cereal seed is clean, do I still need to treat it?
Here’s an easy way to help answer that question:
Recommended seed treatments
Vibrance® Quattro helps protect your cereal crop when its most vulnerable
An all-in-one fungicide solution for cereals, Vibrance Quattro provides extensive, broad-spectrum disease protection for cereals, including excellent control of Fusarium and Rhizoctonia. Take advantage of early-season seed- and soil-borne disease protection, and the added benefits of healthy root development, consistent plant stands and higher yields. And, with its convenient pre-mix formulation, Vibrance Quattro makes application quick and simple.
Cruiser® Vibrance® Quattro is the trusted wireworm solution for cereals.
Cruiser Vibrance Quattro provides excellent performance on a broad spectrum of seed- and soil-borne diseases, including wireworm. It also features the added benefits of Rooting Power® and Vigor Trigger™ to help get your crop off to a vigorous, strong-standing start.
Cruiser Vibrance Quattro also features the added benefit of Vigor Trigger™. This helps cereals get off to a stronger, more vigorous start and improves emergence, even in tough, cool early-season conditions.
Have more questions? Visit Syngenta Canada for more information about seed treatments and maximizing your crop potential this year.
Always read and follow label directions. Cruiser®, Vibrance®, Vigor Trigger™ and the Syngenta logo are trademarks of a Syngenta Group Company. Other trademarks are property of their respective owners. © 2025 Syngenta
