Research looking at double cropping barley in one season is being conducted this year.
Those attending the Foundation for Arable Research's CROPS 2014 expo at Chertsey, near Ashburton, last week were told increases in the yield from barley was required to ensure the crop remained viable and double cropping could be one way to increase productivity.
Rob Craige, from FAR said barley was an increasingly valuable crop in the arable rotation and it fitted well in cropping systems where it could be used for grain or cereal silage.
In recent years the average grain yield of barley had increased from six tonnes per hectare in the 1980s to 8.3 tonnes per hectare in the 2010s. Yields of more than 10 tonnes were regularly achieved.
Several new cultivars had the potential to yield about 10% higher than older ones.
Yields in the autumn and spring barley cultivar trials had been similar.
Barley was increasingly being grown for cereal silage, where it provided significant opportunity as a short-season crop in a feed-focused cropping system.
Used in this way, it could allow planting of summer vegetables, other feed crops or even a second barley crop.