EPPO and BBCH codes explained for spray records

EPPO codes

EPPO codes are short codes, usually five or six characters, from the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization. Each identifies a plant, pest or other organism, so a record made in Cork and one made in Rotterdam describe the same crop the same way.

• Potato: SOLTU (Solanum tuberosum)
• Common wheat: TRZAX (Triticum aestivum)
• Perennial ryegrass: LOLPE (Lolium perenne)

You can look up any code in the free EPPO Global Database.

What about paths, car parks and amenity areas?

Many amenity treatments are not on a crop at all. Record the land use as clearly as you can, using the situation described on the product label (for example hard surfaces or amenity grassland) and any code your authority asks for. Check your national guidance, as templates may set out how non-crop uses should be recorded.

BBCH growth stages

The BBCH scale describes how far a plant has developed, using a two-digit number. The first digit is the principal growth stage:

First digit	Principal stage
0	Germination, sprouting or bud development
1	Leaf development
2	Formation of side shoots or tillering
3	Stem elongation or rosette growth
4	Development of harvestable vegetative parts
5	Inflorescence emergence or heading
6	Flowering
7	Development of fruit
8	Ripening
9	Senescence

The second digit gives the detail within that stage. You only need to record the BBCH stage when the product label restricts use to certain growth stages.

Getting the codes right without the lookups

In Sprayfolio you pick the crop or situation from a list and the EPPO code comes with it, and the BBCH picker is grouped by principal stage. Each area can have a default situation, so repeat jobs need no codes at all.