The BBCH-scale is a scale used to identify the phenological development stages of a plant. A series of BBCH-scales have been developed for a range of crop species. Phenological development stages of plants are used in a number of scientific disciplines (crop physiology, phytopathology, entomology and plant breeding) and in the agriculture industry (timing of pesticide application, fertization, agricultural insurance). The BBCH-scale uses a decimal code system, which is divided into principal and secondary growth stages, and is based on the cereal code system (Zadoks scale) developed by Zadoks[1]
Officially, the abbreviation BBCH derives from Biologische Bundesanstalt, Bundessortenamt and CHemical industry. Unofficially, the abbreviation is said to represent the four agrichemical companies (Bayer, BASF, Ciba-Geigy and Hoechst) that sponsored the initial development of the system.
BBCH scales for plants or plant groups: