Widespread damage attributed to frost lift was seen in winter barley crops in Devon and Cornwall during late spring 1978. A break in the crown root system of plants had occurred. An affected crop of cv. Astrix in Devon yielded 3.5 t/ha; this was 1.8 t/ha less than an adjacent unaffected crop of the same cultivar. Copyright © 1979, Wiley Blackwell. All rights reserved