Patches of discoloured ("scorched") plants developed on winter wheat growing in a field that had been fumigated with methyl bromide. Scorching was most marked round the methyl bromide injection sites and was associated with bromine uptake by the plants: the above‐ground parts of the scorched plants contained up to 0.61% bromine. In one scorched area, the first, second and third wheat crops after fumigation contained 0.42, 0.25 and 0.09% bromine respectively, so that three years was not sufficient to leach all the residual bromine from the soil.