As growers grapple for grassweed solutions, Direct Driller looks at the results from the first year of on-farm trials investigating a novel way of controlling weed seeds at harvest. Written by Charlotte Cunningham Grassweeds are the bane of any arable farmer’s life, with control often an uphill battle when it comes to tackling particularly persistent …
On-farm trials make progress towards weed seed solutions Read More »
Written by Joe Stanley from the Allerton Project What it is to be ‘a good farmer’ in the UK is currently undergoing a transformation of grand proportions. Many will have spent much of their careers in the belief that farmed land was for one thing only – food production – and that soil health (to …
Proving the value of Conservation Agriculture in the UK Read More »
After five years of cover crops and reduced tillage cultivations, Kent farm manager Dom Hughes reviews his experience – and how good advice has been vital to not making a mess of it. “Slowly, slowly catchee monkey” has become my mantra. This old English proverb, which is another way of saying ‘be patient’, is perhaps …
High silt content soils make for a slow drilling transition Read More »
Written by James Warne from Soil First Farming Many years of looking at soil proves to me that cultivations never improve soil structure. They may help to overcome an immediate problem – like compaction. But they are only ever a short-term fix; and not a very good one, either. Cultivations always leave some sort of …
Written by Ian Gould and Ethan Powell from Oakbank Game and Conservation As we inch ever closer to knowing more detail regarding the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) and the new government portal for applications (possibly in September), many farmers are trying to make sense of what we do know. So far there has been little …
Written by Dr Alastair Leake from The Allerton Project “There’s a reason why we use the plough” a colleague sagely advised me when I questioned this fundamental agricultural practice; “It works” – and I was treated to a history lesson to-boot. Having transitioned from growing heated glasshouse salad crops in hydroponics, the ultimate zero-till system, …
The evolution of tillage techniques on heavy arable land in the East Midlands Read More »
Written by Emma Adams on behalf of The Farm Carbon Toolkit The second in our series of farm walks was with David Miller in Hampshire. This year’s Arable Soil Farmer of the Year, David is keen to demonstrate how a regenerative system can be both simple and profitable even on challenging soils. Managing 700ha of …
Arable Soil Farmer of the Year – A farm walk with David Miller Read More »
Excellent soil health is fundamental for maximum farm productivity With autumn drilling on the Claydon farm completed and crops developing well, Jeff Claydon, inventor of the Opti-Till® direct strip seeding system, discusses the importance of excellent soil health and the role of effective stubble management in achieving it. 30 November 2022 Excellent soil health is a …
By Brian O’Connor originally published by No-Till Farming Wisconsin no-till dairyman Chris Conley thwarts heavy rain and hills with no-till, covers and planting green. No-tiller Chris Conley took two big steps where other farmers might take one. Conley farms 120 acres for feed (silages, dry hay and high-moisture corn) for his 52-cow dairy, located down …
Written by Ian Gould from Oakbank Oakbank have been looking at ways to include a “Living Mulch” in an arable rotation for a number of years and we would like to thank Roger Davis and his team at Indigro for their collaboration with this work. Some of you may be familiar with this concept, but …
