How agronomy is adapting to better serve UK growers
Rob Bowes I’ve been an agronomist for over a decade, and I’ve seen my role…
Farmer Focus – Tim Parton
Mar 2026 Spring has always been my favourite month, with autumn being a close second….
Is Resting Your Pastures Always Best for Soil Health? New Science Says It’s Complicated
For decades, a common piece of advice for boosting soil health and fighting climate change…
A Dispatch from the Front Line: Two Days at the BASE-UK Annual Conference
The annual BASE-UK conference has always been more than just a series of presentations; it…
Farmer Focus – Andrew Jackson
It’s the middle of March already; this year is flying by. Even though in my…
Farming with trees made easier with Agricology
Agroforestry is an agroecological-based approach that combines trees and shrubs with crops, livestock or both,…
Biofungicide performance pilot for wheat
AHDB-funded trials will provide independent information on the potential of biofungicides in winter wheat. Jason…
Government and Defra must regain farmers’ trust
Feb 2026 The apparent lack of understanding of the agricultural sector by government / Defra…
Can Certification Truly Pay for UK Farmers?
Written by Chris Fellows The term “regenerative agriculture” is on everyone’s lips, from the halls…
The Mchanics of Soil
The unseen foundation: decoding the mechanics of your soil Most modern farmers possess an enviable…
Building Resilient Forage Systems
What we know about the seasons is that there is no “normal” year. Last year…
Farmer Focus – Tom Martin
Holding Our Nerve There’s a certain satisfaction in early spring when the farm looks well,…
Soil improvements under cover
Cover crop establishment has been a serious challenge for many this season, with the extreme…
Young Farmers Take Parliament by Storm, and Back Regenerative Farming
Written by Charley Snowdon, Office of Blake Stephenson MP Young Farmers from across the country…
Farmer Focus – Ryan McCormack
Mar 2026 Ryan McCormack Farmers Weekly Farm Manager of the Year 2025, Dennington Hall Farms…
Protect the flag leaf to fulfil yield potential
With many crops facing higher disease pressure this spring, Direct Driller takes a look at…
What if farmers weren’t just producing food, but fuel too?
This is one of the questions being explored by 2026 Nuffield Scholar Matthew Steel. As…
Farmer Focus – Andy Howard
Spring Hope Sitting here writing this on April Fool’s Day, a full nine months since…
Farmer Focus – John Pawsey
A rumination on scale in three songs I’ve got a brand new combine harvester, ‘an…
Why We Should “Feed the Soil”
Written by James Warne from Soil First Farming “Feed the soil” is one of those…
The Allerton Project
Over the past thirty-five years, the Allerton Project has been at the forefront of many…
Farmer Focus – Clive Bailye
Dog & Stick – Survival Mode Apr 2026 For many arable farms, good management on…
Making sense of satellite imagery
It is more accessible and affordable than ever before, but do you know your RGB…
Mzuri Factory Tour
If, like me, you wondered if Mzuri had stopped all production and was going to…
Welcome to the Groundswell 2026 Issue
It is that time of year again. As we look ahead to the 1st and…
Welcome to the first tech focussed edition of Direct Driller Magazine. From now on, issues will rotate between soils issues and tech issues.
Contents –
Old-fashioned farming with modern technology – page 4.
It’s 2030, so how have we done? – page 4.
Labour pains push robotic pickers – page 6.
Industry-leading research in robotics and automation – page 12.
Flash, crackle, pop – page 14.
Agronomist in Focus – Todd Jex – page 16.
The win-wins of regenerative agriculture – page 19.
Robots find their way into farmers fields – page 22.
Bayer and Microsoft forge a new frontier – page 26.
Robitics and perception in agriculture – page 28
What will appear at FIRA24? -30
Farmer Focus – Thomas Gent – 36
From hands-free hectare to aerial delivery – 37
Farmer Focus – Daniel Davies – 39
Catapult plans for UK agritech – 41
Shedding light on LED grow lighting – 46
Drilling down into fixed costs – 48
Farmer Focus – Simon Beddows – 50
Making methane practical – 52
Hitting rock bottom – 53
Basics best for hi-tech wine – 56
Biochar venture wins equity investment – 59
Farmer Focus – Clive Bailye – 61
Manufacturer Focus – Vaderstad – 63