The good, the bad and the downright ugly is the only way I can describe the state of our autumn drilled crops as we head into the spring. Throughout the later stages of 2023 as a result of the unrelenting rain I was pitifully watching our area of cereals for next harvest diminishing by the day.
Dr David Cutress: IBERS, Aberystwyth University. • Symbiotic fungi mycorrhiza have important interactions with many plant species• Mycorrhiza, in optimal conditions, can improve plant growth with fewer inputs, improve soils and protect from weeds, insects, contamination and climate changes• Mycorrhiza focused systems as such could act as a promising future tool to combat the increasing …
Farming’s fungi focus: Considering belowground to benefit aboveground Read More »
I’m not going to dwell on the weather but as it is a major factor in what we do, I will say, despite having constant downpours of around 40-50mm we have fared better than most. My rain gauge filled so many times I must admit I gave up emptying it. Colin McGregor, 4 miles away, …
Signs of Spring are everywhere, and while work in the world of agriculture never stops, this month we will see efforts ramp up – from the drilling, or sowing, of the sugar beet to fertilising and crop spraying. At a local level, we may still only be seeing the seeds of regenerative agriculture taking hold, …
Agriculture has landed at an interesting turning point – where do we go now? Read More »
o match our Eco range of seed drills, our Mounted Tine Drill (MTD) range has been upgraded to include a split tank option, allowing for simultaneous sowing of two different seeds or products. The narrow double coulters place the two products, one beneath the other, behind the 12mm wide tungsten tipped tines as they penetrate the soil. The 1500-liter hopper, divided evenly, integrates two Accord seed metering units (one of which is a heavier duty Fertiliser metering unit) managed through an RDS Isocan control system.
As I write this in the third week of March, I can reflect on challenging times both behind and ahead. On the heavy Hanslope-Denchworth series clays of the Allerton Project, we are yet to get so far even as to have terminated our cover crops, let alone apply any spring inputs to those autumn-sown crops which have survived the onslaught of one of the wettest winters on record – though we judge that only some 35% of our winter wheat area is even salvageable. Even were the incessant rains to cease today, we are likely looking at planting our wheat, beans, oats and barley well into the middle of April, significantly compromising potential.
Each session will have a main guest speaker who will speak for roughly 20 minutes followed by a 20 minute panelquestion and answer session. The panel will consist of a farmer, an agronomist, a person from the trade and the host. 9:30 – 10:30What SFI options are you claiming? SAM1, HRW3, AHL1, AHL2, AB1, AB8 …
High yielding Bamford signals landmark change in UK soft wheat sector Written by Mike Thornton, UK Head of Crop Production at Procam. With just 5 new varieties recommended for the 2024-25 season, 10 removed and a much-improved layout, the new Recommended List (RL) for winter wheats has a cleaner, fresher look that should enable …
During an unrelentingly wet February, the only ray of sunshine was the arrival of our Red Sussex calves. It’s always amazing to watch mother and baby choreograph an apparently impossible dance in which a sodden, half blind wobbly legged newborn finds the source of its milk. About a month before calving, we moved them up above the flood, onto one of our four sandier fields where the ground has remained relatively firm underfoot. On the lower clays that make up most of the farm, it’s a different story.Â
The impact of rising CO2 levels on the nutritional quality of crops Written by Louis Gray, UWE & Dr William Stiles, Aberystwyth University. Take home messages:• Increasing levels of CO2 in the atmosphere are expected to change the nutritional composition of plants, and plant growth patterns• Certain existing crops may start to perform less well, …
