New Brexit Farm Payments

[SheepChaser 8,091]

I have a lot of thoughts !

Cover crops do as follows -

Trap and retain moisture so stop run off into water courses.

Put fertility (in the form of organic matter) into the ground.

Help break up and reduce compaction.

Help to control weed burdens ie black grass.

Provide winter feed and shelter for wildlife.

Provide a cheap and ethical food source for fattening live stock.

Reduce fertiliser use by fixing nitrogen via legumes.

Cover crops and species rich herbal leys are the mainstay of my buisness. We establish thousands of acres of winter covers every year.

 

[SheepChaser 8,091]

6 hours ago, poxon said:

It’s all about building good soil with good micro organisms rather than adding chemicals I’m surprised more farms haven’t gone chemical free and gone back to old practices of natural fertilisers for land. I’m guessing it’s a practicality thing but definitely think all farms could play there part in stepping towards going chemical free. Tbh I think it’d be nice to see them using cover crops an animals more in crop rotation 

The main reason for not going chemical free entirely is economics and also the fact that ploughing causes soil  damage so people are being encouraged to go direct drilling and minimal cultivation. But it’s very hard to do that without some use of glyphosate pre drilling. 

[SheepChaser 8,091]

4 hours ago, Born Hunter said:

How commonly is arable left fallow over winter? I've spent a fair bit of time on arable land in Linc's and it was always growing wheat/OSR in the winter. If that failed for whatever reason they'd have a second go in spring. Is it very different elsewhere?

I understand the old payments used to pay farmers to do f**k all with so many fields for the year. Is this going to be the same but now they are sticking a cover crop in them too?

More and more folks establishing spring crops instead of winter so using cover crops in between. Rape is becoming univaiable in some areas due to endemic flea beetle pressure. The way to break that is have a whole area break from rape for 3-5 years. The cover crop thing has been gaining momentum for about ten years but started to hit critical mass avout two years ago with the proposed elms system. 

[Born Hunter 17,910]

11 minutes ago, SheepChaser said:

More and more folks establishing spring crops instead of winter so using cover crops in between. Rape is becoming univaiable in some areas due to endemic flea beetle pressure. The way to break that is have a whole area break from rape for 3-5 years. The cover crop thing has been gaining momentum for about ten years but started to hit critical mass avout two years ago with the proposed elms system. 

Thank you. Where I'm from OSR is a major crop, it's been very noticeable the reduction in recent years. I'm all in favour because I'm allergic as f**k to it's pollen. 

So do you think this proposal is going to achieve anything?

[SheepChaser 8,091]

30 minutes ago, Born Hunter said:

Thank you. Where I'm from OSR is a major crop, it's been very noticeable the reduction in recent years. I'm all in favour because I'm allergic as f**k to it's pollen. 

So do you think this proposal is going to achieve anything?

I’m not particularly a fan of any farm subsidy. It creates an uneven playing field and promotes inefficient practice.

However if we are going to subsidise farms I would be happier seeing it based upon the delivery of some public or environmental good rather than for mere ownership.

Ultimately in farming, survival is no longer mandatory. You need (and much more so as time passes ) to be good, top 5%. You need to be efficient and reduce inputs and focus on profit not turnover. 
 

Cover crops, temporary grass lays, genetics, integration of livestock etc are all going to play a major part in our farming future .... and might be the only thing that saves us from total rewilding. It’s called regenerative agriculture and I think it’s the future. 

[SheepChaser 8,091]

If you want to see something real cool, some friends or mine are using a special drill to interplanet fields with strips of heritage wheat varieties and strips of small leaded clover. The drill plants the wheat at a slight angle so you get full field cover like normal but at the ground level you have a living mulch effectively which provides nitrogen to the soil (and wheat) and also suppresses weeds. Then when you harvest the wheat the clover grows up as a winter cover and you graze it. Then you redrill with the wheat or whatever. The clover never dies and acts as a living mulch for say 3 years till you change rotation. also stops soil run off between rows etc. Amazing stuff. 

[low plains drifter 11,211]

1 hour ago, Born Hunter said:

Thank you. Where I'm from OSR is a major crop, it's been very noticeable the reduction in recent years. I'm all in favour because I'm allergic as f**k to it's pollen. 

So do you think this proposal is going to achieve anything?

This is the problem with you modern men frying your venison livers in OSR, and various other trendy metrosexual oils, get your pans coated in finest beef dripping and live the dream

[Born Hunter 17,910]

5 minutes ago, low plains drifter said:

This is the problem with you modern men frying your venison livers in OSR, and various other trendy metrosexual oils, get your pans coated in finest beef dripping and live the dream

How do you fry fairtrade avocado on toast?

[low plains drifter 11,211]

12 minutes ago, Born Hunter said:

How do you fry fairtrade avocado on toast?

I don't