4 minute read
AHDB: Strategic Cereal Farms
AN INTRODUCTION TO AHDB’S
STRATEGIC CEREAL FARMS
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AHDB’s Strategic Cereal Farm network has been increasing over the last few years, now with coverage across the UK. Here, Fiona Geary, AHDB’s Knowledge Transfer Manager, provides an introduction to the farms, their systems and research.
East (2017-23) West (2018-21) Scotland (2020-26) South (2021-27)
Host
Location
Farm size
Main soil type
Brian Barker
E.J. Barker & Sons, Stowmarket
563ha arable farm
Loamy and clay Rob Fox
Squab Hall Farm, Leamington Spa
400ha arable farm David Aglen David Miller
Balbirnie Home Farms, Fife Wheatsheaf Farming Company, Basingstoke
1,200ha mixed farm (800ha arable cropping) 700ha arable farm (670ha cropping)
Medium to heavy clays Sandy silt loam Silty loam over chalk with clay cap and flints
Cropping
Winter feed wheat, herbage grass seed, spring barley, beans and oilseed rape or linseed Establishment system Predominantly direct drill or strip till, with more cultivation as needed
Cover crops
Cover crops are used to make sure all land has cover over winter Trialled but not part of the rotation Cover crops are an important part of the rotation and are used where possible All spring crops are preceded by a cover crop
Livestock
Drill
When appropriate, the cover crop and herbage grass will be offered to a local farmer for grazing
Sumo DTS & Horsch Avatar
Strategic Farm aspiration “We are looking at landscape farming systems and how an integrated system can be brought together and communicated more widely.” Winter wheat, winter barley, oilseed rape, spring beans and spring barley
Oats, spring barley, winter wheat, spring beans, potatoes and brassica vegetables or carrots, grass Deep, non-inversion tillage Mostly no-till for arable cropping with cultivation after vegetables Zero tillage
None
Horsch Sprinter with 5” Dutch openers 170 suckler cows are owned by the farm. Up to 900 sheep from a local farm graze cereals and cover crops during winter. John Deere 750A Winter wheat, winter barley, oilseed rape, spring barley and beans
None
Horizon DSX
“Our goal was to reduce costs and move the ground as much as needed but as little as possible, on our heavy clays. We aimed to react to the situation rather than a blanket approach to farming.” “Want to see how far we can push growing crops without artificial inputs while direct drilling.” We want to create a roadmap for other people to move into regenerative agriculture, looking at how individual practices can be used on their own farm.”
Baselining
AHDB Strategic Cereal Farms have been running since 2017. Each farm business, climate and approach to farming is different but they share the common goal of trying to farm in a more economically and environmentally sustainable way.
The first year of the Strategic Cereal Farm programme is designed to gather baseline data at the start of the project which then informs subsequent trials. The same baselining assessments are repeated in year three and year six of the project to measure change over time.
On-farm research
As a result of land drainage water baselining assessments in the East, one of their projects has been investigating the use of cover crops to improve water quality. Cover crops were sown in both ploughed land and over-winter stubble. Results from harvest 2019 and 2020 showed that a wellestablished cover crop is effective at improving water quality by 50mg/l compared to bare ground.
Rooting is also a focus in the West, where a three year cultivation trial is running, to assess the impact of cultivation on crop rooting, yield and soil structure. The trial started in October 2018, comparing the effect of cultivation at 5cm, 15cm and 30cm depths with a direct drilled treatment included in harvest 2020 and 2021 trials. Harvest 2019 results showed an increased topsoil strength at a cultivation depth of 5cm, leading to a steeper
root angle, however subsoil properties had greater impact on measured crop traits than cultivation depth. There was no significant effect on winter wheat yield in harvest 2019, but shallow cultivation significantly reduced spring bean yield in harvest 2020. The trial is running again this year and results will be shared during Strategic Cereal Farm results week in November 2021.
Strategic Cereal Farm Scotland is currently in its baselining year and ultimately aims to reduce artificial inputs by better understanding crop health, ways to encourage beneficial organisms and how to harness the benefit of cover crops. Objectives include integrating the farm’s livestock into the arable rotation, improving establishment of direct drilled spring barley and identifying an appropriate cover crop for Scotland’s climate, quantifying its benefits on the subsequent cash crop.
Strategic Cereal Farm South is starting on-farm work in October 2021 with soil health, crop health, quality and environmental baselining assessments. The goal of the Strategic Farm project is to maximise carbon sequestration and biodiversity, improve nutrient density in grain as well as reduce artificial inputs. The project will look at improving establishment through investigating the interaction between the soil and the plant as well as exploring the relationship between plant health and pest abundance.
All of the farms are aiming to put research into practice into a commercial system and share the findings, along with resources for you to use on your own farm business. To see the results of previous research, current trials or resources, please visit the Strategic Cereal Farm pages via: ahdb.org.uk/farm-excellence.
Join us for Strategic Cereal Farm Summer interactive workshops and webinars every Friday in June or catch up with the recordings. For more information, please visit:
ahdb.org.uk/strategic-farm-summer-2021.
