MIKE DONOVAN
Welcome to Direct Driller, the UK’s first magazine devoted to no-till. Farmers worldwide are learning and taking up the techniques of direct drilling and no-till, and I am delighted to asked to edit this knowledge based publication focussed on techniques and practice.
My fascination in direct drilling was cemented in 2012 by a YouTube video ‘Undercover Farmers’, 28 inspirational minutes. It shows how regular farmers have changed to natural soil regeneration through cover...
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Direct Driller Magazine
Direct Driller is a new farming magazine, designed by farmers for farmers to educate and inform the industry about no-till techniques
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Mycorrhizal Fungi And Cultural Diversity and Their Significant Increase in No-Till Systems
Originally written by Claudia Maurer et al. and published in TCS in February 2015
The Swiss trial site at “Oberacker” has been comparing tillage and ploughing systems for over 20 years and continually assess the quantity and diversity of mycorrhizal fungi in various different establishment types. The results reveal significantly increased species richness and diversity of mycorrhizal fungi in plots...
CONTENTS ISSUE 1
Introductions - Meet the Team
Farming what needs to change
Plowman’s Folly
Secrets of their success in zero-till
Aqua-till
How to start drilling for £8k
Asda soil masters bursary
Start simple with cover crops
Could you run a farm scale trial in 2018?
Progressive farmer: Alex Shutes
A cover crop ‘addiction’
Mycorrhizal funghi and cultural diversity
Rapeseed associated with pulses
Horsch, a return to direct seeding
Alternatives to glyphosate
UK...
Vaderstad
Vaderstad’s Carrier Working on Blackgrass Prone Farms
Vaderstad know that farms and farmers have to be flexible, that there is no one solution to suit all farms and therefore farmers need to find the system that works for them on their farm. Pure Direct Drilling just won’t work in every case and farmers need to find out what works for them. From this they have seen that creating a stale seedbed is one of the most important elements to contain blackgrass to a manageable level...
Prime West
Cross-slot technology emerged in New Zealand around 30 years ago, and has evolved through intense university research in both New Zealand and the USA. It has been field proven in more than 17 countries.
In concept, the technology allows farmers to place seeds and fertiliser very close together in an optimum environment to encourage seed germination and establishment, by using an ‘inverted T’ slot. In 2012 Primewest Limited built its first UK designed drill. Now 3m, 4m and 5m...
Innovative Farmers Look for Alternatives to Glyphosate to Terminate Cover Crops
Anglia Farmers are running a new field lab through the Innovative Farmers network, investigating alternative ways to terminate cover crops.
Many farmers rely on the chemical herbicide glyphosate to destroy unwanted crops at certain points within the crop rotation, but with uncertainty over its future availability there is a desire to find new methods. These Innovative Farmers are getting ahead of the curve and...
Horsch, a Return to Direct Seeding
Originally written by Frédéric Thomas and published in TCS in August 2015
While this may be a surprise many, Michael Horsch is first and foremost a farmer, not a designer and manufacturer of agricultural machinery. The opening of East Germany after the fall of the Wall in 1989 allowed him and his family to expand its farming and implement new equipment and test its expertise, while refining its farming strategies. Therefore, his outlook, his analysis and...
Rapeseed With Pulses and the Management of Nitrogen
Originally written by Gilles Sauzet and published in TCS in March 2016
When we include pulses or beans in the cropping system, either as a main crop or companion crop, nitrogen management is at the heart of the strategy. Knowledge of the evolution of nitrogen build-up and nitrogen flows mobilized by the different cultures that can use it, becomes a major asset, especially in low-availability environments.
The inclusion of legumes in...
Getting Positive Results From A Cover Crop ‘Addiction’
Originally Printed in No-Till Farmer - USA By Julia Debes
Bill Buessing leaves no stone unturned as he seeds various cover-crop species to feed cattle, build up soils and fix nutrients for cash crops.
A self-described “cover crops addict,” Bill Buessing maintains a cash crop or covercrop mix on every acre of his farm year-round. Not only does this protect and improve the soil, it also provides forage for his cattle and has allowed...
Progressive Farmer - Alex Shutes
I’m Alex Shutes - @Shutesy on The Farming Forum, 28 years old, a graduate from Harper Adams University in 2012 and now a farm manager on a 200ha all arable farm in Essex.
We grow Oilseed Rape, Wheat, W Barley, S Barley and S Beans on a 7 year rotation but with the mindset of not being afraid to chop and change depending on crop prices, the weather or for any other reason that requires a change in plans.
Our 1st wheats are grown as a low pesticide...
Could you run a farm scale trial in 2018?
We as farmers are constantly being told about trial results, but as they say, there is nothing like trying things yourself on your own farm. Many of you out there are indeed already doing this, but what we would like to see is people sharing these results so other farmers can use that information on their farm. One example of this was @Clive Bailye’s trial of Adexar® and Librax® verses both his on farm standard and Aviator® Xpro. This was...
Start Simple With Cover Crops
Cover crops are becoming the new ‘in’ thing for arable farmers, and more are trying them out, often without really knowing what they are doing. Seed merchants are getting in on the act, and there’s an increasing amount of conflicting advice out there. Farmers want a plan they can follow, and here is one for any practical farmer who wants to succeed with them.
Writes Mike Donovan in this article from @Practical Farm Ideas issue 24-4
Steve Townsend has been...
Asda Soil Masters Bursary Visit US Farms
Asda arranged and funded a ‘Soil Masters’ tour of a number of US farms which have been in the forefront of no-till techniques. The main part of the bursary project was to explore the feasibility of combining arable and beef farming using a combination of no till farming practices which include all year round crop coverage and natural fertilisation with the purpose of regenerating the ever decreasing organic soil structure and matter of over farmed...
How To Start Drilling For £8K
Clive Bailye’s seed drill of choice is his 6m John Deere 750A , which has been used exclusively for 3-4 seasons. Last year, with an increased acreage, the founder and publisher of this Direct Driller magazine thought a second seed drill was necessary. Having just the one machine was a risk and in a difficult season would mean drilling was delayed. He looked around and found a good condition Horsch CO6 tine drill advertised in Germany.
Words and pictures by...
Aqua-Till Uses a Water Jet to Open The Groove
Originally written by Frédéric Thomas – and published in TCS Magazine in August 2013
Cutting with water Ultra High Pressure (UHP) technology is rapidly developing in the industrial world. We appreciate its ability to quickly and cleanly cut virtually anything. In agriculture, the need to precisely cut is just as much as requirement and in many different situations, with one such application being opening a furrow for direct seeding. Greg...
Conservation Agriculture Guru Shows Secrets Of Their Success in No-Till
First published in @Practical Farm Ideas Issue #95, Issue 24-3 Autumn 2015
No-till, zero-till and conservation agriculture have subtle differences in meaning. In all of them, seeds are sown directly into the stubble and trash (or rather mulch) left by the combine. Each of these terms is there to reflect the standpoint of the user. Zero-till says “I never use any cultivation”, while No-Till is fractionally softer, so...
Plowman' s Folly
By Edward H. Faulkner With a Foreword by S. Graham Brade-Birks M.Sc. (Manc.), D.Sc. (Lond.), of the SouthEastern Agricultural College (University of London), Wye, Kent. First published 1945
Traditions of the Plough
The answer to the question, Why do farmers plough? should not be difficult to arrive at. Ploughing is almost universal. Farmers like to plough. If they did not get pleasure from seeing the soil turn turtle, knowing the while that by ploughing they dispose...
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Tractor Chat #01
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Tractor Chat #01 - with Direct Driller Magazine Farmer Focus writer Phil Rowbottom
Discussing direct drilling wheat, Oil seed rape growing in the UK, Fendt 724 tractor and his Sky Easy Drill.
Discussing direct drilling wheat, Oil seed rape growing in the UK, Fendt 724 tractor and his Sky Easy Drill.