Establishing cover crops
- Thread starter Drillman
- Start date
- Location
- Bury St Edmunds
Tickle the surface with a combi and roll
Pieces_of_Eight
Member
Leave the PH in the shed, broadcast the seed mix, then give it a whizz over with a chain harrow (or a gate dragged behind the quadbike), then roll.
would it not be better and make a bit more tilth to broadcast the seed on then a light tickle with the PH with the rollers hooked on the back?
Pieces_of_Eight
Member
Possibly. Is it heavy land?
Not heavy. More stoney. Chalk and flint. We're also quite late. It would prob be 2nd half of sept before ground was cleared.
Thinking Spring barley ground after 2nd wheat. Only 30-50 acres.
Warp Land Farmer
Member
- Location
- Hazzard County
This is my 1st year with cover crops, by accident rather than thought we have established with 3 different methods all in 1st weekend of September, all light or warp land ;
1. Land sumo'd and left to green up for 2 weeks, CC broadcaste on with a spinner then rolled in. Had a very decent rain on it after about 2 days and has come the best and grown the quickest. If it wasn't for the rain Im unsure this method would be the best with the seed in the top of a dry cultivation.
2. Front mounted spinner with carrier on rear of tractor in 1 pass, this was my favoured option but the spinner has some obvious overlaps as the carrier is a 4.2m model. Has come slower than option 1 but that is because the seed was set the deepest I think.
3. Front mounted spinner then carriered in but as 2 passes. Similar results to option 2 but less obvious overlaps as seed spun on at 12m.
Next year I will try drilling it into once worked stubbles.
1. Land sumo'd and left to green up for 2 weeks, CC broadcaste on with a spinner then rolled in. Had a very decent rain on it after about 2 days and has come the best and grown the quickest. If it wasn't for the rain Im unsure this method would be the best with the seed in the top of a dry cultivation.
2. Front mounted spinner with carrier on rear of tractor in 1 pass, this was my favoured option but the spinner has some obvious overlaps as the carrier is a 4.2m model. Has come slower than option 1 but that is because the seed was set the deepest I think.
3. Front mounted spinner then carriered in but as 2 passes. Similar results to option 2 but less obvious overlaps as seed spun on at 12m.
Next year I will try drilling it into once worked stubbles.
- Location
- Mid Northants
We spread them onto stubble and sumo trioed them in
Warp Land Farmer
Member
- Location
- Hazzard County
How did they come Fred? I thought about this but chickened it as was worried the seed would be too deep. Cheers.
Chae1
Member
- Location
- Aberdeenshire
Got good establishment with 2 passes with rollers and paddles.
This is first pass.
Then put seed on with fert spreader. Then tickle again with paddles to cover seed and consolidate. Makes me wonder why we bother ploughing and using ph and one pass.....
This is first pass.
Then put seed on with fert spreader. Then tickle again with paddles to cover seed and consolidate. Makes me wonder why we bother ploughing and using ph and one pass.....
- Location
- Mid Northants
Fine , we were only using spring oats , at 40 kg/ha, only issue is where we waited a week , it rained and they aren't the best , so only spread what you can sumo in 1 day, we messed about with disc depth but tbh it didn't make a lot of difference
Louis Mc
Member
- Location
- Meath, Ireland
Just use either a tine or disc no till drill. One pass job done, 90 % of the soil structure/biology/worms etc etc still in tact. Disturbance may give quicker growth but I think your better off going low disturbance
Warp Land Farmer
Member
- Location
- Hazzard County
Those type of drills are not that common in my part of the world hence using a cultivation to establish CC.
- Location
- South West
We just scratched some mustard and rye in to the stubble with a accord tineseeder then rolled. The mustard took well the rye didn't. Up until 2 seasons ago we established our OSR this way will good results. Why did I change?
Why not cut out a pass by spinning the seed onto the stubble then using your rolls with the paddles down?
Some people spend too much on a crop that isn't going to give a direct income IMO.
This
4course
Member
- Location
- north yorks
totally different approach here ploughed 7days after barley harvested early aug lightly worked broadcast mustard and barley mix for cc greening then 2nd october glypho 36 hrs later disc lightly to destroy then winter barley sown and we got good cover and root length plus a well established barley crop , the only expense compared to normal was the cost of cc seed but I reckon that was more than offset by reduction in establishment of wb crop and timing further plus is sometimes this field is prone to standing water due to run off from the hills but even the amount of water we have had this last 3 wks no problem ,seems to offer a solution to early ploughed land drying out too much
warksfarmer
Member
Mustard spun on via pelleter at 4kg/ha in September.
Then just walked away. No rolling or anything.
- Location
- south norfolk
Is that frost thats hit that.
Nick...
Nick...