BASE UK 2019 AGM & Conference

ajd132

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Suffolk
It's important to learn and update your thinking, but have you not swung your opinion to no-till, back to cultivating and then back to no-till again in the space of not that many years?
No, cultivate for spring crops. No till the winter cereals. Havnt you done the same swing in thinking also?!
 

TWF

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Peterborough
No, cultivate for spring crops. No till the winter cereals. Havnt you done the same swing in thinking also?!
This is where I struggle Chopped W.WW.Wheat straw creating a thick blanket that doesn't let the wind and sun in the spring. Have a lot of worms but enough to move that quantity yet. The only way around this is to may be bale the straw then sow a cover crop. I haven't got into those yet and just rely on volunteers and one very shallow pass of the Carrier with Crosscutting discs in.
 

JAB

Member
Location
Palouse
This is where I struggle Chopped W.WW.Wheat straw creating a thick blanket that doesn't let the wind and sun in the spring. Have a lot of worms but enough to move that quantity yet. The only way around this is to may be bale the straw then sow a cover crop. I haven't got into those yet and just rely on volunteers and one very shallow pass of the Carrier with Crosscutting discs in.

Getting spring soils to warm up in a timely manner is a big challenge, and frankly I don’t have a silver bullet answer until the breeders start making winter cereals with black straw (which they can do).

Warm season crops with relatively short growing season is one idea, if it is feasible for you, where soil temps have to be warmer and you have to wait to plant. Mudding seed in with the proper drill and drill set-up can work as well.

Chopping straw is necessary if your drill has hoe type openers, but causes way too much hair pinning if you have what I think is a true no-till drill with disc openers. Not sure which type of drill you use, and if this has been a problem for you.

The problem with baling straw is that you are not only exporting nutrients that are usually more costly to replace, but you are exporting carbon that can’t be replaced. This messes up the carbon cycling of a good rotation, and makes soil organic matter gains tough to achieve.
 

JAB

Member
Location
Palouse
In the interests of debate, and because I know you like arguing, cultivating for spring crops is not no-tilling proper according to most people on this thread's understanding. Discuss.

According to one of my friends, strip till and rotational tillage is like when someone is asked if they beat their wife, and the answer is “only every other day!”

:anybody got a matchbook:

Kidding, sort of. And now we’ve strayed somewhat from the OP like good forums do.
 

Suddy

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Durham
This is where I struggle Chopped W.WW.Wheat straw creating a thick blanket that doesn't let the wind and sun in the spring. Have a lot of worms but enough to move that quantity yet. The only way around this is to may be bale the straw then sow a cover crop. I haven't got into those yet and just rely on volunteers and one very shallow pass of the Carrier with Crosscutting discs in.
Lift the combine header up.
 

ajd132

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Suffolk
I recall in one of the talks at the conference someone put a figure up of cost of baling straw versus leaving it and the carbon benefit cost associated. Did anyone get this or am I thinking of something else completely.
 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

  • 0 %

    Votes: 78 42.9%
  • Up to 25%

    Votes: 63 34.6%
  • 25-50%

    Votes: 30 16.5%
  • 50-75%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 75-100%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 100% I’ve had enough of farming!

    Votes: 5 2.7%

Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

  • 1,286
  • 1
As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
Top