Fallow/temp grass question

Can I designate a temp grass field as fallow next year and if so would that 'reset the clock' on the conversion to perm grass? Ie the year after that it could go back to temp grass for another 4 years?

Andy26 said:

Probably not as now five fallows in a row and it's classed as PP.

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When did that change then? I thought fallow was arable regardless of time?

According to the 2018 BPS rules book, EFA fallow land remains arable regardless of how long it is declared as fallow:

There is no restriction on how many years land is classed as fallow under the EFA rules. It can still count as arable land even if it has been EFA fallow with a grass cover for 5 years or more.

https://assets.publishing.service.g...ta/file/705756/BPS_2018_scheme_rules_v5.0.pdf Page 53

4course said:

not sure about wether it resets the clock i.e 5yrs temp ley then1 yr fallow not cut whilst 1st july can it be re classified as tg for another 5 yrs as could be useful if didnt want to create pp re any future changes by gove et al, got to remember that fallow counts as arable so affects greening totals

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So does temp grass though as well, so greening shouldn't be a problem. The whole point is to try and keep the field as arable, not go back to perm pasture.

I've never really been sure what the trigger for resetting the temp grass clock is, it would appear that even if you plough a field and reseed it that doesn't reset the clock, it has to be another crop on the BPS form. But if you change the crop on the form (ie go from temp grass to fallow back to temp grass) do you have to cultivate as well? Or is it just the paperwork version of reality that resets the clock?

Thinking about it, if you cultivated and reseeded a temp grass field in the autumn, then declared it as fallow for the next year, then you'd have both cultivated AND had a paper break. And because the grass was new you'd probably want to leave it until later in the year to graze or cut anyway.

Roll on the end of subsidies when all this sh*t disappears.

dannewhouse said:

I thought you could plough permanent pasture out anyway if you can demonstrate its "improved" < or some wording like that meaning seed/reseed/over seed/fertiliser are all improvements and in you case showing arable history would mean you'd be fine?

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Yes, but I'd rather not get involved in the potential hassle of all that, and giving NE the opportunity to say 'Computer says no....'