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Arable Farming
Cropping
Cover crops, yes or no?
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<blockquote data-quote="DrWazzock" data-source="post: 6366184" data-attributes="member: 2119"><p>I wouldn't go back to widespread ploughing.</p><p></p><p>I try to get some return from our cover crops by making sure they are always grazed with livestock. Covers so far have been mostly stubble turnips or cereal volunteers, particularly oats which grew to form a big cover last year then were grazed and trampled by the sheep. By the time of drilling the next Spring crop the cover has just about gone and drilling it was easy.</p><p></p><p>I'd be wary of growing a cover and leaving it ungrazed then spraying off and drilling. There is too much potential there for a big build up in slug numbers and indeed flea beetle. I'd also be concerned about plant disease and virus carryover, and N lock up and toxins on cover breakdown. The animals solve most of that by turning it into organic fertiliser.</p><p></p><p>I keep saying it but livestock do bring a lot to the party as far as arable farming is concerned. I had a big brome problem after zero till winter cereals and OSR. I knew another winter cereal crop would see the brome get out of control. So it went in with stubble turnips direct drilled at very low cost. The sheep grazed them over winter, trampled the brome seed in so it was constantly chitting and being eaten off. Then in Spring a clean up spray of glyphosate and direct drilled with Spring barley. Can't find any brome.</p><p></p><p>Keep the soil working, don't leave it bare and exposed as far as possible. Buy and fatten store lambs on arable covers over winter. Fit in nicely though they aren't without some effort. Less work than breeding sheep thing.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="DrWazzock, post: 6366184, member: 2119"] I wouldn't go back to widespread ploughing. I try to get some return from our cover crops by making sure they are always grazed with livestock. Covers so far have been mostly stubble turnips or cereal volunteers, particularly oats which grew to form a big cover last year then were grazed and trampled by the sheep. By the time of drilling the next Spring crop the cover has just about gone and drilling it was easy. I'd be wary of growing a cover and leaving it ungrazed then spraying off and drilling. There is too much potential there for a big build up in slug numbers and indeed flea beetle. I'd also be concerned about plant disease and virus carryover, and N lock up and toxins on cover breakdown. The animals solve most of that by turning it into organic fertiliser. I keep saying it but livestock do bring a lot to the party as far as arable farming is concerned. I had a big brome problem after zero till winter cereals and OSR. I knew another winter cereal crop would see the brome get out of control. So it went in with stubble turnips direct drilled at very low cost. The sheep grazed them over winter, trampled the brome seed in so it was constantly chitting and being eaten off. Then in Spring a clean up spray of glyphosate and direct drilled with Spring barley. Can't find any brome. Keep the soil working, don't leave it bare and exposed as far as possible. Buy and fatten store lambs on arable covers over winter. Fit in nicely though they aren't without some effort. Less work than breeding sheep thing. [/QUOTE]
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Arable Farming
Cropping
Cover crops, yes or no?
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