Fert prices vs fallow ?

[wanton dwarf]

Bio diesel

Ethanol would be better.

IMHO it doesn't matter about using fossil fuels.

Methane is natural gas anyway - it's created all the time - in fact you could use the gases from the electric generators in Digestor Plants + Digestor methane to create Ammonia.

 

[wanton dwarf]

I didn't say you couldn't increase food prices Clive did.

People can't afford it as he drives around in his 60k electric car

Yeah I've realised that £££££ for some time. "Practice what you preach."

But food prices are silly low and IMHO farmers have every right to increase prices due to their cost base increase. We get it all the time with fabrication and construction materials.

 

[bobk]

So at what price point for N do you fallow your farm ?

early bought N which seemed expensive at the time now looks cheap, how about selling it on and taking a year out ?

Tell me what the wheat price will be in 18 months .

 

[Sid]

Yeah I've realised that £££££ for some time. "Practice what you preach."

But food prices are silly low and IMHO farmers have every right to increase prices due to their cost base increase. We get it all the time with fabrication and construction materials.

I don't disagree with you, food is too cheap but we are paying for it with climate change!
Poisoning and choking the planet

 

[wanton dwarf]

Tell me what the wheat price will be in 18 months .

Tell you what, if Wheat is cheap enough might be better to buy Wheat and then compost it to get inputs rather than buy fert

 

[Bossfarmer]

maybe, who knows, politicians can be illogical

will worry about it when it happens, would prefer to not have to go back causing pollution with cultivation however, if it came to that I would probably put our entire farm into agro environmental schemes and retire frankly ……… so maybe not a bad thing

Just found it strange to see europeans going back to ploughing, i can see a lot retiring the way westminster is going about this new found "control" theyve taken back

 

[wanton dwarf]

I don't disagree with you, food is too cheap but we are paying for it with climate change!
Poisoning and choking the planet

Maybe, maybe not.

There will be no accouting unless India & China reduce their pollution - which isn't necessarily all about CO2 or Methane IMHO.

 

[Andy12345]

So at what price point for N do you fallow your farm ?

early bought N which seemed expensive at the time now looks cheap, how about selling it on and taking a year out ?

When the cost of the AN or Urea plus application cost is more than the expected yeild response...... crystal ball needed!

 

[fudge]

Gene modification for N fixing nodules on wheat roots doesn't look so Frankenstein now .............

(was going to be the coming thing back in the early 80s IIRC)

Gene editing does have the potential to dramatically reduce reliance on pesticides as well. If nouvelle cultivars can be more productive more land will be available for environmental govt. goals. Brexit does offer some opportunities for UK ag. The argument against fallow is it really isn’t much better than monoculture in environmental terms.

 

[Bald Rick]

Gene editing does have the potential to dramatically reduce reliance on pesticides as well. If nouvelle cultivars can be more productive more land will be available for environmental govt. goals. Brexit does offer some opportunities for UK ag. The argument against fallow is it really isn’t much better than monoculture in environmental terms.

Went down the fallow route with McSharry and set aside
Amazing how quickly weeds - even buddleia - take hold.

Anyway, it’s immoral to allow prime land to sit idle

 

[Bossfarmer]

Went down the fallow route with McSharry and set aside
Amazing how quickly weeds - even buddleia - take hold.

Anyway, it’s immoral to allow prime land to sit idle

I had a field in fallow last year, yielded 0.25t an acre over previously cropped fields

 

[DRC]

So at what price point for N do you fallow your farm ?

early bought N which seemed expensive at the time now looks cheap, how about selling it on and taking a year out ?

Is that even legal , presuming it’s on farm

 

[gone up the hill]

Is that even legal , presuming it’s on farm

You would think it is not!

But many on farm dispersal sales around here sell a few bags of fert of various blends/ straights etc.

 

[bobk]

You would think it is not!

But many on farm dispersal sales around here sell a few bags of fert of various blends/ straights etc.

I think over 100 tons you're supossed to have a licence

 

[DRC]

You would think it is not!

But many on farm dispersal sales around here sell a few bags of fert of various blends/ straights etc.

Yes I’ve seen that at sales. Strictly not legal. Don’t think @Clive could stick a few hundred tons on market place

 

[BenAdamsAgri]

How as you then can't use any herbicides for grass weed control.

established clover can be quite hardy to most actives

 

[Banana Bar]

So at what price point for N do you fallow your farm ?

early bought N which seemed expensive at the time now looks cheap, how about selling it on and taking a year out ?

This is actually a very good point. I reckon I could sell my fert at today’s prices and sit very pretty. I could even drive a truck for £50k for the next year and sort business plans / budgets while on my breaks!

 

[kiwi pom]

I'm assuming you don't use or rely on diesel then, what with it being a chemical AND an unsustainable source of energy...

Good point
A mate of mine used to manage a decent size organic cropping unit, mainly spuds and carrots to supermarkets, chem use was down - although he was spraying spuds the day I was visiting - but labour, machinery hours and diesel use were through the roof due to all the extra passes required for weed control etc.
Add in the reduced yield and you needed a huge price difference.
He was of the opinion it was all a big con, better off to add a few safe chemicals and stop burning diesel.
Organic farming alone, cannot feed the world.

 

[Clive]

Is that even legal , presuming it’s on farm

sell it back to your merchant - no need to ever take delivery and waste haulage if you decided to go that route

 

[Clive]

This is actually a very good point. I reckon I could sell my fert at today’s prices and sit very pretty. I could even drive a truck for £50k for the next year and sort business plans / budgets while on my breaks!

some farmer think as a business, some think like gardeners