Lapwing plots Steve Barclay letter.

[topground]

Extract from the letter that has just dropped from Steve Barclay.

“We’re also introducing premium payments, so you will be paid more for actions that have biggest environmental impact or combinations of actions that deliver benefits at scale. For example, you could get £765 per hectare for creating nesting plots for lapwing.”

This looks attractive and at that rate on the face of it they can have all of my all grass farm turned over to Lapwings.
The devil will be in the detail, has anyone seen the detail and if so where?
The simple fact that Lapwings have disappeared around here because of Badger and Buzzards numbers rocketing will have escaped the notice of DEFRA policy makers and will this scheme have any measurable outcomes? Unlikely because none of the rest of SFI appears to be outcome based.

 

[Widgetone]

Extract from the letter that has just dropped from Steve Barclay.

“We’re also introducing premium payments, so you will be paid more for actions that have biggest environmental impact or combinations of actions that deliver benefits at scale. For example, you could get £765 per hectare for creating nesting plots for lapwing.”

This looks attractive and at that rate on the face of it they can have all of my all grass farm turned over to Lapwings.
The devil will be in the detail, has anyone seen the detail and if so where?
The simple fact that Lapwings have disappeared around here because of Badger and Buzzards numbers rocketing will have escaped the notice of DEFRA policy makers and will this scheme have any measurable outcomes? Unlikely because none of the rest of SFI appears to be outcome based.

So this scheme doesn't require a successful outcome - eg some fully fledged chicks - then?
Just nesting plot provision? Looks £ attractive at first glance.

(There is a arable field near us that has a regular large flock (50+) of lapwings on it, looks no different to the neighbouring ones that never have birds at all)

 

[topground]

So this scheme doesn't require a successful outcome - eg some fully fledged chicks - then?
Just nesting plot provision? Looks £ attractive at first glance.

(There is a arable field near us that has a regular large flock (50+) of lapwings on it, looks no different to the neighbouring ones that never have birds at all)

Who knows, waiting to see the fine print and if Natural England are involved in any way it will be a non starter here regardless of how much money they throw at it.

 

[Vader]

Who knows, waiting to see the fine print and if Natural England are involved in any way it will be a non starter here regardless of how much money they throw at it.

They know about predator problems but won't do anything about I.

 

[Hill Ground]

Extract from the letter that has just dropped from Steve Barclay.

“We’re also introducing premium payments, so you will be paid more for actions that have biggest environmental impact or combinations of actions that deliver benefits at scale. For example, you could get £765 per hectare for creating nesting plots for lapwing.”

This looks attractive and at that rate on the face of it they can have all of my all grass farm turned over to Lapwings.
The devil will be in the detail, has anyone seen the detail and if so where?
The simple fact that Lapwings have disappeared around here because of Badger and Buzzards numbers rocketing will have escaped the notice of DEFRA policy makers and will this scheme have any measurable outcomes? Unlikely because none of the rest of SFI appears to be outcome based.

I've got some idea that in an old scheme lapwing plots looked very lucrative, but the area calculation was on the bare bit of ground left in the cropped area.

A few 3m x 3m plots in a field is Tiny fraction of a ha!!

 

[topground]

Found this.

AB5: Nesting plots for lapwing (and in Higher Tier, stone curlew)

Find out about eligibility and requirements for the nesting plots for lapwing and stone curlew option.

www.gov.uk

Another non starter on this livestock unit.

 

[Barleymow]

There are plenty of lapwing plots this year ,if you can count failed crop patches

 

[Goweresque]

I did this by accident a few years back. Arable field had a drainage problem, water started oozing up and then running down slope like a little river. I left the field as fallow to allow drainage work to take place in summer, when the wet spot was driest, for various reasons it got left uncropped for 2 or 3 years. Almost immediately it started attracting lapwings, every time I walked the dog that way they were swooping around and about, presumably trying to drive us away from their nests. Was really nice to see, they came back each year. I'd done SFA to attract them, just topped it once per year to keep the weeds down. Eventually the drainage got fixed and it went back into cropping.

Reading that link above and seeing what the prohibited locations are made me laugh, my lapwing field ticked at least 3 of the 'don'ts' on the list. I guess lapwings don't read Defra guidelines.

 

[neilo]

Found this.

AB5: Nesting plots for lapwing (and in Higher Tier, stone curlew)

Find out about eligibility and requirements for the nesting plots for lapwing and stone curlew option.

www.gov.uk

Another non starter on this livestock unit.

Min 5ha field, or 10ha if a wood makes up part of the boundary... I've only got one field big enough that I could put them in.

 

[neilo]

I've got some idea that in an old scheme lapwing plots looked very lucrative, but the area calculation was on the bare bit of ground left in the cropped area.

A few 3m x 3m plots in a field is Tiny fraction of a ha!!

There doesn't appear to be any limit on number of plots, or how close they can be together...

 

[goodevans]

So this scheme doesn't require a successful outcome - eg some fully fledged chicks - then?
Just nesting plot provision? Looks £ attractive at first glance.

(There is a arable field near us that has a regular large flock (50+) of lapwings on it, looks no different to the neighbouring ones that never have birds at all)

We have fields here that always favour lapwings but also fields that have probably never seen one

 

[Wood field]

Ironically since we came here lapwing and curlews have increased in number, on a set stocked rough hill
It’s not the sheep that bother them , it’s the corvids and badgers
Yet another non starter for small and or livestock farms

 

[Hindsight]

I've got some idea that in an old scheme lapwing plots looked very lucrative, but the area calculation was on the bare bit of ground left in the cropped area.

A few 3m x 3m plots in a field is Tiny fraction of a ha!!

The Skylark plots in CSS (code AB4) pay equivalent of £3237 hectare. I have added them into a few CSS agreements but inevitably they cause nothing but grief due to hassle of putting them in!!

 

[copse]

These lapwing plots will be a nightmare in arable crops as crows and jackdaws will start flattening crops when it comes in ear .

 

[icanshootwell]

These lapwing plots will be a nightmare in arable crops as crows and jackdaws will start flattening crops when it comes in ear .

What size plots can you have, was thinking 12a plot.

 

[Hill Ground]

The Skylark plots in CSS (code AB4) pay equivalent of £3237 hectare. I have added them into a few CSS agreements but inevitably they cause nothing but grief due to hassle of putting them in!!

Ah yeah, skylark, not lapwing!!

I used to electric fence a few acres for someone with 7 strands to keep the fox's out from March to July so they could get sone Lapwings away.

They did it just because I thunk!!

 

[Poorbuthappy]

What is he referring to with "species rich grassland" - going from £182 to £646?
That sounds a livestock farmer's option to take the money and run a few cattle around?

 

[Hindsight]

What is he referring to with "species rich grassland" - going from £182 to £646?
That sounds a livestock farmer's option to take the money and run a few cattle around?

Have a read of this.

Maintain species-rich grassland – Farming

Updates from Defra's Farming and Countryside Programme

defrafarming.blog.gov.uk

 

[Hindsight]

What is he referring to with "species rich grassland" - going from £182 to £646?
That sounds a livestock farmer's option to take the money and run a few cattle around?

Might like to read this as well - though it is the option prescription for the Stewardship rather than SFI For SFI might be different rules. In Stewardship the option was specific to certain grassland types identified on Defra Habitat inventory and needing prior permission to enter. SFI might well be different.

GS6: Management of species-rich grassland

Find out about eligibility and requirements for the management of species-rich grassland option.

www.gov.uk

 

[Poorbuthappy]

Have a read of this.

Maintain species-rich grassland – Farming

Updates from Defra's Farming and Countryside Programme

defrafarming.blog.gov.uk

So is it actually an SFI option currently? I couldn't find it under that.

But 15 species per m² is no mean feat if you haven't already got it.