The future of arable cropping

[quattro]

I farmed before glyphosate twitch couch scotch grass, whatever was the local name, was and still would be your main concern.
The price they could charge originally was because of the amazing control it had on this weed. My first 5litres cost £51.00 and was recommended at 4l/ha. it would have been late 70 s I think.
So good that perhaps as a twenty odd year old you have never seen it.
It grows from rhizomes and I believe would love the system you describe above.
PLoughing did not work either unless it was just before a frost, it was a real nightmare and will come back if glyphosate goes.
Instead of an outright ban perhaps they should put the price back up to the early days and then it could still be used occasionally. A tax even?

Your system could work well with one glyphosate every 5/10 years but I think would soon struggle without it altogether.

I remember raking couch into rows with a acrobat rake and then baling with a small square Baler to try and get rid of the bulk of couch

 

[czechmate]

I farmed before glyphosate twitch couch scotch grass, whatever was the local name, was and still would be your main concern.
The price they could charge originally was because of the amazing control it had on this weed. My first 5litres cost £51.00 and was recommended at 4l/ha. it would have been late 70 s I think.
So good that perhaps as a twenty odd year old you have never seen it.
It grows from rhizomes and I believe would love the system you describe above.
PLoughing did not work either unless it was just before a frost, it was a real nightmare and will come back if glyphosate goes.
Instead of an outright ban perhaps they should put the price back up to the early days and then it could still be used occasionally. A tax even?

Your system could work well with one glyphosate every 5/10 years but I think would soon struggle without it altogether.

I am sure way back when, my first 1 lt cost £70

 

[rob1]

I think the smart thing to do would to find ways of coping without such products, that's clearly what our consumers want. Why do we insist on telling them what the want?

I would love to be able to grow crops through an understory of red clover to control weeds and in time with breeders help we might be all able to go organic even if yields are somewhat lower.
I dont insist on telling any of my customers what they want,if I produce what they want they buy it, just the same as in any industry, more than 75% of my sales are to the final buyer, I produce what they want not what I find easiest to grow, to do other wise needs a very good marketing plan,IE apple,land rover etc

 

[Cowcorn]

My arable farming started in 1984. All ploughed, disced, power harrowed (heavy leics clay) and drilled with a Massey 30. All with 100 hp tractors. When I think back to the amount of work for the tiny area it is just comical!

Glyphosate far too expensive to use on a farm scale then but that year was using “clean sweep” to kill volunteer barley ahead of osr, paraquat -diquat mix

Yes that was a the early eighties heavy land operation, but remember diesel was literally for nothing and labour was both plentiful and reasonable to pay. Profits per acre were probably better than today, no actually the were far better REAL money was made with rented land back then not like the spreadsheet illusion used nowadays to justify the rent . Mind you grassweeds were not as big a headache either.

 

[Cowcorn]

really? I reckon most of our grandparents made far more from farming than we ever did (or could) - entire farms were bought off the back of years profit around here in the 60/70's

Yes Clive our grandparents made far greater returns but unless you were a large landowner who could afford to pay plenty of staff to lug the barrel sacks of corn off the bagger combine and the 2 hundredweight bags of fert into the combine drill then you earned it the hard way . My grandfather and father would often return late in the evening after spending a long day ploughing or drilling with fordson majors and ferguson 65 tractors and start to milk 24 cows with a bucket plant the lug the 10 gallon churns up on the milk stand a half mile up the lane. Food was expensive back then because it was bloody hard work producing it . Folk spent far more of their income on food and accepted that . Nowadays the modern consumer thinks cheap food is their right and Sky Sports is more important than their food supply.
And whos to blame we are !!! Like fools we continue to produce surplus produce and rely on a weather event or some other disaster to give us a taste of a real price.

 

[bobk]

I am sure way back when, my first 1 lt cost £70

I remember £440 for 20litres

 

[Bossfarmer]

Has never been such and exciting or opportunity filled period in agriculture imo

people (lots more of them) are still going to eat that’s for sure !

yes and the fake mean companies are getting ready to feed them straight out the lab, there wont be much demand for feed wheat or barley once the livestock numbers drop back and malting barley/milling wheat will be overdone

 

[ajd132]

yes and the fake mean companies are getting ready to feed them straight out the lab, there wont be much demand for feed wheat or barley once the livestock numbers drop back and malting barley/milling wheat will be overdone

wish I had invested in one of these ‘fake’ meat companies, there is still time I guess.

 

[czechmate]

Do we know what fake meat grows from yet?

 

[Bossfarmer]

I remember raking couch into rows with a acrobat rake and then baling with a small square Baler to try and get rid of the bulk of couch

what caused the couch? was it having a lot of temp grass in your rotation?

 

[B'o'B]

what caused the couch? was it having a lot of temp grass in your rotation?

Lack of effective control methods pre glyphosate. Hard to kill with cultivation because the roots are so strong. Hard to kill with fire because the roots are so strong. Hard to kill with plough because the roots are so strong. Hard to kill with livestock because the roots are so strong. Hard to kill with most chemicals because the roots are so strong. Glyphosate translocates to the roots and so offers effective control

 

[quattro]

what caused the couch? was it having a lot of temp grass in your rotation?

I can’t remember what caused it ,I was only young at the time , it got sprayed with round up following year and it cleaned it up
Early 70s I think

 

[Clive]

wish I had invested in one of these ‘fake’ meat companies, there is still time I guess.

I'm not sure they will ever get it cheap enough or high enough volume - insect protein more likely the one to back IMO

 

[ajd132]

I'm not sure they will ever get it cheap enough or high enough volume - insect protein more likely the one to back IMO

I know a Dutch guy getting into this, the economics look very interesting on it. Hugely energy efficient even compared to chicken and fish. I can’t see how beef will be anything other than a luxury in the future. Saw this on twitter earlier. (Just edited, used wrong picture)

 

[lloyd]

I'm not sure they will ever get it cheap enough or high enough volume - insect protein more likely the one to back IMO

Edible flea beetles do us all a favour .

 

[Clive]

I know a Dutch guy getting into this, the economics look very interesting on it. Hugely energy efficient even compared to chicken and fish. I can’t see how beef will be anything other than a luxury in the future. Saw this on twitter earlier.

If legislation allowed it in the UK I would be seriously looking at it

 

[Clive]

I know a Dutch guy getting into this, the economics look very interesting on it. Hugely energy efficient even compared to chicken and fish. I can’t see how beef will be anything other than a luxury in the future. Saw this on twitter earlier.

no sure I agree with all of that slide !

 

[ajd132]

no sure I agree with all of that slide !

Uploaded the wrong one changed it now!

 

[lloyd]

no sure I agree with all of that slide !

The new slide looks like properganda from the green party.

 

[lloyd]

wish I had invested in one of these ‘fake’ meat companies, there is still time I guess.

Well you could put your green credentials to good use
and plant your own land up with trees .
Why wait ?