- Location
- Top of the Chilterns
I didn't plant any linseed this yr, instead opting for a summer cover crop. Painful decision, but first loss and all that.
Anyway, just been to check on progress, and saw this:
This is a 4m strip across the angle of the drilling where I had been messing around with a home made cultivator drill, a few weeks before planting.
The field had a leg through it in the autumn, and was then left. Sprayed off. Then summer cover drilled with horsch duett coulters into beautiful conditions, then flat rolled as it was very dry.
Anyway, question is this. We all know cultivation are "bad", and destroy soil structure and burn up organic matter. But what is the trade off worth in terms of improved crop performance? In my mind this strip is doing more good to the soil than the rest of the field. It is a mix of soil conditioners (buckwheat, vetch, clovers, sunflowers, phacelia, millet)
Is it regenerating?
Is it exploitative?
Given the limited time window for a crop like this, why hold it back?
Are there any easy answers?
Kind of wish I had done the whole field like this, particularly as there isn't that long for the rest to catch up. But that would make me a baddie.
Quite an interesting one.
Anyway, just been to check on progress, and saw this:
This is a 4m strip across the angle of the drilling where I had been messing around with a home made cultivator drill, a few weeks before planting.
The field had a leg through it in the autumn, and was then left. Sprayed off. Then summer cover drilled with horsch duett coulters into beautiful conditions, then flat rolled as it was very dry.
Anyway, question is this. We all know cultivation are "bad", and destroy soil structure and burn up organic matter. But what is the trade off worth in terms of improved crop performance? In my mind this strip is doing more good to the soil than the rest of the field. It is a mix of soil conditioners (buckwheat, vetch, clovers, sunflowers, phacelia, millet)
Is it regenerating?
Is it exploitative?
Given the limited time window for a crop like this, why hold it back?
Are there any easy answers?
Kind of wish I had done the whole field like this, particularly as there isn't that long for the rest to catch up. But that would make me a baddie.
Quite an interesting one.