Arable Farmer Focus FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Never have I felt so unvalued by British SugarWe’re not a lot further on with drilling than a month ago, but we have at least got some done for others on drier land. A third of our winter… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Welcoming 140 primary pupils to the farmWe welcomed pupils from three urban schools so they could get close to nature and farming during our debut agricultural open day, organised with leading charity Countryside Learning. The farm… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: De-risking strategy looks sensible after rainIn autumn 2019 we didn’t drill a viable acre of winter crop due to the wet weather. With that in mind I try not to get caught out, so we… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Dampened seed-beds but not spiritsOctober’s wet weather came a little too early for us, leaving one field left to drill with winter wheat. More concerning though, was that the fields we recently drilled did… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Pumpkin patch picking is now in full swingThe pumpkin patch has been in full swing during October, with hundreds of people coming through the field gate. With nine patches within an hour of us and everyone wanting… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Keeping on top of drainage pays dividendsWe have struggled to terminate fertility leys with shallow cultivations before establishing our first wheats this year, due to a wetter autumn. It has taken four to five passes to… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: The UK government’s net-zero plan is bafflingThe weather is always going to be the answer to the question: “What is the greatest challenge for your farming business?” There are obviously many other challenges that impact farming,… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Cost of blackgrass programmes on the riseAutumn drilling had got off to a good start, with some excellent seed-beds. Unfortunately, Storm Babet has brought an abrupt halt to things for the moment. With a reasonable amount… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Harvest finally wrapped up in OctoberWith a return to rainy weather after 10 September, harvest slowed and was eventually completed on 3 October. This is not unusually late, but it felt like a long harvest,… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Farm-saved seed blend is tailored to our needsWith a kind start to October in south Devon, our winter wheat and barley crops went in nicely around the 10th of the month. The wheat was sown direct into… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Winter wheat drilled increasingly earlyOur winter wheat has all been drilled. Perhaps a week earlier than ideal from an agronomist’s point of view, but rain is due tomorrow, so what can we do? Twenty-five… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Farm road maintenance means crushing shingleConstant improvement sounds like a good concept, in theory. In practice, it's a fine line between busy and chaotic. We have decided that all our farm roads need a new… More articles
