Author Posts: Farmers Guide

Whether you’ve been watching your winter sown crops suffer in the recent wet weather or you’re hanging out for spring planting, there’s one thing for sure – the healthier your soil, the better your crops will be able to withstand what the climate throws at them.

Recent figures show John Deere accounted for 30.4% of UK tractor registrations in 2022, putting it back into the top position.

Pete Olds and his father, Len, grow 300 acres of combinable crops and run an arable contracting business at Cornhill Farm in Cornwall. With their grain processing plant struggling to cope with handling up to 4,000t of wheat and barley each year, the Olds worked with McArthur BDC to install an upgraded plant in time for harvest 2023.

With arable growers in the UK rushing to make up for lost drilling time, it’s easy to forget that 31st January marks the last official day of the winter drilling window. As such, any crops drilled beyond this date will be defined by the CRD (the Health and Safety Executive’s Chemical Regulations Division) as spring-sown and must comply with the relevant crop protection regulations.

Understanding how tillage and cropping decisions affect grassweed pressure is vital for building durable control. Low and zero tillage systems are already affecting the weed problems farmers face, and herbicides of all kinds need to be carefully integrated into the programme to avoid resistance.

Andy Cato will form part of the line up at this year’s Writtle Farmers’ Conference, which also features Tim Lang, emeritus professor of food policy at City University London, and Groundswell’s John and Joanna Cherry.

SRUC Edinburgh is offering CT scanning of rams in Scottish flocks, with QMS covering 50% of the cost per ram.

Changing from a traditional plough and combination drill-based crop establishment system to strip seeding has proved transformational for W. Rooke & Sons’ Heslington farming business.

Krone Finance has launched its latest finance deals on hire purchases of Krone’s forage and grassland equipment in the UK.

Successful dairy farming is built on proactive health management. By staying ahead of health issues, farmers not only ensure their cows’ well-being and productivity but also future-proof their farm.

Data from the Farming Connect Welsh Pasture Project has shown that grass production in Wales in 2023 exceeded previous years, but managing it was challenging.

The long-awaited report with much-needed guidance for food and farming industries on appropriate standards for carbon reporting has recently been published.