Molson Coors Growers Group Spring Meeting

On Tuesday we were excellently hosted for our first Molson Coors Growers Group spring agronomy meeting by Richard Tongue at Priory Farm Hazelton up in the Cotswolds.  We met up in the yard and had a brief summary of the evening by James Cox and then it was off to the field to look at some spring barley at about the 3-4 leaf stage. Richard was one of the runners up in last years MCGG internal barley competition so we were interested to learn about any new techniques he was employing.  It is the real beauty of being involved in a group like this, ideas are forthcoming and we can have a really good discussion about the crops and how we grow them.

We talked about cultivations as some of the fields are in overwinter stubble options (like us) and seed rates, seed dressings and fertiliser timings and rates.  Richard has just bought a new drill and was placing nitrogen down the spout with the seed which was interesting and logical.  John Vickery (Agrii Agronomist) was there to talk about herbicides and fungicide strategies for the coming few months, depending on the weather over the coming months.  There was some discussion about BYDV (Barley Yellow Dwarf Virus) and the areas affected after last years warm autumn and how these patches are very similar to Rhizoctonia solani (a soil born fungus).

After we had exhausted the conversations in the field, and it was getting colder, we headed off to the local pub for a pie and a pint which went down very well.  How many beer drinkers know how much effort and dedication goes into this stage of the brewing process?  The nitrogen levels we apply will have a massive effect of the quality of the grain and its suitablility for malting, let alone the effect that the weather has, which is obviously out of our control, perfectly demonstrated this spring!

Sainsbury's Distribution Visit (Hams Hall)

At the last Sainsbury's lamb Development Group meeting we were treated to a trip around the Hams Hall distribution centre just north of Birmingham.  I have to say that it took our collective breath away!  The site covers about 3/4 of a Hectare, in a single span shed and with 167 loading bays, that during peak times are used more than once a day!  It was very impressive to say the least with over 300 journey/day being dispatched from the site on over 160 trailers based at this one (of 10) site. The picture above shows the ambient storage area where non perishable goods are stored, such as toilet rolls, fizzy drinks, beer, cereals etc.  these are picked by specialist 'pickers' scooting around on forklifts, computers attached to their wrists telling them what needs to be picked next for the particular store they are collecting for.  All of the routes for every product are timed so targets for deliveries are very tight.  There are also signs around to building telling the staff if they are ahead or behind the schedule.  A great incentive for the team.

The area (above) is the chilled distribution section which is where the pallets of chilled goods are broken down by hand before being sent around an automatic sorter to the pickers.  The whole area is chilled to 3 degrees.  The pallets are given a bar code as they arrive and are automatically tracked from the storage area through the whole system, right up until they are loaded on to the lorry.  This tractability really gives confidence that products are being store and distributed correctly.  We found lamb from one of the suppliers, along side some from New Zealand all destined for stores around the west midlands.

I couldn't help taking a shot of this pallet of Carling, especially as we supply lots of the Malting Barley throught he Molson Coors Growers Group, so I really felt the supply chain was coming together.

Feasting on Forage

Following on from last years grassland meeting, organised with Salisbury's and AB Sustain we planted 8 small areas of the farm that are coming out of arable cropping under the Higher Level Stewardship Scheme.  In total 18 Ha's have been planted with specific grassland mixes to complement the permanent pasture that covers the bulk of the grassland area.  This mix has really taken off and ideally the sheep should have been grazing it a while ago (they've never seen so much grass) but we had trouble with water and no permanent fencing, (in the program for capital works in 2013).  We applied 50Kg of nitrogen in March and it has really taken off.  The mixture is based on high sugar grasses with varieties such as Aberfarrell, Aberavon and Rodrigo.  In addition to these perennial rye grasses I have included some cocksfoot and timothy for good ground cover and to help fill the late bite,  there is also some Aberherald, which is a small leaved clover which if we're lucky should be able to provide some of the nitrogen needed by the grass.  

The are currently 100 ewes and lambs on this 2.5Ha area so it won't last them long, but we have sorted out their next move and so should be able to move them across the fields fairly quickly to get on top of this first flush of grass. If they can't keep on top of the grass we can always shut some up and conserve it for silage.

Rothamsted Research Facility

Yesterday I attended a fantastic site in Hertfordshire with our regional (West Midlands) Combinable Crops Board for the National Farmers Union (NFU)  The site is all over the newspapers at the moment due to the GM wheat trials that are being run there.  The site is of course Rothamsted where they have been at the forefront of Agricultural Research since 1843 when experiments were first conducted there by Sir John Bennet Lawes.  These experiments are still running today, known as the Broadbalk Experiment, and is testament to the incredible foresight of these pioneers of science and those that have followed.  Standing on the site with other farmers it is very easy to imagine farmers 100 years ago (and more) on the same spot thinking the same thoughts and try to solve, I suspect, very similar problems.  The trial site has some plots that have received no nitrogen for 160 years, other sites have received farm yard manure every year (hope they're not in a NVZ) and many different management regimes travel across the plots with different herbicide or pesticide applications on to see what impact they have.  The water draining from the plots can also be collected and monitored.

The trees in the distance are also part of the experiment, to see what would happen if farmers just abandoned the fields, how long it would revert to woodland and what species would thrive?

The plot above shows very clearly the effect of herbicide taking out many of the weeds that are taking nutrients and water away from the wheat crop.  Each year samples of straw, soil and grain are collected and stored for future examination. In total over 250,000 samples have been collected.  The soil could tell us when the Chernobyl accident occurred with increased radiation, with a time lag of 6 months.  It really is an incredible place.  It is only fitting then that the scientists there should be trialling the first GM trials in the country for nearly a decade.  The team led by Prof. John Picket CBE DSc FRS is trialing wheat that has been modified to give off warning pheromones (from a mint plant) that when released repel aphids and attract their natural enemies the parasitic wasps, who then lay eggs in the aphids killing the few stragglers off.   We as a country in line with the rest of the EU are lagging behind in the experimental research into these crops.  The EU is happy to import products that contain GMO's but do not want us to grow them here.  If there is a risk then why are we happy to export that risk to other countries?  It does seem a bit crazy to me. Food prices have increased by over 30% in the last 4 years and will only increase as the world population increases and weather effects limit the supply of food to the worlds population.  Only when the price of food; or the lack of it, puts pressure on the system will the EU then allow farmers to use this technology but by then it might be too late, with much of the research being conducted elsewhere in the world.

We were very lucky to actually be allowed onto the trial site, although the crop of Cadenza Spring Wheat, had only just been planted and therefore there was nothing for us to see.  The fencing, security and camera's have cost over £120,000 in a bid to try and keep any protesters out.  I just hope that the team are able to get through the trial so that we can actually learn about these techniques and see what advantage they offer us in a bid to feed a lot of very hungry mouths in the future.

Dear Oh Deer

On these warm spring days it is great to spend a bit of time trying to find a little more of our wildlife that we have on the farm.  I managed to take this picture up on the hill of three fallow deer, sunning themselves and having a quick breakfast .  (It was last week, before winter returned!).  We have quite a healthy population of Fallow and Roe deer on the farm and also a few Muntjac deer as well, which are treated as more of a pest.  It is nice to see a few deer around on the farm although they can cause quite a lot of damage when numbers are high.  Damage includes grazing grass and crops, knocking over stone walls, when they try and jump over them, destroying any newly planted tree saplings and crashing through electric sheep fence.

They spend much of the time out in the fields, grazing our combinable crops or eating grass, meant for the sheep.  Sometimes they are found in the woodland, which is not a problem in a mature woodland but we now have to fence them out of any new woodland plantings as they would decimate the newly planted trees.

They soon become a very expensive addition to our wildlife up on the hill.

Hartpury Day Trippers

 

On Tuesday this week we entertained a group of final year students from Hartpury College.  It was a double act between Alex Milne, the Overbury Estate Manager and me.  The group consisted of Equine, Countryside Manager and Agrics, so a great mix of different interests, right up our street.  After a quick introduction it was all aboard our trailer and off to the Overbury Grasshoppers nursery school.  Alex spoke about the village residential and business portfolio and how the farm and estate interact on different projects.  Then we met Kathrine for an introduction to the Overbury Stud and how a stud farm works.  It's such a scientific business, I always end up learning something myself!

We then headed up the hill and stopped overlooking the Vale of Evesham, see above, where we spoke about the arable unit, irrigation, rotations, Integrated Farm Management, Woodland, Management, varieties of wheat and how the machinery fits into the system, it was a long stop that provoked much discussion.  Following on we headed to one of  the many conservation areas where our Higher Level Stewardship Scheme is starting to deliver real benefits to our local bird populations, not to mention how our flora is developing in both the grassland systems and in the arable crops.

By now we were running late so we popped into the sheep unit to talk about how they integrate into our farming systems and our relationship with Sainsbury's, before heading down the hill and away.

I hope we managed to generate some interesting thoughts and ideas for the next generation heading through the college ranks, we certainly enjoyed the trip and await next years group!

Cracking Coverage

We should finish planting the spring barley today after a prolonged drilling period with the foggy weather.  The fog has really stopped the ground drying out and meant that we have had to stay off the fields until they are dry enough to travel on with out doing too much damage to the soil structure.  After the drilling we have been following along with a herbicide (weed killer) to reduce the competition from certain weeds.  This year we have been using some new nozzels which are angled.  One faces forwards and the other backwards.  This helps coat the ground more evenly, especially if there is a clod to two, with the herbicide.  This picture was taken up on the hill in a field called Kemerton Larches and it was a field that we direct drilled with our Horsch Sprinter 6 drill and then rolled.  Most of the field has gone in well but there are a couple of patches where it was a bit damper, mainly under the woodland, that the seedbed isn't ideal. 

the crop should be up in about a week or so which will be great to see, as long as we can keep the crows from doing too much damage.