Archive Article: 2001/02/09
Jim Bullock
Jim Bullock farms 283ha
(700 acres) in partnership
with his parents and brother
at Mill Farm, Guarlford,
Malvern, Worcs. Two-thirds
is rented or contract farmed,
the rest owned. Cropping is
winter wheat, winter oilseed
rape and winter beans
DRY frosty days in mid-January allowed us to drill our remaining winter wheat. It has always been said that second wheat should be drilled later but January is pushing it!
The tractor and drill hardly left a mark on the frosted surface and the drill performed far better than it did in mid-October. Seed rates were increased to 215kg/ha (1.8cwt/acre) to compensate for the late drilling.
Now, two weeks later, most of the seed has chitted, but done little else. We need some warm dry weather to get it going.
In the same weather window we direct-drilled 8ha (20 acres) of spring beans (Quattro). That is the earliest we have ever gone with spring beans, made possible because we could travel on undisturbed stubble. I just wish we had not cultivated some of the other land destined for beans last autumn because we could have drilled more.
We have also sprayed some rape with Fortrol (cyanazine) in an attempt to control the charlock. It is a field we divided into 10 plots to look at different ways of establishing the crop using lo-till.
Although the direct-drilled plots look less attractive there are far fewer weeds. Where surface cultivations were carried out the additional cost of the cultivations and sprays will amount to more than £62/ha (£25/acre). But I have doubts as to whether the yield will be any different.
Over the past few weeks we have been setting up the Muddy Boots crop-recording programme for our farm.
To date, I have spent over 20 hours looking up and entering data. But it will be great when it is completed because our agronomists should be able to e-mail recommendations in from a hand-held computer in the field.
I have been asked to speak at the Innovative Farmers of Ontario conference later in the month about lo-till and the European perspective.
I fear they already know far more than I do about lo-till and wonder what is there positive to say about agriculture in Europe? Answers on a postcard, please… *
Coals to Newcastle? Jim Bullock is off to Canada to speak on Lo-Till practices in Europe.