Stewart Hayllor
Stewart Hayllor
Stewart Hayllor farms
343ha (850 acres) of
owned and rented land from
Blackler Barton,
Landscove, Devon, growing
cereals and combinable
breaks. Organic vegetables
occupy 24ha (60 acres)
and a further 160ha (400
acres) is farmed on contract
MILD weather continues to encourage plant growth with grass and cereals looking well.
Nitrogen in the form of urea has been applied to our oilseed rape at 75kg/ha (60 units/acre). Straight potash and phosphate will be applied to arable crops according to soil analysis. One job that needs doing as soon as possible is to run our spreader over some calibration trays to check the spread pattern with the different fertilisers we are using. Half a day spent calibrating now will pay dividends with applications over the coming season.
When the rain has come it has tended to be heavy, with the result that our reservoir is now full. The last 25cm (10 in) of its depth filled in less than a day. Cropping plans have been changed to include early bunched carrots and summer brassicas with the aim of making best use of the water.
The rain also added to several years of silt and mud that had accumulated under our weighbridge and had to be cleaned out. That called for some intricate shovel work from Tom and Simon, Tom finishing the day looking like hed been in a mud wrestling competition.
Organic potato ground will need preparing soon ready for this years varieties, Cara, Cosmos, Valour and Claret. Prices are down on last year, an ongoing trend as more organic crops become available. I fail to see the logic behind calls to increase organic production to 30% without addressing the need to market it at prices that make it economically viable. When we started growing organic crops one of the main things that appealed was selling something that was wanted without relying on support payments. If that 30% goal becomes reality prices will continue to fall.
Reading a report on some tractor vibration research, it appears a tractor driven fast over rough ground transmits more vibration to the seat than when a tractor is driven slowly over smooth ground. Nice to know we are getting good value from research funding! *
Calls for 30% organic without addressing marketing are madness, says Devon grower Stewart Hayllor.