Cover Crops and other first year activities at Upper Brownwich Farm

Richard was quick to get a spring barley crop in when his tenancy started in 2022 and, after selling his first harvest for malting quality, he went on to implement cover cropping into his arable rotation to protect and improve soil health and water quality and sequester carbon. The first mix contained stubble turnips, fodder rape, tillage radish, phacelia and vetches, all direct drilled into the spring barley stubble.

The mix had a slow start due to the lack of rain in August but in February I direct drilled 60 acres of spring beans after the overwintered cover cropping, and I think the soil structure has already improved with the added organic matter. The field drainage is also improved.

I have also entered my fields into the countryside stewardship scheme, with wild bird seed mix, wildflower margins, pollen and nectar margins, along with fencing and hedging grants. We now have a barn owl box and a kestrel box installed on the farm too.

Students from Sparsholt College came for a farm walk end of February. I spoke about being a tenant and the process of applying, showed how I grow arable crops and talked about why hedges are important to a farm.