Tom has been out busy fertilizing the crops to kick start them into action and get growing! As well as water and sunshine, crops need nitrogen, phosphorous and potash to grow as well as a number of micronutrients. We therefore use different types and amounts of fertilizer depending on crop requirement, availability and time of year. Requirement depends on the crop, what it is going to be used for, what is already in the soil and the weather. Some fertilizer you can buy very easily, whereas some fertilizer is a waste from other sectors and therefore varies in availability.
Tom has been out soil sampling to get an idea of what nutrients are already available for the crop in the soil. He has taken soil samples from different areas of the field, these are then sent off and analysed and the results sent through. This helps inform the amount and type of fertilizer required.
Where possible we use organic manures and this year we have access to some poultry manure. This is a great source of fertilizer and utilization of waste. It also gives a valuable source of organic matter which helps improve soil health.
We also use artificial fertilizer which is man made nitrogen using the Haber Bosch process. This is a very uniform product and very easy to use and store. This allows us to match specifically what the crop requires with what we apply. However, producing artificial N produces a lot of CO2 so we are under pressure to reduce use. Also if too much is applied, the crop cannot use it and also it can then leach out of the soils and into the waterways causing eutrophication which is not good.
To minimize risk of this we use the SOURCE – PATHWAY – RECEPTOR method. Firstly you look to minimize the SOURCE of any pollution which includes not using any more than the crop needs, applying in the right conditions and applying precisely to the right place. To minimize the PATHWAY, you are looking to reduce any soil erosion by keeping soil covered with crops or cover crops particularly any fields with gradients. Lastly you ensure you protect the RECEPTOR which in this case is ditches or streams by using buffer strips and grass margins that can help catch nutrients and eroded soils.
Due to our lower rainfall and flatter land here you don’t tend to see as much problem with water running over fields and erosion as in some other parts of the country. At work in Leicestershire, we struggle with it a lot more and as a result are investing in a lot of drainage across the farm this year, to allow the water to percolate through more quickly rather than sitting on top of the land or running over it……wish us luck, it’s a bit of a chicken and egg situation because it needs to be dry to do the work, but the work needs doing most in the wet areas!
The sugarbeet has been harvested and most has been collected and is looking good! PHEW
Some nice sunny drying days would be nice now please!