One drain repaired 16 more to go !!
Last week we repaired broken drains and more broken drains. Most of the damage seems to have been caused by the combine during August and September 2012. Not only repairs but ditching and checking drain outfalls to make sure the water gets away. This job will continue after harvest and the mole plough looks like its in for a busy season.
Spring Drilling
The last few weeks have seemed like a 'mini autumn' with drills, rolls and cultivators joining the usual spraying and fertiliser activities.
100 hectares of winter oilseed rape has been resown with spring oilseed rape using our Vaderstad drill.
140 hectares of spring beans (variety Fury) have been planted using the Claydon drill and has emerged reasonably well considering the awful seed bed we planted them into. For the first time in ten years we actually had to roll after drilling.
40 hectares of spring barley has also been planted and some 40 hectares of oats were sown into wet cold seedbeds which dried up very quickly and we need some rain to get things moving. Its already going to be a late harvest and the worry is the knock-on into next season.
Single Farm Payment
If I had to identify one of best uses of on-line technology, in our bureaucratic agri-world, it would have to be the RPA's SPS form. It saves hours of form filling and time travelling to Nottingham. Well done to the team behind this!!
Visits
We have hosted a couple of visits to the farm this week from the NFU National Combinable Crops Board and a Worshipful Company of Farmers course reunion. It is a fantastic opportunity to engage in stimulating conversation with other growers and industry stakeholders. None more so than listening to Richard Telfer from Watling JCB about the innovation and drive within this British company.
The farm staff are off on a road trip next week to Claydons to help put together our future cultivation strategy.
No comments:
Post a Comment