Farmers Guide - July 2007
 First-class germination and root structure, coupled with a dramatic reduction in establishment costs, have been achieved on a Bedfordshire farm after the introduction of a new, one-pass Combination Till-Seeding system for oilseed rape.
The family partnership of PC & M Forster, North End Farm, Bletsoe, Farm a total of 1,000 acres on medium to light land that varies from chalky boulder clay to gravel.
Two-thirds of the acreage is down to winter wheat (Solstice, Einstein, Robigus and Alchemy) with about 300 acres of oilseed rape (Castille) and 40 acres of field beans.
The family has been farming at Bletsoe since 1970, and has been growing oilseed rape for 30 years. In fact, according to Mark Forster, his father Paul was the first farmer in the area to grow the crop.
In that time, a number of different establishment methods have been tried.
“It was always a nightmare getting oilseed rape established,” said Mark. “We used to plough, power harrow, roll and then it would bake out dry.”
In 2005, the entire rape crop was drilled by Bedfordia Farms with a Variocast Electro 8 seeder mounted on a Cousins V-form soil loosener.
“I looked at it and thought there was no way it was going to work,” said Mark. “But we had the best rape crop ever and averaged 38 cwt.”`
Last July, in a bid to further reduce establishment costs, the decision was taken to invest in a 3m He-Va Combi-Lift subsoiler and disc roller. This was fitted with an OPICO Variocast 8 seeder that had been purchased three years earlier.
“The machine did a lot of work,” said Mark. “All the oilseed rape drilling, plus all the oilseed ground for wheat and all the bean ground. We hardly used the plough at all.
“We went straight in after harvest, then left it to green up, sprayed it off with Roundup, then drilled.”
According to Mark, the major advantages of the technique include the facility to drill when weather conditions are right, and subsoiling the ground after the combine and trailers have been running over it.
“Most important, our establishment costs have come down substantially,” he added. “One year we spent £50/acre trying to get the rape established, by the time we had ploughed, pressed, power harrowed, drilled and rolled. Last year it cost £15/acre just to put it in with the Combi-Lift and then an extra £3/acre to roll it.
“Germination was excellent and root establishment has been superb. We had a very wet winter and you could see that the plants on some of our neighbouring farms had turned purple. Here, because all the ground had been moved and the crop had a sound root structure, it stayed green all through the winter.
“We know that where the straw had been taken off, the establishment was a lot better than where we had gone in straight behind the combine and the straw had been chopped. If you are going to use the subsoiler and the Variocast on stubble that has got chopped straw, a dressing of Nitrogen is an absolute necessity”.
Mark said that the family had found that wide, 20-inch rows and low seed rates – 3kg/ha on light land and 4kg/ha on heavier land – was definitely the way to go.
Another important factor had been to stay on top of the slug problem. This had meant putting down slug pellets, after rolling, on the same day or next.
“It could have been the year,” Mark admitted. “We didn’t put any slug pellets on the year before.”
With fewer passes, less seed, less compaction, less machinery and a reduced labour requirement, Mark couldn’t be happier with the outcome.
“It was a one-man job before, but we were doing up to five passes to get a seedbed,” he said. “Now it’s just the one pass straight into the stubble.”
In terms of integrating into the farming system, the combination Till-Seeding system has proved an unqualified success.
“We’ve been round every route you can think of and at last we have found a system for establishing rape cheaply and effectively,” said Mark. “It’s definitely the way forward.”
For more details on the HE-VA Combi-Lift and Disc Roller click here.. |
