2/3 crop rule...have you thought about it

merryberry

Walking the spring barley crop over the weekend and thinking that next year I will have to sow 2 crops to qualify for greening. No experience growing a crop other than spb. For thoses of u in a similar position what alternative cropping are u considering?

GRASSorMUCK

Depends if you want to break cereals rotation?
HGCA do a decent example of growing guide for crops if your less familiar..
http://www.hgca.com/crop-management/growth-guides.aspx

micraX

How where you only growing barley, no rotation?

merryberry

micraX wrote: »

How where you only growing barley, no rotation?

Continuous barley...not long out of ley but new rules dictate multi cropping...or atleast two crops in my case. Have 16ha of sb. Will grow sb next year but area can't be more than 75% of total cropped area.

DMAXMAN

merryberry wrote: »

Continuous barley...not long out of ley but new rules dictate multi cropping...or atleast two crops in my case. Have 16ha of sb. Will grow sb next year but area can't be more than 75% of total cropped area.

if you have grass that was reseeded after tillage it counts as a crop for first 5 years

lefthooker

merryberry wrote: »

but new rules dictate multi cropping...or atleast two crops in my case. Have 16ha of sb. Will grow sb next year but area can't be more than 75% of total cropped area.

Been on my mind too and after talking to my advisor today I've plenty to think about.
I'm down for 77 arable acres, altho this year I only tilled 75, so that's me over the 30ha and I need to look at 3 crops. I always grow 6-7ac of fodder beet and the remainder as spring barley. I will have reseeded 15ac of stubble since last Sept. so combined with the beet I'm over 21ac(28.5%) so my total barley area will be under 75%.
Simple right??? Not quite:(

I might be looking at a 4th crop and you maybe a 3rd OP. Also included for those over 15ha is a 5% eco area- setaside if you like. Fortunately a protein crop would cover me so perhaps beans instead of letting 4ac grow wild, the field that was in setaside the last time is still the dirtiest for wild oats and annual meadow grass. And the beans and beet would do a right job on conditioning the land.
So barley as my main crop still, with grass, beet and >4ac protein crop to get me over 25%. That's the theory and since cropping counts for 30% of SFP its something you've got to get right.

conor t

Was it decided if cover crops count yet?

Feckthis

merryberry wrote: »

Walking the spring barley crop over the weekend and thinking that next year I will have to sow 2 crops to qualify for greening. No experience growing a crop other than spb. For thoses of u in a similar position what alternative cropping are u considering?

What about winter barley? That's what we're thinking of doing.

Feckthis

micraX wrote: »

How where you only growing barley, no rotation?

Continuos spring barley here for 20years. Never rotate

lefthooker

conor t wrote: »

Was it decided if cover crops count yet?

Don't know as I don't think its an option for me.

Feckthis wrote:

What about winter barley? That's what we're thinking of doing.

Winter barley would be OK. Its classed as a different crop to spring barley