Grassland Management Trial Plots Semerwater and Upper Lune ... - Nature in the Dales · and aeration would generate a cost effective increase in forage yield. The trial results should

Grassland Management Trial Plots FACTSHEET #3

Semerwater and Upper Lune

Catchment Partnership

The Semerwater and Upper Lune Catchment Partnership is made up of the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, Natural England and the Yorkshire Dales Rivers Trust. It is funded by Defra and Natural England. The overall aim of the current two year project is to work with farmers and landowners to develop low cost ways of improving water quality on farms.

Slurry injector system

Welcome to the third factsheet covering the progress of the trial plots at Semerdale Hall, Raydale and Braida Garth in Kingsdale. The results of the trial plots are discussed over the following pages. The factsheet follows on from two successful events that were held during August and September 2012 which gave 50 farmer attendees the opportunity to look at the trial plots and discuss the results with the grassland specialists directly. In addition to the trial plots, funding from the Partnership has benefited 20 farmers within the Upper Lune catchment by providing them with free specialist advice on infrastructure improvements to their farm yards. This advice has since turned into reality with 17 farmers successfully obtaining grant funding towards these improvements from the Catchment Sensitive Farming Capital Grant Scheme. On average, these farmers received £8400 towards the cost of roofing over middens, yards, new sheep dips, concreting and farm tracks. The next round of the Capital Grant Scheme will be open for applications between March and April 2013 and we are keen to help farmers apply for the grant. Further details can be found later on in the factsheet.

A successful year!

Farmers attending trial plot event

Silage trial plots, Raydale

The trials have been interesting to be involved with and it has

been a surprise that there has been very little difference in growth rate between the plots. The wet weather has delayed the cutting dates. I think the most interesting results will come from the individual plots feed values.

Matthew Bell

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The aim of this trial was to investigate the potential to reduce farm fertiliser inputs and reduce diffuse pollution within the catchment area. This season has been particularly challenging with wetter than average weather and rising feed and fertiliser inputs. Is there potential to reduce inputs and maintain yield and quality of forage? Treatments Four different slurry and fertiliser treatments were chosen to see the effects of reducing input levels of mineral fertiliser and improving the utilisation of cattle slurry.

Costs of fertiliser application were compared with

the average for plot 1 and 3 working out to be £54/acre, plot 4 at £53/acre and plot 2 at zero cost – this assumed slurry was freely available on the farm. Soil and Slurry Analyses A soil sample was taken from each plot and analysed for pH, Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K). Results showed quite a marked difference in pH value between the plots within this small field. The P and K levels were mainly moderate across all four plots, except the P levels were lower at indices 1 in Plots 3 and 4.

1 Slurry only – 2 x 1600 gallons/acre slurry application in the spring using a splash plate.

2 Fertiliser only – 46 units / acre (125kg/ha) (57.5kg N per ha) of Urea fertiliser followed by another dressing of compound (22/0/14) at a rate of 2.5 cwt per acre( 318.5kg per ha) (68.75kg N per ha).

3 Conventional nutrient application: slurry application using downward facing splash plate applicator at 1600 gallons/acre. Plus 46 units / acre (125kg/ha) (57.5kg N per ha) of Urea fertiliser followed by another dressing of compound (22/0/14) at a rate of 2.5 cwt per acre( 318.5kg per ha) (68.75kg N per ha).

4 PLANET advised application rate of slurry and fertiliser – Based on slurry analysis and soil analysis fertiliser application was matched to meet standard recommendations.

Slurry samples were taken from the main store to analyse for fertiliser value. Table 1—soil test results Table 2—slurry test results

A typical application of 1600 gallons/acre would apply 30 units of N, 9 units of P and 65 units of K.

PLOT pH P K

1 5.8 2 2-

2 5.6 2 2+

3 5.3 1 2-

4 5.1 1 2-

Per 1000 gallons Per m3

Dry Matter 5.5% 5.5%

Available Nitrogen

18.6 units 2.05kg

Phosphorus 5.6 units 0.6kg

Potash 40.9 units 4.49kg

Results The first cut silage was undertaken in June with the plots all made into wrapped bale silage. Samples were taken from each plot with results showing that all four plots were similar. This shows the reduction in fertiliser inputs had no negative effect on the quality of the forage harvested from the field. Plot 3 was lower in dry matter and had slightly higher protein content. Plot 3 had higher nitrogen applied which may have resulted in the slightly higher protein content in the silage. There was no noticeable difference in yield of forage from the four plots.

Conclusions 1. Reducing the fertiliser inputs applied on the small plot areas did not show any detrimental effect in

terms of yield of forage or forage quality. 2. It is important to carry out soil tests and ensure lime status and P and K reserves are at an optimal

level to ensure nutrients that are applied either in the form of fertiliser or slurry are working efficiently. 3. Carry out a nutrient budget to balance the supply of nutrients available to the requirements each crop.

This approach could have a significant positive effect on reducing diffuse pollution in the catchment area.

Plot 1 Plot 2 Plot 3 Plot 4

Dry Matter 45.9% 43.7% 32.1% 46.4%

D Value 61 63 61 59

ME MJ/kg DM 9.8MJ/kg DM 10.1MJ/kg DM 9.7MJ/kg DM 9.4MJ/kg DM

Crude Protein 11.7% 11.9% 12.9% 11.2%

Silage Potential 106 104 95 101

NDF 492 g/kg DM 492 g/kg DM 511 g/kg DM 515g/kg DM

Sugar 74 g/kg DM 72 g/kg DM 45 g/kg DM 70 g/kg DM

Beef & sheep farm, grassland

trial plots, Kingsdale

The trial plots at Braida Garth

The aim of the trial was to find out if lime application and aeration would generate a cost effective increase in forage yield. The trial results should be relevant for all farms in the Dales area as wet compacted soils are a common problem for many.

A saving of £234/tonne

dry matter (DM) can be

made by focusing your

attention on grassland

management rather

than buying in

concentrates.

Dr Liz Genever,

EBLEX

Methods and Treatments Trial plots including liming, slit aerator to around 10 cm, plus a combination of liming and aeration were compared to an untreated control. Cuts were taken from different areas within the plots at around four and six weeks, the grass was weighed and sent off for analysis. Farm yard manure (FYM) makes up the basis of the nutrient management at Braida Garth, a total of 11t/ha (4.5 t/ac.) of manure had been spread on the trial field in three applications. Additionally inorganic nitrogen (60 kg /ha or 48 units/ac.), phosphate (10 kg /ha or 8 units/ac.), potash (32.5 kg /ha or 26 units/ac.) and sulphur (17.5 kg /ha or 14 units/ac.) were applied following the cut. Without knowing the nutrient content of the manure it is impossible to ensure the grass’ requirements will be met. To investigate nutrient variability between sources, samples from four different manure heaps of Braida Garth were analysed and the nutrient balance for the trial field was calculated. Results The treatments did not affect nutritional quality of the grass (see table 3), but the digestibility-value (D-value), crude protein (CP) and metabolisable energy (ME) were below target for all samples. This may have been linked to a high proportion of weeds being found in the samples.

There was a borderline deficiency of sulphur (0.25 % S) in the grass which would influence N uptake and yields.

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Table 3 - Nutritional quality of the grass

All three treatments produced higher yields than the control; the extra yield for each treatment over the control plots is outlined in the table below. Manure analysis was highly variable between samples from the same farm and was below the Fertiliser Manual (RB209) values for FYM.

For example, one sample had 75% more available phosphate than another. If all samples were treated the same there would either be an over application of nutrients which would be wasteful and increase diffuse pollution risk, or under application which would compromise crop growth. he nutrient balance of the trial field determined that insufficient nutrients were applied according to RB209 recommendations; this could explain the reduced grass quality. The trial proves that yield can be increased cheaply through liming or aeration, but without effective nutrient management the quality may be not be optimal as weeds may dominate. Successful grassland management requires an increase in management input to gain yields and quality, but with huge savings to be made can you afford not to give it a bit more attention?

Method to gain more feed Extra yield Cost

Liming 1 t extra DM/ha (0.39 t DM/ac.) £33/tonne DM

Aeration 1.2 t extra DM/ha (0.5 t DM/ac.) £61/tonne DM

Liming and aeration 0.4 t extra DM/ha (0.18 t DM/ac.) £241/tonne DM

Bought in concentrates

- £267/tonne DM

Costs: Liming cost over whole trial =£50.63 for 2.25 tonne ground limestone delivered and spread over 0.6 ha (1.5 acres) @ 3.7 t/ha (1.5 tonne per acre). Aeration cost over whole trial =£120 for aerating equipment hire for four hours

Average nutritional quality for all treatments

Target value for fresh grass

D-value 64.8 70

Crude protein 11.6 18

Metabolisable energy 10.2 10.5

Do you want to improve the efficiency of your farm business? Do you have slurry or manure storage issues? Would you like to get around your farm yard and farm with greater ease? Are you looking for some financial help to solve some of these problems? The Catchment Sensitive Farming Capital Grant Scheme could be the answer to some of these questions. It can provide grant funding towards 50% of the total costs associated with improvements to your farm infrastructure and other areas on the holding up to a maximum of £10,000 per farm . The scheme covers a whole range of options from relocating sheep dips, to cow tracks, river bank fencing, new guttering and concreting yards to name but a few. Your local catchment officers Jane and Helen have helped 20 farmers apply last year, with 17 of those farmers gaining financial help. We can help with infrastructure advice, fund specialist help, provide a link between the Planning Authority and yourself and assist with completing the very simple application form. The next application round will open on the 1st March 2013 with applications needing to be submitted by the 30th April 2013. This is a busy time of year for you, so we are keen to visit farmers early to hear what your plans are for the farm and provide help to make those plans a reality. Call Jane (01756 751608) or Helen (01756 751611) for more information.

Resurfacing gateways

Capital Grant Scheme

Roofing over livestock yards or middens

Relocation of sheep dips

River gates

Events and

Workshops

JOIN US!

Suckler Cow Event at Keasden Head Farm,

Clapham, LA2 8EZ

Grassland Management and

Compaction Workshop at The

Wensleydale Pantry, Hawes, Monday 10th December, 7.30pm

Capital Grant Scheme Farm Walk – date and

venue to be confirmed but

register your interest

Up-coming events

For most events it is essential to book your place as the events take a lot of organising and we usually provide free refreshments. Please see over for contact details.

Suckler cow event in association with the

Dales Farmer Network Friday 16th November 2012

Lunch provided to those who book a place - please contact Carol Moffat on 015396 21602

to secure your place.

Grassland Management and Compaction workshop with EBLEX grassland specialist

Liz Genever, Discussion on the causes of compaction, key indicators of compacted soil, negative effects

of compaction on grass yield and practical solutions that work

Monday 10th December 2012, 7.30pm, FREE supper provided to those who book a

place—see over for contact details

Capital Grant Scheme Farm Walk in the New Year

Join us to look at a farm that has completed the infrastructure improvements with funding

from the Capital Grant Scheme. Date and venue to be confirmed but register your interest in attending by contacting the

Catchment Sensitive Farming Officers.

For further information on any of the events, the Capital Grant Scheme or any general enquiries, please contact your Catchment Sensitive Farming Officers Helen Keep 01756 751611 Jane Le Cocq 01756 751608 Dave Higgins 07837 441562

To book a place on any of the events or workshops or for general enquiries please call Helen Keep on 01756 751611 or Jane Le Cocq on 01756 751608. Alternatively, please complete this slip and return to: The Farm and Countryside Team, Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, FREEPOST BD625, Grassington, Skipton BD23 1BR. Event ………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………….. Number of people who would like to attend……...

Their names (please use capital letters) ………………………………………………………. ……………………………………………………….. ……………………………………………………….. Your contact details: Tel ………………………………………………….. Email ……………………………………………….. Address ……………………………………………. ………………………………………………………. ………………………………………………………. ………………………………………………………. ……………………………………………………