How do we cultivate in England? Tillage practices in crop production systems

Abstract

Reducing tillage intensity offers the possibility of moving towards sustainable intensification objectives. Reduced tillage (RT) practices, where the plough is not used, can provide a number of environmental and financial benefits, particularly for soil erosion control. Based on 2010 harvest year data from the nationally stratified Farm Business Survey and drawing on a sub‐sample of 249 English arable farmers, we estimate that approximately 32% of arable land was established under RT, with 46% of farms using some form of RT. Farms more likely to use some form of RT were larger, located in the East Midlands and South East of England and classified as ‘Cereals’ farms. Application of RT techniques was not determined by the age or education level of the farmer. Individual crops impacted the choice of land preparation, with wheat and oilseed rape being more frequently planted after RT than field beans and root crops, which were almost always planted after ploughing. This result suggests there can be limitations to the applicability of RT. Average tillage depth was only slightly shallower for RT practices than ploughing, suggesting that the predominant RT practices are quite demanding in their energy use. Policy makers seeking to increase sustainable RT uptake will need to address farm‐level capital investment constraints and target policies on farms growing crops, such as wheat and oilseed rape, that are better suited to RT practices.

Interactions of glyphosate use with farm characteristics and cropping patterns in Central Europe

“…Reduced tillage is implemented in various ways, with some farmers relying entirely on non‐inversion tillage. Often, farmers operate both ploughing and reduced tillage on their farms, depending on the site and other conditions, such as weather or specific crop needs . The variable ‘share of ploughed area per farm’ was therefore used as a proxy to describe the overall soil cultivation management system on a farm level more easily.…”

The potential of crop management practices to reduce pollen beetle damage in oilseed rape

“…Standard plough-based systems (e.g. ploughing followed by a power harrow-drill combination) are frequently used for OSR establishment, but reduced cultivation techniques (tine, disc or subsoiler based), and direct drilling or broadcasting into the stubble of the preceding crop are also common, as farmers look to reduce establishment costs and manage soils more sustainably (Ingram 2010;Jacobsen and Ørum 2009;Townsend et al 2016). Target plant densities are usually in the range 25-35 plants/m 2 for winter crops (HGCA 2014).…”

What agricultural practices are most likely to deliver “sustainable intensification” in the UK?

“…Townsend et al. () also estimated that 46% of English arable farmers use some form of reduced tillage. The farmers who said they use reduced tillage methods in our survey could have been using them experimentally, on a single field or a small proportion of their land.…”