Catch crop establishment and benefits to soil health
In this field lab, the host farmer will trial a novel way to sow catch crops in advance of harvest, and assessing the wider benefits on soil health and yields.
Show MoreCatch crops have not been widely explored in UK agricultural research but are the next logical step to explore in cover cropping. Traditional cover crops are typically used over the winter as erosion protection before a spring sown crop, whereas catch crops fit into the much shorter gap between harvest and autumn sowing.
Few UK farmers currently grow catch crops as they would need to be sown at a very busy time, with harvest underway and autumn cultivation ongoing.
This farmer in this field lab will trial sowing catch crops well in advance of harvest by sowing them directly into the standing cash crop of vining peas. He has modified his slug pellet applicator to allow him to also apply small seeds (e.g. catch crop seeds) and OSR via the same system.
Four treatments will be compared:
- Bare land left after vining peas (control)
- Catch crop mix (Phacelia, oil radish, buckwheat and linseed), drilled
- Same catch crop mix, broadcast
- Standard cover crop mix
The group will measure establishment, weed levels, catch crop biomass, yield of subsequent cash crop and soil mineral nitrogen. They will also assess whether the catch crop delivers the same soil health outcomes in a shorter period (2-3 months) than winter cover crops.
The research will improve our understanding of catch crops and how they can be integrated into UK farming systems. It is particularly relevant for farmers that harvest earlier crops such as vining peas and early-harvested barley, where ground may stand bare for longer before subsequent cash crop drilling.