Ploughing on regardless

Another wet autumn means more growers are returning to the plough, says Clodhopper

The countryside has undergone a sudden change this autumn. No, nothing to do with government grants or lost payments. But relating to cultivation techniques.

It isn’t widespread but it is noticeable. Certain pockets of arable land – in this neck of the woods at least – have seen a return to the plough. And from what friends elsewhere have told me, it is happening where they farm too.

The days have gone when land is ploughed as soon as the combine leaves the field – before fields are left to weather and then pressed, power- or Dutch-harrowed depending upon soil type.

Less disturbance

After this came the combination drill and rolls. And with minimum tillage or no-till now the fashionable options the start date for drilling winter cereal crops tends to be during October rather than early September.

These plough-less tillage systems mean less soil disturbance and lower machinery costs. In theory, at least, because less metal is being worn away as it is dragged through the ground.

One of the biggest challenges of these min-till or no-till systems is the establishment of a one- or two-pass seedbed. It’s not a popular view among all farmers, but sometimes soil benefits from a bit of air.

When it is wet – as we are seeing again at the moment – the land has little chance to dry out. Hence even some hardened regenerative farmers are pulling the plough out of the nettles and turning over the land this autumn.

Surface trash

Some claim min-till systems encourage vigorous grass weeds and more slugs – mainly because of surface trash. And it is true that a good ploughman – or ploughwoman – with a well-set plough will bury weed seeds to a depth that they will not emerge.

It has also been said that ploughing has become too expensive – not only in diesel and replacement parts, but in the amount of time it takes to get over the land. Yet more people this autumn are seeing it as a necessity.

Cast your mind back to the stubble burning days of the 1980s when a clean start was the norm – thanks to a box of matches. The 1993 burning ban saw the end of many a Bettinson drill doing its work directly into the stubble.

But the plough gives a clean start too. At least it did until blackgrass became resistant and more people began to consider their cultivation costs. In any case, does a min-till system and glyphosate really cost less than ploughing?

Most effective

In many cases, farmers will argue that turning over the soil is most effective when the plough is set correctly and buries everything in its wake. Anything less can often cause more problems than it solves.

That is particularly the case with farm machinery becoming heavier and more expensive. And it is true that surely there must be a place for a lighter plough-based system with a smaller footprint.

I have seen 400hp and 20 tonne machines pulling sub soilers with three legs. Rewind a few decades and our old Ford pulled three legs at a fraction of today’s weight and cost. Have yields dramatically increased since the 1980 to cover the difference?

Yes,10t/ha yields were achieved then just as they are today. And I firmly believe there is still a place for all cultivation systems – even though today most people seem to be obsessed with speed and costs, which doesn’t always work.