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20/01/2012 15:03:03

Fertilisers under starters orders



Met Office data from its new £33 million supercomputer suggests that this winter could be unusually mild, with the South East, the East of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, they say having a high probability of a warmer winter. The South West, Wales and most of the North of England also have a 40% to 60% chance of being mild. So far, up to 20 January, apart from just a few days temperatures have been well above freezing so what are the consequences for the UK’s farmers?

Elaine Jewkes Elaine Jewkes


"If weather and ground conditions stay favourable, you can get a head start on grazing and silage by being ready to go with fertiliser when the ground is warm enough," advises GrowHow’s Grassland Specialist, Elaine Jewkes. "Grazed grass is still the cheapest feed, so if you can get some growth and turn out promptly, why not do it and save money?"

Of course UK’s weather is notoriously difficult to predict – who can forget the Met Office’s barbecue summer – so she recommends using a soil thermometer to tell if grass will respond to Nitrogen.

"Grass starts growing when the soil temperature at 10cm exceeds 5 degrees C," she explains. "To get an accurate reading, measure at the same time each day and, when it is consistently over 5 degrees for 4 to 5 days, the grass will be able to use applied N."

"Don’t forget to allow for any applied manures in the N you use," she adds. "Modest amounts of nutrients applied more often give the best efficiency of use, rather than large infrequent dressings."





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