Free fertiliser calibration shows its worth

Improved crop yield and benefits to the environment are just some of the money-saving pluses to come from a survey on calibrating spreaders.

A trial organised as part of the EU Life part-funded project, Water Resources in Co-operation with Agriculture*, offered free fertiliser spreader calibration to farmers during February within certain areas of the Frome, Piddle and Wey catchments in Dorset.

Initial results from the first 18 spreaders showed machines were generally well presented and maintained. Of those which under-performed, farmers were advised of ways to improve their machines to enable them to work more accurately, reducing the amount of fertiliser used with knock-on benefits for the environment.

NFU water policy adviser Anna Hall said: "This small survey shows how important it is to calibrate fertiliser spreaders on a regular basis to ensure fertiliser is accurately spread and evenly distributed.

"This boosts crop yield by significantly reducing areas of patchy fertiliser application. This also benefits the environment by reducing fertiliser over-application, which could become a possible pollution source.

"The results show there are simple win-win solutions which can help both the farm business and the environment, which can be easily demonstrated. This is what the WAgriCo project is all about. Studies have shown that yield increases of £6-£10 per hectare can be achieved with a well calibrated spreader, making it worthwhile to pay for an annual fertiliser spreader calibration."