Well that’s the clocks changed, all the field work complete and machines gradually being serviced, oiled and put away.
Looks like that’s us all set in for the winter routine, the perks being earlier finishes, log burners lit in the evenings and, hopefully, the odd slow weekend with a full Scottish fry-up to look forward to.
Is there any better way to start a Sunday?
Thwarted by the ‘rain gods’
We got all the wheat, winter barley and oilseed rape sown that was planned.
I did attempt to put in an extra six acres in, with some leftover seed, but that was a step too far and the rain gods put a stop to it.
We had looked at putting in 60 acres of winter beans, however, I just couldn’t source the varieties I was looking for after a difficult seed growing season. My selection was on early maturity rather than yield.
With our northern location, harvest date is the biggest risk.
Investing in our future
Next year I will, hopefully, be more organised, with seed sourced soon to add beans to our rotation.
This will give us an alternative source of protein for the pigs, reduce our soya reliance and improve our rotation.
This year we took on our own drilling for the first time.
We bought an Amazone 4m (13ft) power harrow drill, with a front press, and dual wheels front and back to spread weight across the full working width of the machine.
Hopefully, the benefits to our established crops will be seen over the coming years, especially in our winter barley, which will always show compaction and limitations.
We’ve taken delivery of a new sprayer in the past month. A Horsch fully mounted machine, with 4,000l (880 gallons) capacity and 30m (98ft) booms which will, hopefully, do every application apart from our oilseed rape desiccation spray.
It feels like a big move for us as we have been using a very good local spray contractor who has never let us down. But having our own machine gives us more flexibility and the chance to move to liquid fertiliser for our nitrogen applications.
A fully mounted machine suited us best as I feel it will travel slightly better in wet conditions, rather than a trailed sprayer.
Our budget would have allowed us to look at a six years or older self propelled sprayer.
But there was nothing on the market at the time that matched the specification we could buy with a new mounted machine.
I’m very happy with the set-up and, hopefully, we can drop the sprayer off within 10 minutes and use the tractor for other jobs when times are busy.
I am privileged and lucky to have been selected to become a Nuffield Scholar for 2025.
‘A little bit nerve-racking’
This is hugely exciting and a little bit nerve-racking. I will be joining another 23 scholars from all over the UK and from many different sectors of the agriculture industry to begin a journey of learning and traveling internationally around the world.
We all have individual projects that were proposed to Nuffield through an application process and then a 20-minute interview.
My project is looking at how we can “efficiently rear pigs in a circular farming system, producing sustainable food resources at scale which are resilient to external influences”.
McDonald’s ‘not afraid of changing quickly’
Basically, I’ll be looking at how I can turn any wastes to resources on the farm and produce food with as low a carbon footprint as possible.
Each scholar is sponsored by a company or trust, with McDonalds UK & Ireland being my sponsor, which is a huge honour. It’s a company that is one of the largest buyers of UK meat and not afraid of changing quickly depending on what the market demands.
Becoming a Nuffield Scholar wouldn’t be possible without the great team on the farm and at home that will help me make time to make the most of this opportunity.
I am excited to share with everyone my Nuffield journey and all the experiences along the way.
Nuffield Scholarship can ‘help us create a sustainable farming business’
It will take me off the farm for at least 10 weeks over the next couple of years.
But it will, hopefully, help us create a sustainable farming business for the next 40 years.
With budget concerns, end markets and carbon footprints all putting pressure on our business, it is key to see what is out there before we invest further. No pressure while I go touring around the world then.
Ben Lowe farms near Ellon, with his wife Harriet, running an intensive pig and arable enterprise. He also works as an agent with agronomy company Agrovista.
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