Arable Farmer Focus FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Crops dry quickly but grains look plumpAs crops dry down very suddenly, we live in hope they have built enough yield before the heat got to them. Grains look plump when you rub an ear out,… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: 100 years of farming calls for celebrationsTime stands still for no man, particularly in farming, and in this, my 50th year, we celebrate 100 years of Wilsons farming on the Castle Howard Estate, which was cause… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: June is the month of showsJune is the month where most of the shows take place. From visiting a wet-and-muddy Cereals at Diddly Squat Farm, to the 141st Lincolnshire Show a week later. I am… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Imagine a farmer on Dragons' DenI had a fascinating two days at Cereals, which seemed to be a success despite concerns regarding the venue. Obviously, it took the usual time to get in and it… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Jeremy Clarkson – an asset to UK agricultureI’ve recently been watching the new season of Clarkson’s Farm, as I’m sure many other readers have. Like him or loathe him, it’s impossible to deny that Jeremy Clarkson is… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Combine is ready for its sixth harvestThe million-dollar question will be, “did it rain in time”? Hopefully, the answer will be, “just about”. We had 54mm of rain over the past month. It was very welcome… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Inspections just keep on comingWe all love additional regulation and oversight on our farms. Face it, we simply don’t have enough, and the good news just keeps coming. Our farm straddles two counties, and… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: $3/kg radish contract was a defining momentLast month I talked of waiting to see spring contracts for some of our specialist crops. Our hopes have been crushed and our future is unclear. The arable industry here… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: This year's mighty blackgrass battleI hope everyone has had some meaningful moisture recently. It has certainly made a difference here. This year, blackgrass in the oats was flowering by 10 April, most of it… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Fertiliser secured for next seasonAfter temperatures reached 32C at the end of May, causing damage to crops on the lighter land, rain at the start of June brought a welcome change. However, constant rain… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Nightmare weeds as herbicides struggleSulfonylurea herbicides have struggled this spring, with very poor control of mayweed, chickweed and groundsel which initially appeared to have died. They then seemed to find a new lease of… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Food security is becoming high riskSpring 2026 has been a dry one across the UK, more so for some than others. We have been fortunate, with rainfall at critical times, leaving crops looking respectable, but… More articles
