Spring has sprung. Although we’re probably in Fool’s Spring, or is it False Spring or the Spring of Deception?

We’ve sprayed off the cover (failed wheat, blackgrass, chickweed and meadow grass) with fulvic acid, fish hydrolysate and molasses to help glyphosate uptake and to buffer the soil microbiology.

I also plan to get some compost on before a light cultivation and drilling the spring wheat.

See also: Sowing date determines plant protection product use this spring

About the author

Anthony Becvar

Anthony Becvar is a third-generation farmer of an 80ha mixed farm in East Sussex on heavy Weald Clay. Crops include spring beans, winter wheat and spring barley, alongside diversification projects which include two breweries and an agricultural mechanic.

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I’ll be creating a tea from the Johnson-Su bioreactor to inoculate the untreated wheat seed.

This should give it a good start as the roots get going so that a microbiological bridge between soil and plant gets established early.

I use X a lot as I find it a great source of information and ideas. Recently, I found a post by a chap I follow called Ryan, who farms several thousand acres in Iowa.

He runs a fortnightly Cocktails and Cover Crops online meeting and was advertising the next meeting date.

I couldn’t resist, so said I would try to tune in to catch it (if I was awake). Ryan thought this was a great idea, so signed me up to be the guest speaker.

This meant having to wake myself up at 1am, pour myself a large gin and tonic and talk to a dozen or so American ranchers about cover cropping for an hour.

I thought I wouldn’t have anything to tell them considering my limited experience and the differences in cropping and climate, but we had a marvellous chat about why cover cropping is important in all sorts of scenarios.

Who knew that cover crops and cocktails went so well together?

February was a busy month for meetings, with the AHDB events in Hampshire and Kent.

The Hampshire event was a good chance to listen to John Pawsey and Tim May discuss ploughing and its continued part in soil regeneration and modern farming.

The Kent meeting, led by Michael Blanche of the Pasture Pod, was about time management. I ended up sitting on the discussion panel.

I’m sure, like most, I thought I handled my time well, but always complained about not having enough.

This certainly made me think about prioritising the workload and trying to enjoy everything I do.