Diversifications such as agroforestry could prove to be a lifesaver for some arable businesses facing a sharp reduction in Basic Payment Scheme income.

Here, a Nottinghamshire farmer outlines his decade of experience farming with trees.

In October, the government announced a dramatic speeding up in the decline of Basic Farm Payments in the Budget, which has left a gaping hole in the financial planning of many farms across the UK.

While farmers look to the Sustainable Farming Incentive to help fill some of this lost income, another option is to generate cash from on-farm diversifications.

However, a lack of time and expertise can be a key limitation for those trying to diversify their arable business.

For Nottinghamshire farmer David Rose, the solution was to engage with the local community. 

See also: Why agri-tech and nature have a place on the farm of the future

David Rose explains that the 260ha family arable farm was farmed by a co-op established with three others, which for several years cropped 1,200ha across the four holdings.

However, in 2012 the co-op disbanded and he started to look at the options, recognising that the family farm was not viable as an intensive arable business.

On the back of being involved with Leaf, Sustain and through his Nuffield scholarship, he was interested in the environmental management of the farm and involving local communities and schools.

“If you are not enjoying what you are doing, then you might as well not be farming.”

David Walker and David Rose © Richard Allison

Some 12 years on, the farm is now a hub for many different partnerships and enterprises which include:

• Arable farm (a joint venture with neighbouring farm)
• Eco farm (FarmEco) – a community enterprise that rents 26ha and manages the trees and markets the produce. FarmEco is a registered community benefit society and its core purpose is to reconnect people with land, food and the environment.
• Agroforestry and silvopasture research projects
• Sheep enterprise (joint venture with shepherd)
• Two horticultural businesses growing trees and food
• Wellbeing and green prescribing activities
• Buildings rented out for housing, a cycling café, gym, hairdressers, masseuse, brewer, handyman, worm breeder, kitchen business, vet, and a men and women in sheds group. All make use of the farm, and in addition the gym and café use a three-and-a-half mile farm walk

Farming

The farm in Screveton looks down on the Vale of Belvoir, east of the Trent Valley.

The bulk of the arable land is managed as a joint venture with a neighbour and his two young sons, with crops including wheat, rye, maize, beans and barley.

It is farmed using minimum tillage, direct drilling with an aim of reducing pesticides, and following the Leaf model. Some of the milling wheat supplies the Small Food Bakery in Nottingham.

© MAG/Richard Allison

Trees

The farm rents 26ha to a group of people who have set up their own business – FarmEco Community Care. Their aim is to educate and inform people and reconnect the community with farming.

This rented area includes the trees which David says adds value to the farm in many different ways – through enterprise stacking, environmental stewardship, and a community point of view.

For the latter, the trees are a community resource offering volunteers the chance to plant, tend and harvest the crops, as well have a say on how they could be sold.

In total, there are 4,500 fruit and nut trees. Of these, about 740 are within two arable fields set up as part of the agroforestry trials, and the rest are in an edible forest, with sheep grazing the grass (silvopastoral), with the aim of producing woodland lamb

Established 10 years ago, the agroforestry fields have 24m wide cropping alleys, matching the sprayer width and the 6m combine header.

The trees are planted within a 4m strip of wildflowers and grasses. Trees are in 230m long rows and planted to allow machinery to turn.

David Rose explains the trees are there to compensate for the loss of income from the cropping area, with the grass/wildflower margins totaling 0.4ha, and with revenue generated from the sale of apples, walnuts and sweet chestnuts.

Trial work carried out by a University of Reading researcher on the farm demonstrated the environmental benefits of the alley system over the broadacre system.

It compared the agroforestry fields, which had either wheat or bean crops between rows, with a monoculture control field just with wheat.

The work found that crops in the alley system had fewer pests, as the strips provided habitat for beneficial insects.

Benefits have also been seen with soil health with higher organic matters, and there is a noticeable gradient in crop height across the cropping strip.

David Rose believes it provides evidence that agroforestry practices, when managed well, can restore farmland biodiversity and improve agricultural sustainability.

But there have also been challenges over the years. High winds have caused damage, and back in 2012, they pruned the trees harder to promote shorter and more robust growth.

However, the bigger challenge is making the farm economically viable. Looking at income, the 0.4ha of wheat equates to 3t of lost production and he believes he needs to generate £124-£200/ha (worth of apples) to compensate.

But it’s not just the loss of income from the crop, there are extra costs, as trees need to be maintained with annual pruning, there is the labour requirement for harvesting, and guards are needed to protect trees from deer.

However, this is where working with the local community brings benefits, with plenty of volunteers keen to get involved.

Some trees, such as the sweet chestnuts, have also proved difficult to establish and had to be replaced, and this is something that farmers looking to establish agroforestry need to consider.

David Rose acknowledges that they can’t compete with mass fruit growers on price. The community business is still exploring local markets and next spring will see the launch of a FarmEco brand cider. This will see apples sold in three ways:

• Sold to fruit and veg wholesaler
• Local foodbank (Himmah in Nottingham) sold at basic price
• Some apples go to a local community charity cider club .

The silvopastoral (edible) forest has a wider mix of trees (apples, elders, pears, plums, sea buckthorn, medlar) across 6.8ha.

The elders are sold to Belvoir Farm to make its elderflower cordial and there is also a market for chestnuts.

Medlar © Richard Allison

One novel tree is the sea buckthorn, which is more commonly grown in mainland Europe and China to supply the health food market.

The prized fruit is crushed to make oil and sold as a health food, or it can be used to make fruit products including cordial.

While it is very easy to grow, it is a challenge to harvest, being a thorny plant with fruit the size of peas.

“You have to prune half of the tree and freeze, so the fruit then come away easily. The other half can be harvested the next year in a two-year cycle.”   

Another niche product is the medlar, which was popular in medieval times, but is no longer widely grown.

FarmEco has 150 trees and the fruit has to be removed and bletted (a softening process akin to rotting) before being made into jelly.

David Rose says there is a market for the jelly and they supply a Lincolnshire producer.

Eco-tourism and community

The third area generating income is eco-tourism, and the trees are a key part of this, by providing the landscape and wildlife.

Bird counts, certified by the Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group for three years show a great diversity, which includes fieldfares, redwings, finches, kestrel, buzzards, chiffchaffs etc.

FarmEco hosts a forest school and the educational visits are helping schools reconnect with farming with nature workshops.

David Rose is a Woodland Trust ambassador and part of his role is to host visits for local MPs, councillors NGOs and farmers.

There is also the social prescribing network, with FarmEco being a trusted green space.

David Walker, who is one of the volunteers at FarmEco Community Care and emeritus professor at the University of Nottingham Medical School, explains that there is a long history of nature being used as a therapeutic tool.

He says healthcare services are increasingly recognising and embracing the role of nature.

In 2023 the farm hosted 40 trainee GPs who experienced first-hand what the farm had to offer from walks, creative workshops, harvesting and juicing apples, and various metal and woodworking activities hosted by the men and women in sheds group.

For example, GPs will sometimes refer patient suffering from anxiety to a social prescribing network.

David Walker explains that green social prescribing supports resilience and recovery through meeting people and improving self esteem and confidence.  

In conclusion, David Rose has spent 10 years farming with trees, gaining huge experience and making money.

Future plans include establishing working coppice woodland, exploring possible income opportunities through biodiversity net gain, and FarmEco is planning to launch foraging courses in 2025.

His key piece of advice for farmers looking to diversify is to involve the community, as time can be a key limitation.

They may feel that they haven’t the time or expertise on their own. By involving local people, opportunities will open that can help secure the future of arable businesses.