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Browse our library of the best technical guides, research papers and videos on sustainable agriculture below. You can also filter by topic.

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Displaying 61 - 90 of 96

Manure use efficiency

resource Duchy College A SWARM Hub webpage to help you maximise on available nutrients in organic manures, make savings and reduce environmental losses.

Type, texture & structure, Compaction & cultivation, Organic matter, Cereals, oil seeds & pulses, Grasslands & forage crops, Crop nutrition & fertility building, Regulations, standards & policy
Sowing and Management of Multi-species Leys to Encourage Pollinators

resource Institute of Organic Training & Advice (IOTA) Guidance on selecting species and managing leys to benefit pollinators, linking to the LegLink project and Countryside Stewardship options.

Organic matter, Grasslands & forage crops, Crop nutrition & fertility building, Regulations, standards & policy, Markets & food systems, Pollinators & ecological services, Biodiversity
Above and below the ground: building resilient, productive and profitable soils

resource Nuffield Farming Scholarships Trust This Nuffield Report is the result of arable farmer David Walston's explorations of why some soils are more productive than others and the best ways...

Type, texture & structure, Compaction & cultivation, Rotations, Organic matter, Cereals, oil seeds & pulses, Grasslands & forage crops, Crop nutrition & fertility building, People & skills
Filter fences: catching sediment to prevent run-off

resource Linking Environment and Farming (LEAF) LEAF Demonstration Farmer Nick Bragg from Frogmary Green Farm talks about his experience of tackling soil erosion and run-off problems, with the help of CSF.

Type, texture & structure, Compaction & cultivation, Drainage, Organic matter, Natural resources & waste, People & skills
Healthy Grassland Soils pocketbook

resource Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) / EBLEX / DairyCo A practical guide giving pictorial advice on assessing, maintaining and improving grassland soil structure and soil biology levels.

Type, texture & structure, Compaction & cultivation, Organic matter, Soil biology, Weeds, Grasslands & forage crops, Crop nutrition & fertility building, Business management, Buildings & machinery
The Use of Compost and Digestate on Organic/Converting Land

resource OF&G Useful guidance from OF&G to help you comply with regulations for using compost and digestate on organic land.

Organic matter, Regulations, standards & policy
Working with Soil

resource An article published in Star & Furrow exploring the biodynamic approach to working with soil... “With what and how do we feed this soil life?”

Biodynamic farming, Type, texture & structure, Compaction & cultivation, Organic matter, Soil biology, Crop nutrition & fertility building, People & skills
Field drainage guide

resource ADAS Improve your farm productivity and environment with field drainage; principles, methods, assessment, maintenance, renewal and installation.

Drainage, Business management, Pollinators & ecological services
Living Soils - A Call to Action

resource Centre for Agroecology/ Water and Resilience and Soil Association The causes and implications of soil degradation explained, with a plea to adopt agroecological approaches to help tackle the problems.

Regulations, standards & policy, Compaction & cultivation, Organic matter, Soil biology
The Farm Crap App Pro

resource Duchy College & Rothamsted Research Duchy College and Rothamsted Research’s mobile manure management app; find out how you can use it and access the app from this webpage.

Organic matter, Crop nutrition & fertility building, Natural resources & waste
Soil: Improving Structure and Function

resource Linking Environment and Farming (LEAF) LEAF Demonstration Farmer Chris Baylis discusses measures put in place to help improve soil structure and drainage on his farm with agricultural advisor Philip Wright.

Type, texture & structure, Compaction & cultivation, Drainage, Rotations, Organic matter, Soil biology, People & skills
Intensive Grazing: Boode Farm

resource Natural England Catchment Sensitive Farming farm case study on the business and environmental benefits of maximising grazing efficiency and improving slurry and soil management.

Natural resources & waste, People & skills, Compaction & cultivation, Drainage, Animal health & welfare, Dairy cattle
Simply Sustainable Water at Overbury Farms

resource Linking Environment and Farming (LEAF) A 7-minute video explaining how the Six Simple Steps of Simply Sustainable Water are implemented at Overbury Farms.

Drainage, Natural resources & waste
Simply Sustainable Water

resource Linking Environment and Farming (LEAF) A practical guide to help you develop an effective on-farm management strategy for efficient and sustainable water use.

Drainage, Natural resources & waste
Reduced Tillage: Farmer’s motivations and problems

resource Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL) A video from the TILMAN-ORG project providing useful insights from farmers who have have adopted reduced tillage on their farms.

Compaction & cultivation, People & skills
Managing phosphorus dynamics in organic rotations

resource Institute of Organic Training & Advice (IOTA) Practical recommendations for improving soil phosphate (P) availability for your crops; maintaining levels and maximising on P inputs.

Organic farming, Type, texture & structure, Compaction & cultivation, Drainage, Rotations, Organic matter, Soil biology, Roots & horticulture, Crop nutrition & fertility building, Business management
Managing the drought

resource Harper Adams University College Don’t waste a drop. Belts of native trees can act as an insurance policy against droughts by modifying the crop microclimate.

Agroforestry, Type, texture & structure, Drainage, Animal health & welfare, Cereals, oil seeds & pulses, Crop nutrition & fertility building, Natural resources & waste, Climate
Simply Sustainable Soils

resource Linking Environment and Farming (LEAF) LEAF’s soil assessment tool to help you improve the soil on your farm and long-term sustainability of your land using ‘Six Simple Steps.’

People & skills, Type, texture & structure
Illustrated guide to water courses beside grassland

resource Natural England Practical guidance to help you manage watercourses and livestock in ways that will cause the least harm to water quality and wildlife.

Drainage, Natural resources & waste
A Guide to Nutrient Budgeting on Organic Farms

resource SAC & Newcastle University Everything you may need to know about basic nutrient budgeting and valuable insights into how using them can benefit your farm.

Type, texture & structure, Rotations, Crop nutrition & fertility building, Regulations, standards & policy, Business management, Markets & food systems, People & skills
Compost: The Effect on Nutrients, Soil Health and Crop Production

resource Institute of Organic Training & Advice (IOTA) Practical guidance to inform your use and management of compost, using it to its full potential to improve soil properties and crop yields.

Rotations, Organic matter, Crop nutrition & fertility building, Regulations, standards & policy, Natural resources & waste
Silage sorghum, an alternative to silage maize

resource Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL) & Wageningen University & Research (WUR) Some practical recommendations for producing silage sorghum based on research carried out as part of the DiverIMPACTS project.

Compaction & cultivation, Weeds, Cereals, oil seeds & pulses, Grasslands & forage crops, People & skills, Climate
Towards farmer principles of health

resource Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research Germany & Humboldt University Berlin & University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Austria Ten statements / principles farmers have developed that make them successful in developing healthy farming systems, as part of the HealthNetworks Project, and used as...

Compaction & cultivation, Organic matter, Soil biology, Weeds, Pests & diseases, Animal health & welfare, Crop nutrition & fertility building, Business management, Markets & food systems, Natural resources & waste, People & skills, Pollinators & ecological services, Biodiversity, Climate, Nutrition & public health, Communities & education
Reduced tillage trials aim to improve soil sustainability

resource University of East Anglia / Wensum Alliance Interesting results from a 5-year reduced cultivation trial that took place at the Salle Park Estate, Norfolk, to assess the impact of contrasting tillage regimes...

Type, texture & structure, Compaction & cultivation, Drainage, Organic matter, Soil biology, Cereals, oil seeds & pulses, Crop nutrition & fertility building, Buildings & machinery, People & skills, Pollinators & ecological services
Cover crops help to reduce diffuse water pollution

resource University of East Anglia / Wensum Alliance An update from research undertaken as part of the Demonstration Test Catchments research platform established to investigate the extent by which on-farm mitigation measures can...

Compaction & cultivation, Drainage, Organic matter, Cereals, oil seeds & pulses, Crop nutrition & fertility building, Business management, People & skills, Pollinators & ecological services
Measuring and managing soil organic matter

resource Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) - produced as part of the AHDB-BBRO Soil Biology and Soil Health Partnership (ahdb.org.uk/greatsoils) This GREATSoils factsheet explores different ways in which organic matter can be added to soil and how you can measure how much organic matter is...

Type, texture & structure, Organic matter, Soil biology, People & skills
Short-term green manures for intensively cultivated horticultural soils

resource AHDB Horticulture A GREATsoils factsheet detailing the main green manure species suitable for use in high value vegetable and salad rotations and summarising benefits they can bring

Type, texture & structure, Rotations, Organic matter, Roots & horticulture, Crop nutrition & fertility building, People & skills
Transition to agroecological approaches

resource Scottish Natural Heritage / GWCT / ORC / Land Use Policy Group A case study focusing on Douglas Christie, a farmer in Scotland, who has been experimenting with direct drilling and growing cover and companion crops in...

Organic matter, Soil biology, Beef cattle & sheep, Cereals, oil seeds & pulses, Business management, People & skills, Biodiversity
Effects of severe flooding on a lowland farm

resource Harper Adams University Postgraduate student, Rachel Glover, has been investigating the impact of severe annual river flooding on a mixed lowland farm in Shropshire.

Agroforestry, Type, texture & structure, Compaction & cultivation, Drainage, Animal health & welfare, Natural resources & waste, Biodiversity, Climate
Fallowing in organic systems - a last resort?

resource Garden Organic A leaflet looking at the pros and cons of leaving land fallow in organic systems to help manage weeds,

Type, texture & structure, Compaction & cultivation, Soil biology, Weeds, People & skills

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