Organic Arable Silage – What You Need To Know

Before turning organic, Kirwaugh was reliant on nitrogen fertilisers for growing grass silage. One of the reasons to convert to organic was to farm without chemicals and move back towards nature. Andrew has embraced the challenge of finding natural solutions to problems when they have arisen and has worked hard to improve the soil fertility and pH balance so is not reliant on inorganic fertilisers instead utilising farmyard manures and slurry produced on farm.

The silage fields at Kirwaugh are in a 7-year rotation. In total there is approximately 250 acres of silage ground across the farm. The fields that are being re-seeded have a first cut silage taken off in early May, then soon after the fields are ploughed.

Earlier in the year soil sampling will have been conducted to ascertain the pH level of the fields. If they are found to be deficient a program of liming will be undertaken at the time of ploughing. Farmyard manure is also spread across the fields prior to ploughing, and this is the only fertiliser the ground will receive.

Following ploughing the arable silage mix consisting of an organic spring barley and spring forage pea mixture will be drilled. This is drilled at a rate of 50kg/acre. It is ultimately intended as a nurse crop to allow the grass sward that is planted next to establish itself. Peas have a dual purpose. As a legume they can fix nitrogen which is then taken up by the barley and grass crop.