Crop Health
Small scale seed saving on the Uist machair
Small scale cropping is thriving on the machairs of Uist. A key element of the system is the use of traditional indigenous varieties of seed that are uniquely suited to…
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Winter Barley – December 2020
Diseases Crop establishment is mixed in some areas with tillering occurring in some, but others still a bit behind. The recent frosty weather will have checked the development of any…
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Technical note (TN739): Use of a Sward Lifter to Improve Grassland Soil Compaction
A good soil structure is essential to achieve optimum grassland growth. Soil structure is determined by the way that particles of soil are bound together to form fragments. A good…
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How can beneficial insects help you?
How can beneficial insects help you? What insects inhabit agricultural land? How can we tweak the balance towards insects that are beneficial to production? Join Dr Paul Chapman, a conservation…
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Farm Management Handbook 2020/21
The 41st edition of the Farm Management Handbook is an essential tool for any progressive farm business, providing a comprehensive and up-to-date source of information for farmers, rural professionals, students…
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Orkney Soil & Nutrient Network: Assessing and Improving Soil
Our guest speaker during this webinar is SAC Consulting’s Soil & Drainage Specialist, Gavin Elrick. Gavin discusses the importance of maintaining healthy soil organic matter levels. We also take a…
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Growing Crops on a Small Scale For The First Time
In this podcast Derek Hanton, SAC Inverness, gives advice to those thinking of growing crops on a small scale for the first time. Many types of crops are discussed from…
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Farm Buildings Update – November 2020
Vermin control As the weather is starting to get colder, vermin such as rats and mice will be looking for somewhere to spend the winter indoors, and nowhere is better…
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Carrots and Parsnips Update – November 2020
Pests Now is a good time to sample for free-living nematodes in fields planned for carrots or parsnips next year in order to assess the risk of nematode damage.
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Potatoes Update – November 2020
Forward planning for 2021 – sampling for nematodes It is never too early to sample soils for nematodes, particularly as sampling fields when the soil is moist gives the most…
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