Soil will go under the microscope and innovative approaches to grassland management will take centre stage at an open event for farmers at the Great Yorkshire Showground next month.
Regenerative agriculture practices will be the focus of the event on Thursday 6th March. It is organised by the Farmer Scientist Network at the Yorkshire Agricultural Society, a network which seeks new ways for science and technology to underpin agricultural innovation. The occasion is for farmers at any stage of their regenerative agriculture journey, with experts on-hand to offer guidance on how best to nurture soil on both arable and livestock farms.
Applying regenerative agriculture principles to farmland management has a range of benefits, according to Dr Dave George, Chair of the Farmer Scientist Network. He said:
Getting started with regenerative practices on your farm can be daunting and it does take patience and perseverance to realise the considerable benefits. This event is all about bringing farmers and experts together to drive better understanding and more informed application of principles that put soil health first on your farm.
We are really starting to see the benefits of this approach. Early adopters of regenerative agriculture are now able to demonstrate how they are running businesses more efficiently and more in tune with the environment, relying on fewer chemical inputs and heavy machinery, yet producing robust crop yields, and we will hear from some of these farmers during this event.
The Farmer Scientist Network welcomes back soil scientist Neil Fuller who captured the imaginations of farmers at a previous open event by putting soil samples under the microscope. Neil returns to offer new take home tips for farmers during a session which explores how regenerative practices are transforming the food we eat.
Farmers will also hear from mixed North Yorkshire farmers, Fraser Hugill, Director of the Beef Shorthorn Association, and Angus Gowthorpe, Founder of The Green Farm Collective. The pair will lead a workshop covering how to use herbal leys effectively in livestock and arable systems. There will also be an opportunity for farmers and landowners to pitch questions to an expert panel about their first-hand experiences when putting theory into practice on-farm.
Organisations with specialist knowledge of regenerative agriculture will be available to speak to including Catchment Sensitive Farming, NIAB, The Green Farm Collective, Innovative Farmers, Newcastle University, Sheffield University and University of Leeds.
Allister Nixon, CEO of the Yorkshire Agricultural Society, which funds the Farmer Scientist Network, said:
A key part of the Society’s support of the agricultural industry is to provide a platform for knowledge exchange and develop the skills of those in farming, and this is another great event to help further this mission.
The Farmer Scientist Network’s upcoming event is its latest in a series of activities exploring regenerative agriculture. It has supported an Innovate UK-funded project led by Angus Gowthorpe to design and develop a farmers’ guide to cover crops species selection, establishment, and termination. This is the first independent guide of its kind for British farms and is now being developed further with the support of AHDB. It is available for farmers to use online at https://covercropsguide.co.uk/
The Regenerative Agriculture Open Event will be held on the Great Yorkshire Showground at The Pavilions at The Great Yorkshire Events Centre on Thursday 6th March, 9.30am-3.15pm. Places are £20 per person and include a locally-sourced lunch. To book your place, visit https://yas.co.uk/fsn/
