Arable
Drainage is key to unlocking the farm’s full potential, says John Haynes
Drainage plan boosts yields and reduces blackgrass
• Improvements in soil structure • More timely fieldwork possible • Bigger reduction in blackgrass
A
n Essex farm manager says he has successfully increased yields, reduced inputs and
tackled blackgrass after implement- ing a strict drainage plan. John Haynes oversees more than 1200ha across on behalf of MJ & SC Col- lins, based at Kingstons Farm, Match- ing, near Harlow. The land stretches across east Hertfordshire into Essex. A streamlined rotation of wheat, bar-
ley, winter and spring beans, and sugar beet has seen the business grow signif- icantly in recent years. But so too has a proactive drainage plan developed with Mastenbroek and Trimble.
Right decision Mr Haynes contacted drainage experts Mastenbroek in 2015 following exten- sive waterlogging at Lysander Park – an area of some 560ha used as the air- field for RAF Sawbridgeworth during World War II.
Redundant underground services meant the area hadn’t been drained. Waterlogging was affecting the perfor- mance of otherwise fertile soils, encour- aging blackgrass and making it impos- sible to travel in early spring.
18 ANGLIA FARMER • JULY 2021
We wanted the best possible drainage system
“
“We knew we had to improve the drainage on Lysander Park but wer- en’t completely sure how to go about it,” says Mr Haynes. “We had heard about Mastenbroek’s partnership with Trim- ble and the GPS solutions they were of- fering, so we got in touch.” “We wanted to make the process
as quick and easy as possible. We also wanted to know that we were making the right decisions and create the best possible drainage system for our land. This wasn’t our area of expertise.” Mastenbroek engineer Fred Clarke
installed a Trimble GPS depth control system on the farm’s tractor-mount- ed AFT 100 trencher. Together with a 14-tonne gravel cart, Mr Haynes was able to create and install his own drain- age scheme. It was slow work. To speed things
up, MJ & SC Collins took delivery of a Mastenbroek 30/20 in November 2018. It was immediately put to work on fields that had not had their drain- age improved since in the 1970s.
Trebled output
The Mastenbroek 30/20 trebled our out- put, taking us from an average of about 900m a day to nearly 3km depending on the scheme. Since carrying out the land drainage, we have noticed sever- al benefits.
“The number of earthworms in the soil is increasing significantly, and the
soil is much healthier. Drainage is key to unlocking the full potential of what can be achieved through reduced cul- tivation, compost and sewage sludge application.
“I describe it as a Christmas Tree in terms of the shape and magnitude of each level. So, the base – the widest branches – is the drainage followed by soil structure, organic matter, cultiva- tion, nitrogen use and input reduction.” Mr Haynes says he can’t precisely
quantify the benefit of improved nitro- gen efficiency to his yields. But he esti- mates that unless it is a very dry win- ter, he gets on to drained fields a week to ten days earlier than before.
Soil improvements Part of the reason for the earlier access is the improved soil structure following the drainage scheme. The soil is more friable and requires less intense culti- vation, adds Mr Haynes. “The fields we have drained dry out
much quicker than the older schemes, and when moling is up to date, the soil structure is so much more resilient. We can cultivate sooner in the spring but, crucially, later into the autumn.” But Mr Haynes says the reduction
in blackgrass is perhaps the most sig- nificant impact of the drainage. The farm has gone from blanket
spraying with herbicide to targeting small areas and following up with hand roguing in the summer. “We are probably saving around £15,000 a year on wheat herbicides alone,” says Mr Haynes. “I would say, depending on dormancy in a specific year, we have reduced black-grass on our recently drained fields by 70%.”
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