Norfolk farmer Algy Garrod is inviting farmers to a free farm walk to showcase how the business has benefitted from several diversification projects, including growing miscanthus.
Co-hosted by AF Group and Terravesta, the walk will take place on Thursday the 7th of September and will look at how growing miscanthus on the 405-hectare farm near Fakenham has mitigated risk and future-proofed the business.
“Miscanthus is planted in awkward corners of fields, in wet areas and on heavy land, and we have deliberately targeted less productive fields to improve the soil,” said Mr Garrod. “When I looked at my yield maps, certain areas of the farm performed poorly on an annual basis, typically areas on the edges of fields.
“So, I took the decision to put Miscanthus on them. I’ve straightened these fields with GPS, taking out bits near hedgerows or curved field margins and edges.”
Ten hectares have been planted in total, and Mr Garrod said that squaring off the fields has made them more manageable and efficient.
“The aim is to replace some of the lost subsidies with diversification income streams and I’m hoping it will give me some efficiency gains – my sprayer works better when it’s driving in a straight line rather than going around corners, which causes inaccuracies in the application of our inputs,” he added.
Other diversification projects include opening a farm shop, introducing more niche vegetable crops to supply the shop, pumpkin picking and Christmas trees. The miscanthus also provides game cover.
“I now have permanent cover, which means I don’t have to establish it every year, which is a big advantage,” he concluded.
The event will run from 9.30am to 11.30am, including a presentation from Terravesta about growing, harvesting and selling miscanthus; a talk from Lee Oxborough, head of crop inputs at AF Group; and a tour of the crop.
For more information go to www.terravesta.com