Soil management is central to operations at R&L Anthony Ltd. Based near Bridgend in South Wales, the arable farming operation has grown to encompass a vast variety of soil types and conditions, with the associated challenges of staying profitable whilst minimising environmental impact. The rotation encompasses combinable crops alongside forage production, utilising cover crops and integrated management to maximise soil health and carbon capture. Richard hosts a vast selection of trials at the farm, including different varieties of cover crops and the national trial list for combinable cropping; cover and companion crops are central to the arable operation, used to improve drainage, scavenge nutrients and reduce fuel usage through improving soil structure. Through continuously refining the management system Richard has halved fungicide use, eliminated insecticides and hugely reduced the fertiliser requirement through managing the soil to keep the biology working.
The farm walk will begin at 13:00 and will provide an opportunity to further hear and see how Richard’s management strategy has benefitted his business, leading him to be awarded Second Place in this year’s Soil Farmer of the Year competition.
The event will take place outside, please wear suitable clothing and footwear. Light refreshments will be provided.
To book:
To book your free place on this walk please head to the eventbrite page here and reserve a spot!
Richard Anthony (2nd place, centre), alongside Bronagh O’Kane (3rd place, left) and Stuart Johnson (winner, right) at the announcement of the SFOTY competition winners at Groundswell Agriculture 2023.
Other SFOTY farm walks:
Keep an eye out for news of Bronagh and Stuart’s farm walks on our events page here.
Having come back to the farm in 2020, Bronagh has begun a journey to transform the soil. Historically the farm has supported continental cattle breeds on a high reliance on imported feed, Bronagh has transitioned to more traditional breeds managed on grasslands. Utilising a small pasture grazing system she has increased the grazing period by 4 weeks and soils are more resilient to the extremes of dry and wet weather. Bronagh has started producing her own vermicast and composting to improve soil biology, focusing on natural inputs and a softer approach with foliar fertilisers where needed to manage historically compact and imbalanced soils. The walk will provide the opportunity to discuss and demonstrate the practices undertaken at the farm and the ongoing challenges and successes that Bronagh sees in her system.
The farm walk will begin at 14:00 and will provide an opportunity to further hear how Bronagh’s management led her to be awarded third place at this years Soil Farmer of the Year competition.
The event will take place outside, please wear suitable clothing and footwear. Light refreshments will be provided.
To book:
To book your free place on this walk please head to the eventbrite page here and reserve a spot!
Bronagh O’Kane (3rd place, left) at the announcement of the SFOTY competition winners at Groundswell Agriculture 2023, alongside Richard Anthony (2nd place, centre) and Stuart Johnson (winner, right).
Other SFOTY farm walks:
Keep an eye out for news of Stuart and Richard’s farm walks on our events page here.
Based in Northumberland, Stuart has been transforming his farm over the last 10 years to reduce inputs, improve soil health and livestock productivity. Moving to a strip-tillage system and mob grazing platform has provided financial success alongside a more resilient business. Stuart has now eliminated fertiliser on his grassland and fungicides in the arable crops, instead utilising an integrated system with the livestock and compost teas to grow what is needed on the farm. The farm is currently in a seven year rotation of a five year legume/herb mix followed by a two-year arable break with full grass grazing for the sheep and cattle meaning that there is no need to buy in additional supplementary feed over the summer months.
The farm walk will begin at 14:00 and will provide an opportunity to further hear and see how Stuarts’s management strategy has benefitted his livestock and business, leading him to be awarded the Soil Farmer of the Year Winner in this year’s Soil Farmer of the Year competition.
The event will take place outside, please wear suitable clothing and footwear. Light refreshments will be provided.
To book:
To book your free place on this walk please head to the eventbrite page here and reserve a spot!
Stuart Johnson (far right) at the announcement of the SFOTY competition winners at Groundswell Agriculture 2023, alongside Richard Anthony (2nd place, centre) and Bronagh O’Kane (3rd place, left).
Other SFOTY farm walks:
Keep an eye out for news of Bronagh and Richard’s farm walks on our events page here.
Billy Lewis hosts a farm walk demonstrating the system which led him being chosen as the 2022 Soil Farmer of the Year Winner
About this event
Based in Herefordshire, Billy’s focus on the farm has been to regenerate tired soils which have previously been in a high-intensity arable system through integrating livestock alongside increasing species diversity. The arable rotation on the farm is fully integrated with herbal leys and diverse swards to ensure livestock are able to graze and improve soil health and productivity. This management approach, in combination with a composting system, has allowed Billy to half the nitrogen used on farm and drastically reduce fossil fuel usage. Utilising a mob system for rotational grazing Billy has been able to finish lambs on a purely forage-based diet, with additional feed inputs now minimal across both the sheep and pedigree Hereford cattle enterprises.
The farm walk will begin at 14:00 (and last around 2-3hrs) and will provide an opportunity to further hear and see how Billy’s management strategy has benefitted his livestock and business, leading him to be awarded the Mixed Farm Winner in this year’s Soil Farmer of the Year competition.
The event will take place outside and refreshments will be provided.
The Soil Farmer of the Year competition is run in partnership with Innovation for Agriculture and kindly sponsored by Hutchinsons and Cotswold Seeds.
David Miller hosts a farm walk demonstrating the system which led him being chosen as the 2022 Arable Soil Farmer of the Year
About this event:
Based in Hampshire, David is this year’s arable Soil Farmer of the Year. David designed an approach whereby he has drastically reduced fuel consumption, crop protection inputs and fertiliser across a diverse arable system. Through combining direct drilling with the use of strategic cover and companion cropping within the rotation, David has reduced his need for bagged fertilisers, with 25% less nitrogen used and no applied phosphate or potassium for 7 years. Instead David uses roots to harvest what is needed for the following crop. David focuses on creating a profitable arable enterprise through creating a more resilient system with the soil at its heart
The farm walk will begin at 14:00 (and last around 2-3hrs), and will provide an opportunity to further hear and see how David’s management strategy has resulted in vast emissions savings and benefits to the bottom line, leading him to be awarded the Arable Winner in this year’s Soil Farmer of the Year competition.
The event will take place outside and refreshments will be provided.
The Soil Farmer of the Year competition is run in partnership with Innovation for Agriculture and kindly sponsored by Hutchinsons and Cotswold Seeds
Come to the farm walk to find out more about Anthony Pearce’s award winning soil management.
Anthony farms in Buckinghamshire and is in the process of transitioning the farm to a regenerative approach. Focussing on building soil health by stacking enterprises, including diverse rotations and improving nutrient use efficiency were some of the reasons why Anthony has been recognised in this year’s competition. The farm walk will start at 6.30 and provide a good opportunity to hear more about soil management on this farm.
The event will take place outside and refreshments will be provided.
Booking for this walk is essential – to book your place please contact Becky Willson at [email protected] or by phone / text at 07875 356611.
Come along and find out why Tom Sewell has been awarded this year’s top prize in the Soil Farmer of the Year competition!
Tom farms around 500ha across Kent running a simple low cost arable system focussing on building soil health, maintaining production and regenerating the landscape. An early pioneer of reduced cultivation, Tom’s Nuffield scholarship in 2013 ignited his enthusiasm in soil health and the system has grown from strength to strength.
This walk will be a chance to hear more about Tom’s soil management, cropping, rotation and cultivation strategy as well as to have a walk around the farm and dig deeper into his soils and transition.
The walk will start at 6.30pm. Tea / coffee and refreshments will be provided.
Due to the COVID restrictions we are limiting numbers on the farm walk to 30 people, as such, it is important to book your place on the walk by contacting Becky Willson at [email protected] or by phone / text on 07875 356611.
VENUE: Warnham Farm, Hunt Street, West Farleigh, ME15 0ND.
Event date: Wednesday, July 14, 2021 – 17:30 to 21:15
Come along and learn more about why Sam has been awarded livestock Soil Farmer of the Year 2021.
Sam Vincent farms 130ha in Dorset, running a dairy herd of 100 cows and followers. He transitioned to organic in May 2018, and all of his land is down to permanent pasture. Sam impressed the judges with his ability to make a regenerative system work on a dairy farm with permanent pasture. Using the cattle as a tool, he has improved the diversity in his pastures by adapting his grazing management from a traditional New Zealand paddock grazing system to a mob grazing approach which he follows now. This has improved his soil health, the resilience of his fields and the ability to provide grazing for extended periods.
Sam will be hosting a farm walk on the 22nd July starting at 6.30pm. The event will be run in a COVID secure manner, and as such although the event is free to attend, booking is essential. Refreshments will be provided and there will be a chance to hear more from Sam about his grazing system, youngstock management, maintaining diversity in permanent pastures and much more. Don’t miss out, book your place today!
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