Farmers in Yorkshire and Humber have been invited to take part in a project designed to highlight potential savings on purchased fertiliser, through better utilisation of farmyard manure and slurry.

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Producers can have their soils tested for nutrient levels at a 70%-funded rate, and attend a follow-up workshop, where an ADAS specialist will explain how to use the information to reduce the use of bought fertiliser, says Graham Jameson of WE Jameson and Son of Masham, North Yorkshire.

His company, which sells animal feed, seeds and fertilisers, is working with ADAS to deliver the service to farmers.

Anyone interested in taking part in the project should book a place by contacting WE Jameson on or before 16 January, to allow time for the soil sampling. All results will remain strictly confidential, he adds.

Producers can choose from one of three daytime workshops, which will be held on the following dates: Northallerton 24 February; Lower Wensleydale 26 February; Harrogate 3 March. The total cost of participation, which includes soil sampling on up to a dozen fields per farm, is £120. The soil sampling and follow-up events have been 70% funded by a grant from The Rural Development Programme for England.

ADAS consultant, Peter Dale points out that spreading 30t/ha of farmyard manure in preparation for a crop of fodder beet would meet total phosphate and potash requirements on average soils. It would also cut nitrogen usage by 25kg/ha. Meanwhile, an application of 30 cubic metres/ha of dairy cow slurry on silage land in spring would provide the equivalent of 36kg/ha of phosphate, 94kg/ha of potash and 32kg/ha of nitrogen.

“Soil sampling plays a vital role in fine-tuning nutrient requirements, and making best use of farmyard manure and slurry,” says Mr Dale. “This in turn can save money by reducing purchased fertiliser bills.

“Accurate nutrient management can also help producers avoid the risk of pollution, which can incur heavy fines and result in deductions in Single Farm Payment allowances.”

Producers do not have to be customers of WE Jameson and Son to take part, but they will need to have a registered holding number. Places can be booked by telephoning Graham Jameson on 01765 689666, or e-mailing him through the website, www.wejameson.co.uk

Notes:

The family business of W. E. Jameson & Son Ltd has been established in the market town of Masham since 1930. The founder of the company, Eddie Jameson, began his business selling grass and root seeds to local farmers.

Eddie’s business ethos was based upon reciprocal trade with his farmer customers, selling them seeds and purchasing from them grain and livestock for his own farming enterprise. This ethos still holds true in the business today.

The family business is entering the third generation and still shares the same basic principles that Eddie held important - integrity and quality without compromise.

he range of farm inputs sold by the company has expanded over three generations and includes the major requirements of animal feeds, seeds and fertiliser. Many other products are also sold, including farm hardware, silage additive, minerals, brewers’ grains and pet foods.

The firm’s grain drying and storage facilities allow the purchase of grain at harvest for use in its range of animal feeds. Producers are also offered the alternative of a grain drying and storage service; for sale of the grain to the company later in the year.

WE Jameson and Son’s principle trading area is North Yorkshire and surrounding counties.

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