Soil & Water

UK agriculture in the future will be directed towards a more sustainable farming system. However, there is a need to understand, identify and assess the potential benefits of conservation agriculture and challenges it poses for adoption to be successful. The project focuses on three different cultivation systems at field scale over a 5 year rotation, with sites in 5 European countries across different soil types. 8,400 data points will be generated across the two UK sites over 5 years in the UK, to understand different farming systems and impacts on: productivity, profitability, field operations, agronomy, sustainability. We are working alongside farmers, researchers and industry specialists to understand the complexity and riskiness of the systems to provide advice for sustainable farming adoption.

Operation Pollinator Green Headland Mix acts as a buffer to protect soils and water, as well as a valuable additional food source and habitat for insects and other farm biodiversity.

Syngenta Operation Pollinator research, in conjunction with ASDA, has demonstrated clear improvements in soil protection and structure on areas sown using a Green Headland seed mix alongside crops, along with the opportunity to reduce nutrient leaching. The cover crop can help to trap and retain soil movement in the field, whilst the rooting acts to stabilise the soil surface and protect from damage by tractors and irrigation equipment through the crop’s growing operations. Potato and root vegetable growers could use the mix to better utilise unproductive field headlands to deliver significant environmental enhancements, as well as protect valuable soil and water resources.