BASIS Agronomy Matters

This year we had the 26th annual summit of the United nations climate change conference; COP26. From the 31st October until the 12th November world leaders, government representatives, businesses and citizens will arrive in Scotland for twelve days of talks around how to tackle climate change.

To coincide with this important event in this month’s Agronomy Matters Podcast we discuss all things net zero with some experts from the field.

First, we have Becky Willson, Business Development and Technical Director from Farm Carbon Toolkit who talks to us about the drivers for change, how we can calculate carbon footprints on farm and what we should do with a carbon figure once we have one. We then have Will Oliver, an arable and poultry farmer from Leicestershire who has been shortlisted for this year’s climate change champion of the year award. Will shares with us the highs and lows of his journey so far. And finally, we have Dr Harry Langford from CHAP who tells us a bit more about the technologies available to us now and those that are being developed for the future.

Many of our BASIS Qualifications provide you with the knowledge you need to help with the journey to net zero including our Soil and Water Management qualification which covers how to manage organic matter in soils to increase carbon storage, looks at the impacts of different cultivations on greenhouse gas emissions and covers the impacts of nutrient applications on the carbon footprint of farming. Please click here to read more about our Soil and Water Management Qualification.

Useful Links:

Carbon Toolkit Calculator https://calculator.farmcarbontoolkit.org.uk/user/register

This month’s episode of the BASIS Agronomy Matters Podcast has been produced in collaboration with the Kellogg’s Origins Project. This is a really exciting initiative which is looking at how the food supply chain can help support more sustainable farming practices through unique research projects. Our first speakers on this episode, Duncan Rawson and David Fitzgerald, explained what Origins project does, and why Kellogg’s are so committed to sourcing products in a responsible and sustainable way. We were then joined by three speakers who had been directly involved in Origins projects throughout the UK.

Firstly, we spoke to Dave Freeman from the agriculture team at Ricardo, who has been carrying out some research on a farm in Bedfordshire looking at how agriculture can move towards becoming a Net-zero industry.

We were then joined by John Holland, Head of Farmland Ecology at the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust, who’s project at Loddington in Leicestershire focussed on the role beneficial insects play within integrated pest management, and the habitats that are required to support them.

Finally, we spoke to Clive Blacker, Head of Business Development within arable agriculture at the Map of Ag. The project Clive has been working on was looking at Nitrogen Use Efficiency in the UK, especially how monitoring and analysis can help improve this and what impact this would have on UK farms.

Don’t forget to listen to the end of the episode where our Professional Register Members can find out how to claim 1 CPD point.

In this month's episode of the BASIS Agronomy Matters Podcast, our Business Development Executive, Jade Prince hones in on effective phosphorus management as an essential part of producing high quality profitable crops whilst also protecting the wider environment and as this year’s topic for the FACTS online assessment, phosphorus management is of particular interest to our FACTS Qualified Advisers.

We have some great speakers who tell us more about phosphorus application, use efficiency and potential impacts on the environment. First, we have Tim Kerr, crop nutrition manager at Hutchinsons who speaks about the importance of phosphate for plant growth and building and protecting phosphate reserves in our soils. Our second speaker is Professor Phil Haygarth from the University of Lancaster, who talks about the risks and potential mitigation strategies for phosphates in the environment and finally we have Matt Taylor from the Biosolids assurance scheme who tells us a bit more about the contribution that biosolids can make to phosphate in soils as well as other benefits and potential concerns around biosolids use.

Make sure you listen to the end to find out how to claim one BASIS CPD point via the members' area on the BASIS website.

In a first for the BASIS Agronomy Matters Podcast, this episode has been produced in collaboration with Championing the Farmed Environment (CFE), a partnership which supports farmers to deliver environmental benefits within a productive farming business. This episode was therefore co-hosted by Greg Hopkinson from BASIS and Ellenor Litobarski from CFE. The key topic for this podcast was water quality, looking at how we can manage the movement of soil and water in order to protect watercourses and the wider environment. Our three guests each provided a unique perspective on the impacts agriculture and food production can have on water quality, and what we can do to tackle these issues.

Firstly we spoke to Kelly Hewson-Fisher, Catchment Adviser for Anglian Water. Kelly explained what challenges water companies face, and how they are working with farmers to help tackle these issues, for example a collaborative research project in the Great Eau Catchment. If you would like to find out more about the work Anglian Water are doing then please visit their website.

We were then joined by Colin Peters, Break Crops Specialist at NIAB, who gave the perspective of a farmer and agronomist on why it is so important that we reduce the risk of soil erosion and pesticide pollution impacting water quality.

And finally we spoke to Helen Cheshire, Senior Farming Adviser at the Woodland Trust. Helen explained how integrating tree planting into the agricultural landscape can help mitigate soil erosion and protect the wider environment.

For our BASIS Professional Register Members please listen to the end of this episode to find out how to claim one CPD point.

In this month’s episode of the BASIS Agronomy Matters podcast we are looking at a slightly different area of UK agriculture, livestock production. In particular we are focussing on how introducing livestock into an arable farming system can provide significant benefits, and also what potential risks and limitations need to be avoided. Our first guest is Liz Genever, independent consultant within the UK sheep industry, who discusses how utilising sheep alongside cover crops and other herbal leys can provide significant benefits especially in terms of developing a sustainable farming system. We then spoke to Mhairi Dawson who is a Research & Development Manager at Barenbrug UK. Mhairi explained how introducing grassland into an arable rotation can help reduce grassweed pressure and improve soil health as well as providing some top tips on grassland management and agronomy. Our final guest was Ian Richards, an independent consultant who is also a member of the BASIS FACTS committee. Ian is an expert in crop nutrition and explained how to maximise the potential benefits from applications of livestock manure whilst ensuring we protect the wider environment and meet current legislative requirements.

This months podcast is focussing on livestock production following the launch of the Register of Sheep Advisers (RoSA) on the 1st of June. The aim of this new Professional Register is to provide UK sheep farmer with appropriate advice from recognised professionals who can support them to develop sustainable farming systems which meet the highest standards of animal welfare and environmental protection. RoSA has been created in collaboration with the National Sheep Association, to find out more or to become a member of RoSA please visit www.sheepadvisers.co.uk.

BASIS Professional Register and RoSA Members can find out how to claim 1 CPD point for listening to this podcast at the end of the episode. You can access your members area through the BASIS and RoSA websites respectively.

In this latest episode of the BASIS Agronomy Matters Podcast, our Technical Manager, Greg Hopkinson hones in how to combine sustainable and profitable crop production with hosting a successful shoot on farms and estates with a focus on some of the unique challenges of combining these two parts of land management. Greg also announces that BASIS is now running a Certificate in Game Management qualification which provides anyone in game management with the knowledge to deliver a successful shoot which is profitable, sustainable and integrates with the wider farming business.

Firstly we hear from Roger Draycott, Director of Advisory Education and Game Bird Policy at the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust. Roger explains their involvement with this new qualification.

This is followed by a conversation with Jim Egan, Technical adviser at Kings Crops – Jim speaks about Game Covers, how to select, establish and manage the correct species and mixes in different situations.

Finally, we spoke to Ellenor Litobarski from Champion and the Farming Environment. Ellenor looked at how habitats utilised by game birds can be manage and enhanced to have the greatest positive impact on biodiversity and other wildlife.

In this month’s episode of the BASIS Agronomy Matters Podcast we are talking all things soil following an update to one of our most popular BASIS courses, the Soil & Water Management Certificate. Our first guest on this episode is David Felce, Regional Technical Adviser at Agrii, who spoke about the challenges of managing the physical properties of our soil, for example through cultivations and cover crops. We were then joined by Anne Bhogal, Principal Soil Scientist at ADAS, who is an expert in the chemical make up of our soils and the biology which lives within it. With Anne we spoke about why soil biology is so important, how we can promote it through changing our soil management practices and what key chemical properties farmers should be focussing on. Our final guest was Charlotte Cook, an independent agronomist working for Indigro. Before starting her role as an agronomist Charlotte carried out a research project as part of her Masters looking into carbon footprinting in arable farming systems. Charlotte explains a bit more about this project and what role soil carbon can play as we move towards agriculture being a net-zero industry by 2040. Charlotte was also a speaker on one of our webinars as part of the Sustainability Series and recordings of these webinars can be found on the BASIS YouTube channel.

For our BASIS Professional Register members find out how to claim 1 CPD point for listening to the podcast at the end of the episode. You can access the members area on the BASIS website here.

In this month's episode of the BASIS Agronomy Podcast Greg Hopkinson, Head of Business Development at BASIS, speaks to three recent winners of BASIS awards which are presented each year to outstanding candidates in a number of BASIS qualifications.

Our first guest is Beth Duchesne, Senior Consultant on Agriculture & the Environment at Bidwells. Beth was awarded the Barrie Orme Shield in 2020 and explains how she has used the Certificate in Crop Protection qualification to develop her career, and also provides some advice for anyone thinking of taking this course in the future.

Presented with our second guest was Jack Buckingham who was the first winner of the Brian Chambers Award in 2018 which is presented to the highest achieving FACTS candidate each year. Jack explains how the FACTS qualification has helped him in his role as a Farm Business Adviser especially where he works in the South-West of England which is dominated by livestock and mixed farms.

Finally we spoke to Jim Stotzka, Lead on Sustainability with Frontier Agriculture. Jim received the Paul Singleton Award in 2018 which is presented to the individual who produces the highest scoring project as part of the Certificate in Crop Protection exam. This is an integral part of this qualification and Jim explains a bit more about his project and gives some top tips on how to research and write a project for anyone who is looking to complete the Certificate in Crop Protection in the future.

All three of our guests have developed successful careers in crop production and agronomy with the support of BASIS qualifications and the Professional Register. At BASIS we are looking to support the next generation of advisers and farmers through the Trainee Membership scheme. For more information on this scheme please follow this link basis-reg.co.uk/trainee 

Our Professional Register Members can claim 1 CPD point for listening to this podcast, to access the Members Area on the BASIS website, please click here 

In the first episode of the BASIS Agronomy Matters Podcast in 2021 we are looking ahead to spring with a specific focus on seed and variety selection. Greg Hopkinson, Head of Business Development at BASIS, speaks to three guests about how to select the correct variety for a range of spring sown crops. 

Our first guest was Sarah-Jane Osbourne from AHDB who explained how to get the most out of the Recommended List and identified some key spring cereal varieties to look at this year. Sarah-Jane was followed by Steve Belcher, Principal Technical Officer at PGRO, who focussed on variety choice for peas and beans. Steve also gave some top tips on how to successfully establish pulse crops in the spring. 

Finally we spoke to John Burgess from KWS about how to select the correct maize variety, and seed treatment, for a range of different agronomic situations. Make sure you listen to the end of the podcast to find out how to claim your BASIS CPD point and if you are enjoying Agronomy Matters don’t forget to subscribe