Real Farm Trials Chair: Tom MacMillan

R&D INVESTMENT IN AGRICULTURE

NEAR MARKET

BASIC

OFF-FARM

ON-FARM

Input & processing businesses

Research councils & government

TSB & AHDB

Innovative Farmers

Susanne Padel Top tips from a researcher

4 Tips for a successful trial

Step 1 • What is the problem?

Step 2 • Formulate a clear research question

Step 3 • Trial design & data collection

Step 4 • Drawing conclusions

What is known

already?

How does it apply to

my farm?

Who can I talk to?

Not all problems can be solved in one trial

Step 1 What is the broad question?

What is a clear research question?

• How do I manage weeds without chemicals?

Very broad and difficult to set up a trial

• How do I manage perennial weeds in arable systems?

• How do I manage perennial weeds in vegetables?

Slightly better but still many different options open

• Can grazing winter wheat with sheep control black-grass?

• Can buckwheat reduce couch grass infestations?

More focused questions that allow experiments

Step 2

Farm practice and existing data

Robust trial design and

data analysis

Step 3 Designing trial & data collection

Treatment and control

What is the treatment?

What variables in the system

can be changed?

What is practical to change?

What is kept the same?

Define a control

What are you going to

compare the ‘change’ to?

Step 3

Trial or demonstration?

Demonstration

Shows how something can

work in practice

Fits into daily routine

Cheap and easy

Can provide trends

No confidence that the

effect is not caused by

external factors (e.g.

differences in soils)

Trial with some replication

Variability in soil/ greenhouse

or stock

Replicates: independent

repeats of treatment/control

Randomised is the gold

standard, but not always

practical

Only one year and one farm

Step 3

• Caution with the data as

there was no real

replication

Example of impact of legumes on cereals Step 3

Blocked, randomised or simplified?

Randomised block design Simplified

3 I

1 I

4 I

2 I

1 II

2 II 4 II

3 II

2 III

1 III

4 III

3 III

guard rows trial beds guard rows

pat

h

1 I 3 II 4 III 1 IV

2 I 1 II 2 III 3 IV

3 I 2 II 3 III 2 IV

4 I 4 II 1 III 4 IV

1-4 = Treatment

I-IV = Replication

Step 3

Randomised block design Simplified

Two examples Step 3

Planning what to measure?

Metrics and data

How can the effect be measured?

What data can be collected?

Existing benchmarks?

Data collection

Who is doing the data collection?

How frequent?

At what key events (e.g. harvest)?

Step 3

Concluding thoughts

One of the most common errors is to not keep a control

How does the new treatment compare to current practise?

Making use of existing data

What is know already about the problem/ question?

What data you are already collecting (crop and livestock

records, accounts etc)?

Confidence levels

Can the effect be caused by external factors?

Working with others?

Discussion groups

Andy Dibben Growing blight-resistant potatoes

12,000 years of trialling and

innovation.

Population Increase

Trialling more important

than ever.

Dwindling

Natural

Resources

Top Soil

Degrada

tion

Water Shortages

Climate Change

POTATO

BLIGHT.

Cause of multiple famines.

Fast

moving air

borne

fungus.

Whole crop devastation. Foliar damage. Tuber Damage.

£4.5 billion losses each year.

Options for control. Spraying

Early

Planti

ng

Resist

ant

Varieti

es

Genetic Modification Forecasting

Variety

trials.

Varieties

ATHLETE – Agrico – second early

CAROLUS – Agrico – early main

crop

SARPO UNA – Savari Trust –

second early

SARPO KIFLI – Savari Trust-

early main crop

SARPO AXONA – Savari Trust –

main crop

Aim of Trial

To test selected potato

varieties for:-

-Blight Resistance

-Performance

-Yield

-Taste

Control

Grown alongside tried and

tested commercial potato

varieties usually grown on

the farm.

Cara, Cosmos, Milva,

Nicola.

Method

Identical methods of

production used for

both trial and control

varieties

Fertility, Cultivation,

Planting, Irrigation,

Weed Control,

Harvesting. Monitoring

- Regular Crop

Inspections.

- Photographs

- Recording

Observations

- Average Tuber

Counts

- Yield Measurements

- Taste Tests

Observations of Crop

Performance Observations on Crop growth

Athlete – Slow to get going, but formed a strong compact Haulm.

Carolus- Fast growth rate, forming a tall strong haulm, leading to

good weed suppression.

Una - Fast growth rate, forming a tall strong haulm, leading to

good weed suppression.

Kifli - Slow to get going, but formed a strong compact Haulm

Axona- Fast growth rate, forming a tall strong haulm, leading to

good weed suppression. Observations on Blight Resistance

Commercial varieties –

First signs of potato blight were spotted in the commercial crop of

potatoes in the last week of July with the usual fast spread through crop

over next two weeks, affecting Cosmos, Nicola and Milva, however there

was an exception to this with our crop of Cara which I have found to show

good resistance to foliar Blight in the past. Although the Cara did

eventually get Blight it was a good three weeks behind the other

commercial varieties. All commercial varieties were topped to prevent

spread of blight to tubers in the third week of August.

Trial Varieties –

First signs of Potato Blight were spotted on the Trial potatoes in first week

of September, a full month after the commercial varieties. Photos below

are taken on the 10/9/15 showing the extent of blight on each variety. The

photos do their best to demonstrate an average for each crop.

Results

.

CAROLUS ATHLETE SARPO UNA

SARPO KIFLI SARPO AXONA

Photos taken on

10th September

Statistical Results

Supplier Variety

Planting Date

Amount of Seed Potato

Harvest Date

Blight Resistance

Average Tuber Count

Total Yield

Scab resistance

Agrico Athlete 08/05/201

5 5kg 02/10/20

15 5 out of 10 12 56.5kg Bad

Agrico Carolus 08/05/201

5 5kg 02/10/20

15 7 out of 10 12

105.9kg Good

Sapo Una 08/05/201

5 2.5 kg 02/10/20

15 6 out of 10 10 30kg Good

Sapo Kifli 08/05/201

5 5kg 02/10/20

15 6 out of 10 14 79.6kg Bad

Sapo Axona 08/05/201

5 15kg 02/10/20

15 9 out of 10 12 312kg Good

Further work needed.

FIRST

WORLD

PROBLEM

TASTE TESTING

SAVARI TRUST -Formed in 2002 to further develop the Sarpo

varieties of potato.

The Trust aims to make potato growing globally

less dependent on chemical and energy inputs

by producing and promoting low-input

varieties. Ideally these should be blight and

virus resistant, capable of smothering weeds

and have natural dormancy that prevents early

sprouting in store. The Trust would be happy to

make some of these varieties available to

developing countries where blight and virus are

major problems and where subsistence farmers

cannot afford expensive chemicals.

CONCLUSI

ONS - Blight resistance very achievable through good plant

breeding.

- Continued work needed to bring eating qualities up to

Commercial needs.

- All varieties showed good Blight resistance, particularly

Carolus and Sarpo Axona. The Axona never got Blight at

all. BENEFITS TO BUSINESS

- Axona seed saved and grown again in 2016 as Blight

Insurance.

- Blight came very early to us in 2016

- Yields severely effected, 50%.

- EXCEPT SARPO AXONA still standing untouched by

Blight at end of September.

- Good yield and only variety I’ve got left.

Adrian Hares Soil and Root Innovator Trials

Soil and Root Innovator Trials

Identifying problems , running trials , benefits so far

Businesses , people , soils

• Over 20 organic farming businesses in N Wilts/S Glos /W Oxen.(15 mile radius)

• Dairy , Beef , Sheep , Pigs & combinable crops

• Oxford clay , Upper , Middle & Lower Chalk , Limestone- variable , much calcareous , clays , medium & heavy loams.

• My role ; 80% farmer & 20% soil adviser

Crop establishment & soil health

• Minimum tillage ,strip till , direct drilling ; advantages of reduced disturbance of soil organisms , crop residues near surface , reduced compaction at depth , root channels in place ,moisture conservation, etc, VS

• Weed & volunteer control , ley destruction

• Falling phosphate indices in many organic farm systems locally (heavy & calcareous)

Solution-Defining Soil Health • Comparative ecology (succession) but little hard

data of agronomic value. • What are the successful soils like on our farms ? • Isolate productive and unproductive parts of

fields; texture, depth, stone , drainage, pH , SOM • Subterranean livestock activity varies with

oxygen , moisture , temperature ,shelter , food -? • Management zones within fields. • A suite of tests to measure our zones so that we

can measure improvement , “farmer friendly”. Include worm counts , soil structure assessment and other novel methods. Biology & Physics.

Example of soil management zones

Example spit; VESS, worm count

Results from baseline monitoring

• CO2 burst test correlated with microscopy , soil OM , soil moisture

• Also correlated with worse structure; effect of mature grass leys ? (survey not trial)

• Resin P correlated with active fungi & worm counts

• No cause and effect proven; the next stage(s)

What has been achieved so far ?

• Identified cost effective lab & host tests

• Good baseline for next phase- 3 year trial

• Group members ideas – co composting with GAFSA (4-5 farmers)

– no till establishment with mechanical cover crop destruction, a separate IF trial ?

– applying FYM onto ploughed land with zero compaction in seedbed

– Direct drill into grass ley , with glyphosate.

Summary-Benefits from participation

• Farmer-exchange of ideas , looking at different systems & challenges; economically viable & practical solutions. Confidence in results.

• Researcher- familiar with existing research , technique , statistical analysis , test new monitoring techniques , postgraduates .

• Co ordinator- overview of different rotations , soils , on farm facilities. Investment in time!

Grateful thanks to

• Colleagues at Courtyard Agriculture, Swindon

• John Hammond , Reading University Crops Research Unit

• Stephen Heming , Independent Consultant

• Analysis; Soil Biolab , NRM , Tony Cross.

• Group members

Liz Bowles Learnings from sprouted seeds

“If I can reduce my

feed by 25%, while

maintaining

production and

welfare, that’s a

significant saving to

my bottom line.”

Questions?