The Soil Nutrient Health Scheme: it’s onwards and upwards towards Zone 2

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​The Agri-Food and Biosciences’ Institute (AFBI) management team, responsible for rolling-out the Soil Nutrient Health Scheme (SNHS), is confirming that the implementation of the programme is on schedule, writes Richard Halleron.

The vast majority of soil tests required within Zone 1 have now been taken and analysed: it’s now a case of looking forwards towards the roll out of the sampling and testing required within Zone 2.

For the record, Zone 1 comprises all of Co Down plus parts of Counties Armagh and Antrim.

Zone 2 takes in the remainder of Co Armagh plus all of Co Fermanagh and South Tyrone.

AFBI staff are keen to highlight the fact that while the timetable set out for SNHS is being met, the work carried out so far has been very much a learning process.

Tweaks can and will be made to the implementation of the programme. It was always going to be thus.

AFBI’s Alex Higgins, takes up the story:

“As of the middle of April, approximately 140,000 soil samples have been taken.

" This activity was undertaken by the appointed contracting organisation, RPS Ireland Ltd.

“NRM laboratories, based in England, have been appointed to carry out all of the soil analyses.”

He added: “Again, up to the middle of April, just under 120,000 soil samples have been analysed.

“NRM has produced full reports on the vast majority ion the vast majority of the samples submitted. A slight back backlog had built up during January and February.

“This coincided with the peak of sampling.

" However, anyone having land sampled at the present time will have a report back very quickly.”

According to Higgins, the RPS teams were allocated blocks of land on a geographic basis.

As a result, the actual testing regime was not developed on a per farm basis, as such. It was carried out on a field by field basis.

He continued: “Other factors also came in to play. Not getting initial access to fields and issues such as flooding meant that Farm A might have been tested slightly faster that Farm B on an overall basis.

“As a result, farmers may have been getting multiple reports, linked to the soil testing and analysis work.

" But this is simply a consequence of the fact that different fields were sampled at different times.

“But there will also be a mop up report delivered to all farms. NRM is now in receipt of a robot that determines the lost ignition values on a field per field basis.

“Standard equipment just couldn’t cope with the volume of work required, as a result of SNHS.

“There was an initial delay in the delivery of the robot. This was caused by the outbreak of war in Ukraine. However, this is now fully operational

“Loss on ignition values reference the amount of organic matter within a soil sample. Our aim is to provide each farm with an overall soil analysis report.

“These will be made available to farms within Zone 1 over the coming weeks.”

Higgins points out that organic matter values can be used to determine the amounts of carbon stored in soils across individual farms.

The soil testing work will specifically assess levels of phosphate (P), potash (K), magnesium (Mg) and sulphur (S).

Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) analysis will be used to determine the aboveground biomass stores (swards, trees, woodland and hedges) on individual farms.

Alex Higgins continued: “LIDAR will also be used to develop hydrological maps of each farm surveyed. Again, these will be made available to each farmers.

"They will specifically highlight areas where run-off risk is highest, where soil nutrients are concerned.

“As a result, farmers will be able to identify those where reduced spreading of fertilisers can take place.

“Alternatively, they can implement mitigation measures, in order to trap nutrients that would otherwise end up in water courses.

“ In tandem with the soil analysis results and analyses, a degree of agronomic advice will also be given to farmers, based on the intended cropping use to which a specific field will be put.

“When a farmer registers for SNHS, a future perspective on the use to which specific fields are to be put will be provided,” Higgins commented.

“So, for example, Field A could be in grass with the intention on the part of the farmer to maintain it as such.

" However, the plan for Field B is to plough could be to plough-up up an existing sward and then sow out spring barley.

“So, to take soil pH values as a case in point, if both fields sitting at around 6.0, then the recommendation would be for a zero application of lime on Field A.

“However, lime would be required to boost the soil pH of Filed B, in order to maximise the potential of a subsequent barley crop.”

Higgins stressed the key role of SNHS as a means of optimising farm efficiency levels right across Northern Ireland.

And it is in this context that the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) will play a key role.

“The system will be totally integrated,” Higgins further explained.

“Yes, the farmers get their report. However, CAFRE has just launched its new training suite.

" This will allow individual farmers to get a comprehensive training perspective on the relevance of their SNHS results and how these can be fully acted upon.

“There is a lot of very useful information coming back to producers, which is of direct relevance to their own farming operations.”

The feedback from farmers coming to this week’s Balmoral Show has been positive.

Most of their queries are of a practical nature in seeking support to interpret the results.

“Farmers get the soil analysis results in tabular format from NRM, but need to log into their Goverment Gateway account to get the associated maps and recommendations by field to help them interpret the results.”

With regard to the actual soil sampling processes followed after February 1st, Alex Higgins confirmed that RPS had made attempts to contact all affected farmers. This was in light of the fact that the restrictions on spreading slurry had been lifted by that stage.

Higgins also indicated that this had not proven possible in all cases.

He continued: “We are aware of the fact that farmers might think that the soil test results generated from fields sampled after the application of slurry might be skewed, where P, K and Mg values are concerned.

“In light of this, farmers can ask to have these specific fields re-sampled next autumn.

" However, that said, it is very unlikely that a single application of slurry would impact to any great extent on inherent P and K levels.

“It’s simply a case of contacting RPS and requesting a duplicate soil test, ” Higgins added.

In terms of the trends coming through from the analysis results now available, the AFBI representative indicated that it is still too early to arrive at overall conclusions.

Yes, there was a definite indication that many grassland soils had a pH value well below the optimal value of 6.0.

“But Co Down is different from most other parts of Northern Ireland, in terms of the farming practises followed,” he said.

“There are a lot of very intensive farms in the area. We expected P index values to be high in many cases.

" And this has turned out to be the case.

“Rotational cropping is also practised on many farms in Co Down, which will not be the case in the other SNHS zones.”

Higgins noted the points made publically by some Co Down arable farmers to the effect that the soil pH values coming back courtesy of SNHS seemed to be relatively high.

“Soil test results generated within a particular scheme depend on the sampling processes followed,” he said.

“No two soil samples taken from the same field will be identical.

“However, in terms of the actual laboratory analyses carried out under SNHS, the NRM organisation is fully UKAS accredited and carries out the work required to the highest standards.”

One trend that has become apparent, however, is the higher than expected soil S levels identified, courtesy of SNHS.

Over recent years, it has been generally accepted that levels of this specific nutrient had fallen back in local soils.

This was a direct consequence of the reduction in solid fuel usage.

Alex Higgins commented:

“What’s now apparent is the impact of the fertiliser S that has been applied over the past 10 to 15 years.

“Sulphur is relatively mobile within a soil. However, a number of compound fertilisers sold in Northern Ireland contain quite large amounts of the nutrient.”

As Alex Higgins went on to point out, there are a significant number of intensive livestock farms in Co Down. So it didn’t come as a surprise when the NRM test results confirmed high soil P levels.

“Spreading high levels of slurry over many years has accounted for this scenario.

" But so has the extensive use of triple super phosphate as a chemical source of P during the same period.

“The fact is that P is not very mobile in the soil: hence its continuing build-up over a number of years.”

The AFBI representative then addressed the issue of how the information gathered courtesy of SNHS is managed and specifically the classification of land use within the application submission.

He explained:

“The classification of land use is only to aid the recommendations that accompany the soil test results.

“There are no issues relating to privacy within the scheme. The land use information relates only to last crop: next crop. And that’s it. This information is for AFBI use only.

“The results generated through SNHS will not be used to the detriment of any farmer.”

Higgins specifically pointed out that SNHS data will data will not be used by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) for the enforcement of regulations.

He continued: “Given that it is not permissible to intensify the use of certain protected land, we took the decision of highlighting this fact within the information sent back to farmers.

“This was part of general advisory commitment.”

“It is nothing more than an aide memoire.

" The Code G reference contained within some of the reports sent back to farmers does not indicate that AFBI has applied a classification to a field. Rather it is a form of specific advice to farmers.

“AFBI is a government body: it cannot be seen to be encouraging the intensification of land use on protected lands.”

Alex Higgins is satisfied that the work undertaken within the SNHS up to this point has progressed well.

“We had a number of teething problems at the outset.

" This was to be expected with any new programme of this scale,” he explained.

“But all these issues have been successfully addressed.

“Now it’s a case of getting on with the work relating to Zone 2.”

AFBI is confirming that the application period for Zone 2 soil sampling and testing will commence at the end of June.

“Obviously we want all the relevant farmers to commit to the scheme as quickly as possible,” Alex Higgins confirmed.

“The route to making this possible is through the DAERA portal on the UK government portal.”

He concluded:

“The SNHS will provide accurate information on the nutrient levels, including pH, P, K, Mg, S and organic matter for each field within a farm business.

“It will also provide an estimate of the carbon stored within soils, hedgerows and trees.

“This information will help producers to make better use of manures, reduce the risk of nutrients entering waterways and help them to better-manage carbon on their farms.”

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