Forage crops are often harvested late and sometimes come out in less-than-ideal conditions.
In order to protect water quality, buffer zones need to be in place.
Buffer zones for all crops are outlined in the Nitrates Action Plan to prevent phosphorus loss in particular.
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Phosphorus is often lost by soil loss to water as the phosphorus is bound to the soil.
These buffer zones cannot be planted and should be uncultivated. It can grow grass and populate flowers naturally. This buffer cannot receive fertiliser or pesticides.
See the buffer zones for different crops:
Cereal crop – 3m buffer.
Late harvested crops (maize and beet) – 3m uncultivated buffer, increased to 6m for intersecting watercourse.
Some of these buffers are considered to be wide, especially when the buffer is not targeted, but if you don’t comply then you are at risk of a penalty.
The area is large if a water course lines a field. For example, if you have 200m of a watercourse and the buffer is 6m wide, then this is an area of 1,200m2. That’s 12% of one hectare. However, they are the rules.
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Forage crops are often harvested late and sometimes come out in less-than-ideal conditions.
In order to protect water quality, buffer zones need to be in place.
Buffer zones for all crops are outlined in the Nitrates Action Plan to prevent phosphorus loss in particular.
Phosphorus is often lost by soil loss to water as the phosphorus is bound to the soil.
These buffer zones cannot be planted and should be uncultivated. It can grow grass and populate flowers naturally. This buffer cannot receive fertiliser or pesticides.
See the buffer zones for different crops:
Cereal crop – 3m buffer.
Late harvested crops (maize and beet) – 3m uncultivated buffer, increased to 6m for intersecting watercourse.
Some of these buffers are considered to be wide, especially when the buffer is not targeted, but if you don’t comply then you are at risk of a penalty.
The area is large if a water course lines a field. For example, if you have 200m of a watercourse and the buffer is 6m wide, then this is an area of 1,200m2. That’s 12% of one hectare. However, they are the rules.
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