FYM cannot be stockpiled on fields this winter

With no extension forthcoming, farmers have very little time left to spread farmyard manure (FYM) before the deadline.

The closed period begins on 1 November, meaning that farmers can spread FYM up to and including Tuesday 31 October.

FYM that may have been stored on land during the past few months is not allowed to remain stockpiled on land during the prohibited period.

Any FYM must be removed from fields and stored in suitable storage, otherwise farmers risk receiving penalties under cross compliance.

All seepage from FYM must be collected and stored during the closed spreading period. FYM is not permitted to be stored on hardcore.

Buffer zone

For farmers wishing to spread in the next few weeks, it is important to know that the buffer zones for spreading organic fertiliser increases from 5m to 10m for the two weeks before and after the prohibited spreading period.

Two of the main breaches that farmers have had in relation to nitrates is poor collection and inadequate storage of organic manures.

Exporting FYM is another option available to farmers who have to remove FYM which is stockpiled on their land if they will not have enough capacity to store it for the winter.

A record of movement of organic fertilisers must be submitted to the Department before the 31 December deadline.

Catch crops

Farmers are reminded that the extension to have catch crop planted under the GLAS scheme is 28 October 2017.

The original deadline of 15 September was extended due to weather conditions.

Species such as oats and mustard should be considered by farmers, as these are species which can establish and grow faster from October onwards.

Whatever mix is decided on must contain at least two species.

Any catch crops that have availed of this October extension must then be left in situ until 31 January 2018.

For any farmers who got their catch crop planted before the September 15 deadline, these crops only have to remain in situ until 1 December.

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