Eight new agri environment measures have been made available to NI farmers through the second tranche of the Farming with Nature scheme.

Applications for the scheme opened on Tuesday (30 June) and are set to close at 5pm on Friday 31 July.

Two of the new measures relate to herbal leys, with the standard option having a payment rate of £467/ha and the enhanced measure is £521/ha.

These measures are available to livestock farmers as they can be used for reseeds on improved grassland, as well as on arable land.

The enhanced measure involves planting a more diverse seed mix and it cannot be cut for silage.

Scheme guidance states that both measures must be established by 28 February 2027 and retained for at least three years. The minimum area is 0.1ha and the maximum is 10ha.

Chemical fertilisers that contain nitrogen cannot be applied and boom spraying is not permitted, although spot spraying invasive weeds is allowed.

With the standard herbal ley option, seed mixes must contain at least two grass species, two herbs (such as chicory and plantain), and two legumes (such as white clover and red clover).

For the enhanced measure, seed mixes need a minimum of four grasses, four herbs and four legumes.

There is no compulsory establishment method under the scheme, although DAERA recommend conventional reseeding techniques and advise against over-sowing into an existing sward.

An additional management payment for herbal leys is to be available under Farming with Nature the year after establishment, but the payment rate is currently unknown.

Three other new habitat creation measures under year two of Farming with Nature are available to arable farmers only.

The flower-rich grass margin has a payment rate of £1,422/ha, grass-only margin is £1,308/ha and unharvested cereal margin is £1,170/ha.

Scheme rules state that all three arable margins must be between 3-12m wide and have a minimum area of 0.1ha.

With flower-rich grass margins, the seed mix should be mostly fine-leaved grass species with at least eight wildflower species in the mix. The margin must be established by 30 September 2026.

For the grass only margin option, the final establishment date is later at 28 February 2027.

The seed mix for this measure should be 15% tussock forming grasses, such as Cocksfoot and Timothy, and 85% fine grass like Red Fescue and Smooth Meadow Grass.

Both types of margins must be kept for five years and a further payment for retention and management will be available next year, although the exact payment rate has not been published yet.

Also, scheme guidance states that fertiliser cannot be applied to the margins and they cannot be grazed by livestock or damaged by machinery.

With the unharvested cereal margin measure, the crop must be retained until 28 February 2027.

After that, it can be flailed to help prepare the seedbed for the following crop.

The final three new measures in the new tranche of Farming with Nature are management payments which are only available to certain participants from the first year of the scheme.

The management of hedgerow measure pays £0.96/m for weeding, pruning, replacing dead plants and maintaining fencing for those who planted hedgerows last year.

Similarly, a management payment of £112/ha is available for those who planted farmland trees under last year’s scheme, and £0.04/m is available for managing the 7m riparian buffer.

The six agri environment measures which were available in the first year of Farming with Nature are listed again this year at the same payment rates.

For planting new hedgerows, there is a payment of £6.49/m. If new fencing is also required, then it is applied for separately as a supporting item at £6.52/m.

There are two options for fencing off riparian buffer strips along watercourses. The 2m wide option has an effective payment of £7.93/m and the 7m wide measure is £11.45/m.

Other supporting items are also available at the same payment rate as last year, namely a gate and two posts (£310.29), drinker and base (£169.70) and pasture pump (£239.06).

Farmland tree planting is available again this year at a payment rate of £6,756/ha.

The other two measures which have been carried on from year one are for arable farmers only, namely retention of winter stubble (£99/ha) and multi species winter cover crop (£226/ha).

Changes

There are several changes from the first year of Farming with Nature, with DAERA stating that specifications for certain measures have been “revised and simplified”.

The £2,500 minimum annual claim has also been removed and the maximum claim limit has been increased from £9,500 to £20,000.

Unlike the first year of Farming with Nature, farmers with an active Environmental Farming Scheme agreement can apply for the scheme this year.

Timeline

With applications closing at the end of July, DAERA are aiming to notify successful applicants during September.

Most measures need to be completed by the end of February and the claim window will also open in February, with payments issued in June.

A new scheme to follow on from the higher level of the old Environmental Farming Scheme (EFS) is “invite only”, according to DAERA guidance.

The first phase of the Farming with Nature higher scheme is only open to farmers who were in tranche four of EFS higher, as these scheme agreements expired at the end of 2025.

DAERA state that the new scheme is “an interim measure” which is being rolled out whilst a broader Farming with Nature priority habitat scheme is developed.

Whilst EFS higher level agreements ran for five years, the new interim agreements will be one-year in duration and will be renewed on an annual basis.

Going forward, farmers who are part of later tranches of EFS higher will be invited to join the interim scheme as their agreements expire.