Many farmers in the southeast of the country haven’t spread any fertiliser since the end of June because of the dry conditions. On dry land nitrogen is not lacking, soil moisture is.
Calls are already being made for an extension to the spreading period for chemical nitrogen and slurry, as happened in 2018. But the lesson from 2018 was that too much nitrogen was spread in the autumn, with long term negative impacts on water quality.
Farmers are desperate for grass to grow, but pinning hopes on nitrogen is not the way to do it. In fact, nitrogen is rarely lacking in the autumn anyway but is at far more risk of loss than spring nitrogen. Teagasc needs to issue clear advice in this area and the Department needs to outline its policy plans in plenty of time.
SHARING OPTIONS