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Environmental performance indicators |
Benchmarks of excellence |
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(i31) Gross Nitrogen balance (kg/ha) (i32) Crop rotation cycles include legume and break crops (Y/N) (i33) Length of crop rotation cycles (years) |
(b16) All grassland and crop rotations include at least one legume crop and one break crop over a five-year period. |
3.3.3.
Precision nutrient application
BEMP is to:
— synchronise the application of manures and (when necessary) fertilisers to coincide with crop requirements: for each nutrient (N, P and K), at the correct time and at rates that meet crop nutrient requirements (18);
— implement split applications when necessary, to maximise nutrient uptake and prevent losses: applying nutrients in more than one application reduces the total amount of nutrients that need to be applied and minimises nutrient leaching.
— use GPS guidance systems for precision delivery of nutrients (N, P and K), including variable nutrient application rates within fields informed by crop canopy development and previous harvest data, and allowing accurate locational placement of fertilisers while keeping to tramlines.
— implement direct placement of nutrients (N, P and K) to seeds: the nutrient granules are placed directly in or alongside the rooting zone.
Applicability
This BEMP is broadly applicable to mixed, arable and horticultural farms. Split applications of nutrients are mainly used for cereals.
Precise application implies significant investment and operational costs, for equipment purchasing and labour costs (e.g. for acquisition of georeferenced data on nutrient needs, multiple GPS-guided nutrient applications) and is thus more applicable to large farms for which the payback time of the investment would be shorter. However, for small and medium size farms, or for those farms with limited investment capacity, it is often possible to rent the equipment needed to implement precision application or to outsource this task to a specialised company that owns and operates the necessary equipment.
Associated environmental performance indicators and benchmarks of excellence
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