SAM3: RPA clarification on herbal ley mix

Over recent weeks, we’ve seen a lot of confusion about qualifying seed mixes for the Sustainable Farming Incentive SAM3 herbal leys option, says Terrafarmer’s Tom Tolputt

Some farmers and advisors have been assuming that SAM3 requires a full GS4 mix. Others have pointed to the How to do the SFI actions for soils guidance document, which states that “a high-quality herbal ley… will usually include at least:

• 5 species of grass, such as cocksfoot, festulolium, meadow fescue, perennial ryegrass, smooth-stalked meadow grass, tall fescue and timothy
• 3 species of legumes, such as bird’s-foot-trefoil, lucerne, red clover, sainfoin winter vetch and common vetch, and black medick
• 5 species of herbs, such as burnet, chicory, ribwort plantain and yarrow

Avoid festulolium and perennial ryegrass combined making up more than 70% by weight of the total seed mix.

Your seed supplier can help you choose a seed mix that is the best match for your land, local conditions and how you’ll manage the ley.”

A recent Farmers Weekly article, however, stated that herbal ley mixes for SAM3 of one grass, one legume, and one herb were sufficient, throwing even more confusion into the mix (pun intended)!

SAM3 Options

Over the last four years, Terrafarmer’s Tom Tolputt has been working with Kiki and J J Willcocks of Tregleath Farm in Cornwall to assess the current farm situation and advise on adopting regenerative management techniques.

Kiki and J J supply milk to award-winning Trewithen Dairy and are one of the farms taking part in Trewithen Dairy’s pioneering Earth Milk project. The exciting project seeks to explore how the environmental impact of dairy farming (particularly greenhouse gas emissions) can be countered by nurturing the soil with the help of the cows with the potential benefit of carbon storage. This is the fourth year Terrafarmer has carried out detailed soil nutritional and carbon analysis on the farms for Trewithen Dairy.

Last week, Tom was out at Tregleath Farm again with J J (pictured below) to discuss SAM3 overseeding options specifically for their farm situation.

RPA Clarification on SAM3

The good news (for J J and everyone else) is that we have now received clarification from the RPA on the requirements for the level of species diversity in SAM3. According to the RPA (received via email):

“A key principle of SFI is that it allows farmers to be able to decide how best to deliver the aims of the actions, and the rules are therefore less prescriptive than under previous schemes, while we do of course recognise the concerns that are being raised.

Under the current guidance for SFI 23, the voluntary advice suggests a mix of at least five species of grass, three species of legume and five species of herb to produce a good quality herbal ley. However, the mandatory guidance does not specify a minimum, and a seed mix that included one of each species type would be acceptable under these rules.”

With reseeding now underway, this clarification will no doubt be welcome news for many farmers. However, in agreement with others, we would strongly encourage farmers to go beyond these minimum requirements and fully embrace the wide-ranging benefits of utilising more complex herbal ley mixes within their farmed environment.

Defra’s stated aim of SAM3 is “to provide varied root structures… to help improve and maintain the soil’s structure, carbon, biology and fertility.”

Indeed, it is now widely accepted that multi-species herbal leys can not only help to improve soil health and structure and reduce fertiliser inputs (with the inclusion of nitrogen-fixing legumes) but offer greater resilience in the face of changing weather patterns, with improved drainage and resistance to drought conditions, and have huge potential for carbon sequestration. From a livestock health perspective, herbal leys often have high protein and tannins and their deep rooting structure provides a mineral-rich feed for livestock. Indeed, the vast majority of leys we recommend to clients invariably contain a minimum of  4-5 species, depending on their farm and their objectives.

Nevertheless, you must build the mix to suit your soil type and what you want to achieve. Herbal leys can also be very tricky to establish and are slow to emerge. And while livestock are very content on herbal leys, they must be carefully managed or they will naturally select the most palatable plants and graze certain species to extinction.

If you want any more information or assistance on introducing or establishing herbal leys (for SAM3 or otherwise) that are suitable for your farm and your objectives, please get in touch on 01347 844132 for a no-obligation chat or send us a message using our Contacts Page. We’re here to help.