As spring has arrived bringing the warmer weather with occasional rain, our wheat and oilseed rape crops have been growing rapidly across the farm. From the very sparse oilseed rape crops in March we now have a thick flowering crop in many of our fields as each plant has grown and branched out.
Similarly, our wheat is responding to the excellent growing conditions. It won't be long until it reaches the critical 50 cm height, which we know begins to exclude skylarks from the all important field floor. However, we have ensured our skylarks won't suffer at Hope Farm as we have provided two 'skylark plots' per hectare in every wheat field.
Devised at Hope Farm, these small undrilled areas allow the birds crucial access to the ground to nest and feed allowing them to breed successfully for longer than in fields without 'plots'.
Skylarks
Skylarks normally start building their first nests around the start of April and this year is no exception. So far, we have found ten nests but still we have a long way to go to reach the 46 found last year - which we are confident of achieving as we have more territorial males singing at the farm this year than ever before.
Breeding season surveys start
The research team have started their annual summer bird monitoring to assess the number of breeding territories around the farm. We have now completed four surveys since the start of April, with a further six to be completed before the end of June.
Early indications suggest that territories of red-list species such as skylarks, yellowhammers and grey partridges appear to be higher than in previous years. Migrants such as lesser whitethroats, whitethroats and swallows have also arrived back from their wintering quarters.
Around the farmyard we have breeding blackbirds, swallows, house sparrows, robins, collared doves, stock doves, greenfinches and wrens.
Nestbox success
Eight pairs of starlings, seven great *** and three blue *** are using nest boxes provided around the farm. The clutches of starlings have all hatched and the parents are very busy providing insect food, from pastures and set aside, for their 37 young.
We expect that the great and blue *** will hatch within the next week. Elsewhere around the farmyard we have breeding blackbirds, swallows, house sparrows, robins, collared doves, stock doves, greenfinches and wrens.
Improving our oilseed rape crop
Early May saw the start of a new trial at Hope Farm. With the oilseed rape crop growing well, we have started to examine if we can improve this crop for birds such as song thrushes and blackbirds. By maintaining a greater level of soil moisture beneath it, the crops dense canopy can harbour insects such as snails and slugs - a favoured food of these thrushes.
However, the density of the canopy can prevent the birds' access to this food source, so we have been cutting strips into the crop along the tramlines (where the wheels of the machinery go). By the removal of a very small amount of crop, we hope that we can find a way of improving a crop which is currently grown on over half a million hectares of UK farmland each year.
Planning ahead
Over the past couple of months, we have been managing our margins to maximise their benefits in the coming year. In early April, during perfect weather conditions, we drilled 6 m margins of wildbird cover and pollen and nectar mixes.
Two types of wildbird cover have been sown. First a mix of triticale (a cereal plant), quinoa and kale, whilst on another part of the farm a mix of barley, linseed and millet has been sown. The different types of seed help a range of birds, each capable of handling one or more of the different size seeds these plants will produce in the coming winter.
At the same time, we have sown our pollen and nectar mixes. Containing a mixture of clover, phacelia and birdsfoot trefoil, these have begun to germinate and will soon be attracting huge numbers of bees, butterflies and other insects. All will help to support the crucial food chain on the farm in the coming months, with most of our farmland birds relying on ample supplies of insects to feed their chicks.
Seed mixtures have been kindly provided by Kings Game Cover & Conservation Crops.