Fridlington Farm, Protecting the Environment
Fridlington Farms takes its environmental responsibilities seriously. It is our policy to continually improve our farming systems and working standards to meet our environmental, legal and social responsibilities. We have therefore participated in numerous schemes and initiatives.
Preserving British Wildlife
Our early commitment to the Entry Level Scheme and the Countryside Stewardship Scheme funded by Natural England has positively improved the Estates wildlife habitats. Options adopted in these schemes include: – 4-to-24-meter buffer strips, over winter stubble, two-year sown legume fallow, flower-rich margins, overwinter bird food, hedgerows, permanent grassland with very low inputs and buffering in field ponds which provide important habitat and additional food sources for birds, insects and bees. Rotational cutting of hedges and mowing of dykes has also improved habitats for nesting birds.
- 1.Effective Crop Planning
- 2.Minimise Energy Usage
- 3.Solar Powered
Fridlington Farms over the past few years has seen the importance of renewable energy and has invested heavily in the future of it on the farm. All together the farm has set up a 900,000kWh system on the farm with options to increase this in the future.
Maintaining & improving our environment
The farm is passionate about renewable energy and can see it being a huge part of the farms structure in the future. Fridlington farms also has a 300,000kWh biomass boiler onsite again helping the farm progress in becoming carbon neutral.
- Plan the farms crop rotation and variety choice to minimise use of fertilisers, pesticides, herbicides and fungicides.
- Umbilical slurry injection cuts our fertiliser down tenfold.
- Minimising energy use in all our operations.
- Maintain and enhance the structure of our soil through sustainable crop rotations and well managed operations.
- Solar Panels
Maintaining & Improving Our Environment
The farm recently has also planted c.6.8 Hectares of trees to aid with the carbon capturing with the option to plant more. All around the land which is situated next to the river Foss the farm has placed 12m buffer strips to protect the water course and where there is permanent pasture it has placed a low input grassland package to stop leaching.
The farm still has areas in which it wants to improve with more cover cropping and woodland, but it can’t encroach on the farm being functional. How the farm is set up now is very environmentally friendly but also practical for growing crops.
| Stewardship Schemes | Ha |
|---|---|
|
AB15: Two year sown legume fallow |
0.3 |
|
AB2: Basic overwinter stubble |
80 |
|
AB8: Flower-rich margins and plots |
10.01 |
|
AB9: Winter bird food |
24.38 |
|
BE3: Management of hedgerows (one side per 100 metres) |
6360m |
|
GS2: Permanent grassland with very low inputs (outside SDAs) |
49.3 |
|
SW1/4: 4 - 24m watercourse buffer strip on cultivated land |
11.53 |
|
WT2: Buffering in-field ponds and ditches in arable land |
1.5 |