01 February 2019
Although creating areas for ground-nesting birds can seem an additional hassle without any direct productivity return, making space for breeding farmland birds on your arable farm can make a big difference for some of the UK’s most struggling species.
Try using rotational fallows, skylark plots in winter cereals or fallow plots to support ground‑nesting birds such as lapwings where spring cropping forms less than 25% of the arable area. Evidence suggests that at least 20 skylark plots or a 1ha fallow plot per 100ha would support ground‑nesting birds.
However, you should avoid creating fallow plots on land liable to runoff or erosion.
Once you have submitted your query someone from the team will contact you. If needed, your query will then be passed to the appropriate NFU policy team.