Wild bird cover mixtures

One option available to agri-environment scheme participants is to grow wild bird cover.  This is a spring sown crop mixture that is left unharvested over winter for the benefit of farmland birds such as yellowhammer and linnet whose food is normally in short supply at this time of year. There are currently over 360 ha of wild bird cover under agri-environment scheme agreement. Growers may, choose from a number of recommended seed mixtures.

The good news is that the best mixtures need not be the most expensive ones.  Exotic plants such as sunflowers, buckwheat and sorghum are unnecessary; they tend to be little used by many birds and may not grow reliably in Northern Ireland.  Relatively simple mixtures are usually preferable.  Consider the following suggestions:

Yellowhammers are heavily dependent on cereals, so if these endangered birds are in the area the mixture should contain a high proportion of cereals.  Mixtures of cereals and linseed or cereals and quinoa are suitable.  Spring wheat and spring triticale are particularly valuable.  Kale-based mixtures, which potentially last for two years, are not ideal since they supply no cereal grain in the second winter.

Wild bird cover, while benefiting farmland birds, also has the potential to benefit some of our arable plants that have declined in recent decades.  Plants such as corn marigold and henbit dead-nettle, for example, are less common than they once were.  Many of these plants provide an alternative food source for farmland birds and are valuable parts of our wildlife in their own right.  They are generally not a problem in crops grown with the aid of fertiliser and herbicides. The key for south-facing sites with lighter soils is to grow a wild bird cover crop that will give these arable plants a fighting chance.  Kale is not ideal; it is highly competitive, tending to smother other plants.  Mixtures of cereals and linseed are preferable.  Arable plants will be further helped by using little or no fertiliser at establishment.

Sites with heavier, more fertile soils are potential candidates for kale-based crops, provided there are no yellowhammers in the area.  These crops should, with good management, last for two years but tend to be hungrier than one-year, cereal-based crops.  Kale, however, is susceptible to club root; it should, therefore, be avoided if the pH is less than 6.5 and you should not plan to grow kale-based crops continuously on the same site.  Club root tolerant varieties, such as Caledonian, are available. However some growers have reported difficulty in disposing of them at the end of the crop's life, because of their large size. Kale and quinoa mixtures are suitable for these sites.

Wild bird cover should not be grown in very wet sites unsuited to arable cropping.  If, however, the site while suitable tends to be wetter than ideal then the mixture should be based on spring oats and linseed.

By taking a little care over choosing seed mixtures your wild bird cover crop should make a valuable contribution to supporting wildlife on your farm.  For further information contact Countryside Management staff at your local DARD office.