06 December 2024

Assessing your tillage performance as winter approaches

Michael Hennessy, Head of Crops Knowledge Transfer in Teagasc, shares advice on protecting crops over the winter, benchmarking your yields to help pinpoint strengths and weaknesses in your crop management and, most importantly, assessing your farm’s performance.

As we approach the shortest day of the year and the weather turns wetter, it is an excellent time to reflect on the autumn planting season.

This year, with crops emerging in near-perfect conditions, many tillage fields are looking impressive from any direction. But the real challenge lies ahead: protecting the potential of these crops and minimising avoidable damage.

Protecting crops over winter

Farmers often take proactive steps to protect their tillage crops from livestock over winter. Ensuring boundary fences are secure can save considerable effort and losses later, as livestock damage to crops can be devastating. As the old saying goes: ‘A stitch in time saves nine’.

This is also true for drainage systems, which were tested during the challenging winters of 2022 and 2023. Many fields experienced issues that highlighted the importance of regular maintenance. Now is the ideal time to inspect boundary ditches, drains and gripes. Clear any blockages to ensure water flows freely and to prevent long-term damage to soil and crop health. A practical tip shared by an English farmer involves planting daffodils or similar flowers in the field where the field drain enters the stream. These blooms not only brighten the landscape but also serve as a clear marker for drainage checks during the winter months. Consider adopting this simple but effective practice on your farm.

Benchmarking your yields

Comparing your crop yields to others – whether neighbours or national averages – can provide valuable insights. However, take care with casual comparisons as yields discussed in social settings may not always be accurate. Instead, use these dark and wet days to sit down in your office and calculate your own averages for each crop on your farm.

Focus on fields that significantly outperformed or underperformed this year and compare your 2024 figures to the previous five-year average. Are there crops consistently underperforming? How do your yields align with the latest figures in the Teagasc Harvest Report 2024? These comparisons can help pinpoint strengths and weaknesses in your crop management.

Profitability: The true measure of success

While yield is a critical metric, profitability is the ultimate measure of success. Many farmers use tools like Excel or Teagasc’s eCrops programme to track costs and revenues per field or crop. If you haven’t updated your records recently, now is the time to download the latest tools from the Teagasc website or explore other commercially available software.

For those seeking a comprehensive analysis, the Teagasc eProfit Monitor is an invaluable resource. By entering your detailed cost and revenue data, you can calculate net margins for each crop. Additionally, your Teagasc advisor can use the Teagasc Machinery Cost Programme to provide an accurate assessment of your annual machinery expenses.

Take action today

Achieving a net margin analysis for each crop isn’t just about evaluating the past year; it’s about identifying trends over multiple years to inform better decision-making. A benchmarking exercise will help you determine the crop mix that best suits your farm and delivers the highest return.

Take action this winter: review your yields; update your records; and start analysing your financial performance. By doing so, you’ll position your farm for continued success in 2025 and beyond.

For more information on the tools outlined in this article, please visit the Teagasc Crops webpage.