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Crowmarsh Battle Farms Ltd

Crowmarsh Battle Farms Ltd manage 1,300 acres in hand, with a further 2,162 acres farmed under four separate whole-farm contracts.

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Farmer: Philip Chamberlain
Address: 84 Preston Crowmarsh, Wallingford, Oxfordshire, OX10 6SL
Website: www.crowmarshbattlefarms.co.uk
Twitter: @BattleFarms

Member since 1995 and LEAF Demonstration Farm since 1996

The Farm

Crowmarsh Battle Farms Ltd is an all arable enterprise running to 1,300 acres, with a further 2,162 acres farmed under four separate whole-farm contracts. A traditional mixed rotation is utilised of autumn and spring sown crops including winter wheat as the main crop (milling, export, livestock feed), spring barley (stock feed and beer), oilseed rape (margarine and cooking oil), linseed beans and peas.

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Activities:

A ten-year conservation plan, drawn up by the local Farming Wildlife Advisory Group (FWAG) has included the establishment of a new ‘green lane’ bounded on both sides by hedges and grassy margins. Crowmarsh Battle is further involved in a range of environmental management projects including hedgerow coppicing, the pollarding of willows in fields bordering the River Thames and the thinning of mature woodland to provide a better balance of wildlife habitats. Satellite-guided soil and crop mapping are used on the farm to help fine tune management decisions. Min till cultivation is practised and a green waste compost site and AD plant on the farm provides a good source of organic matter for the farm’s thinner soils. A major diversification project on the farm converted a redundant farm building and a listed tithe barn into office space and business units, bringing 180 new jobs to the area.

Particular interests/farming issues:

Sustainability / soil / reduced inputs
Whole farm systems / interaction between cropped and non-cropped areas

Members only resources

Downloadable PDF of Storage: how to make the most of your produce

Downloadable PDF of Crowmarsh Battle Farms Case Study

Visit this farm

Click here to arrange a visit to this LEAF Demonstration Farm.