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Yattendon Estate
Yattendon Estate is a diverse farming enterprise covering 3600 hectares in West Berkshire, growing a rotation of wheat, barley, beans, linseed, oats and maize. The farm was one of four farms which took part in the Resilient & Ready programme, a partnership between LEAF and Corteva Agriscience.
Farm Manager: Nick Down
Address: The Estate Office, Barn Close, Yattendon, Berkshire, RG18 0UY
Contact: [email protected]
Website: https://yattendon.co.uk/
Member since 2019, LEAF Demonstration Farm since 2022
Social Media: Instagram - @yattendonestates, Facebook - Yattendon Estates, Twitter - @NickDown21
About Yattendon Estate
Yattendon Estate includes 2150 hectares of in hand farming, alongside 140 hectares of Christmas trees and a small herd of British White cattle. ‘Responsible English farming’ is key at Yattendon, with over 300 hectares of environmental stewardship areas dedicated to supporting biodiversity and protecting the characteristics of the local landscape. The Estate has been involved in Countryside Stewardship Schemes since 1998 and since 2021 has embarked on a new five-year scheme including wildflower plots, pollen and nectar mixes, wild bird food mixes and bumblebee mixes.
Farm Manager, Nick Down manages the estate’s farming business on behalf of Velcourt and is focussed on developing the estate’s sustainable agricultural practices and enhancing the local environment through Integrated Farm Management. Nick is passionate about promoting UK agriculture and is a regular host of LEAF Open Farm Sunday. Using his platform as a Demonstration Farmer, he is looking to work with policy makers to help shape the future of farming and the environment, for example through currently being an SFI pilot farm.
Yattendon is involved in a range of trials work, including biostimulants, nitrification and urease inhibitors and clover living mulches. Additionally, Nick is part of the EU Horizon 2020 SHOWCASE project alongside LEAF, which is investigating cover crop species frost tolerance.
Resilient & Ready programme
Yattendon Estate was one of four farms which took part in the Resilient & Ready programme, a partnership between LEAF and Corteva Agriscience which supported the farms in a tailored programme of training, consultancy, and trials, measuring their performance and sharing their experiences with other farmers across the UK. The launch of Yattendon Estate as a LEAF Demonstration Farm was the culmination of three years involvement in the programme.
Research interests:
- Soil health and fertility
- Nutrient management
- Increasing natural predators
- Precision technology