Southern-Swedish farmer network for nitrogen-efficient wheat production

The Swedish University of Agricultural Science (SLU) is working with conventional arable farmers, researchers, advisors from HIR Skåne, and other organizations to improve nitrogen use efficiency at the individual crop and cropping system level, to enhance farm profitability and reduce nitrogen losses.

The network conducted on-farm trials with 2 farmers and on the SLU farm to test contrasting bread wheat genotypes (including hybrids) and innovative management practices (grain legume pre-crops and varying N fertilisation levels) for improved nitrogen use efficiency.

The trials were located in the western Scanian region in southern Sweden, and focused on bread wheat (winter wheat), included in crop rotations with spring barley and oilseed rape. Many, but not all farms also include sugar beet, grass (for seed production) or grain legumes (faba bean or pea) in their rotation. The trials were based in conventional arable cropping systems, mainly stockless but some with mixed crop/livestock systems.

The region has a warm humid temperate climate, with 500–800 mm average annual precipitation and 6–12°C average annual temperature. They have mostly sediment soils (clay/silt/sand), with large variations, even within the region, regarding the contents of clay, sand and organic matter.