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Teagasc Heavy Soils Programme – Lessons Learned

06 May 2021
Type Report

A guide to the key findings of the Teagasc Heavy Soils Programme to date

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The initial development of the Teagasc Heavy Soils Programme was encouraged by a number of factors, namely; a number of years of extreme summer rainfall, particularly 2009 and 2012; an appetite for more detailed research with regard to the management of heavy soils and land drainage and the impending removal of quota restrictions which would incentivise the need for optimal use of all resources, including land.

It was decided to establish a programme to develop a network of farms on poorly drained soils to act as a test bed for strategies and management practices that could be implemented to improve the efficiency and performance of farms dominated by such soils.

The selection of participant farms was initially focused in Munster and was supported by Kerry Agribusiness, Dairygold and Tipperary Co-operatives. A shortlist of potential candidates, drawn up by Teagasc Advisory staff and Co-op representatives, were visited in 2011 and 2012 before the initial seven participant farms were selected. 

This publication details the farm performance and development since 2011 on these farms.