GRH10: Lenient grazing supplement
What you must do to get paid for this action and advice on how to do it.
This is an action in the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) scheme: expanded offer for 2024. You must read the SFI scheme information to understand the scheme rules and how to apply.
Duration
3 years
How much you’ll be paid
£28 per hectare (ha) per year
Action’s aim
This supplemental action’s aim is that there’s a sward with a range of shorter and taller grasses.
The purpose of this is to:
- create habitats for spiders and other insects (including grasshoppers and beetles)
- provide spring and summer invertebrate food for birds (such as yellowhammers, reed buntings and skylarks)
Where you can do this action
You can only do this supplemental action on eligible land entered into the base action: CLIG3: Manage grassland with very low nutrient inputs (or LIG1 and LIG2 in the SFI 2023 offer).
The land parcel must meet one of the following conditions:
- have at least one boundary that’s a hedgerow
- there’s scrub cover close to the parcel (usually around 200 metres (m) away)
You cannot do this action on land that’s already entered into the following equivalent base actions in a Countryside Stewardship agreement:
- GS2 (permanent grassland with very low inputs – outside SDAs)
- GS5 (permanent grassland with very low inputs – SDAs)
Eligibility of protected land
| Protected land | Eligibility |
|---|---|
| Sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) | Same as your selected base action |
| Historic and archaeological features | Same as your selected base action |
Available area you can enter into this action
This is the same as your selected base action.
Rotational or static action
This is the same as your selected base action.
What to do
During the growing season, you must manage the sward in a way that can reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim. This includes lightly grazing it with cattle, or a combination of cattle and sheep.
You must not cut the area for hay or silage.
When to do it
You must do this action each year of its 3-year duration.
How to do it
It’s up to you how you do this action, as long as you:
- follow this action’s requirements – these are identified by a ‘must’
- do the action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim
You may find it helpful to read the ‘advice to help you do this action’, but it’s not part of this action’s requirements.
Evidence to keep
You must keep evidence to show what you’ve done to complete this action, such as:
- stocking records to show grazing activity at a land parcel level
- field operations at a land parcel level and associated invoices
- photographs or other documentation to show management undertaken
If it’s not clear that you’ve done this action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve its aim, we may ask for this evidence. You must supply the evidence if we ask for it.
Other actions or options you can do on the same area as this action
You can do the following actions or options on the same area in a land parcel as this action.
Some actions or options can only be done on the same area if they’re done at a different time of year to this action. For example, winter cover followed by a summer companion crop. Read ‘What to do’ and ‘When to do it’ to find out when this action must be done.
| Scheme | Action or option codes |
|---|---|
| SFI actions | Same as your selected base action |
| CS options | Same as your selected base action |
| ES options | Same as your selected base action |
| SFI pilot standards | Same as your selected base action |
If an action or option cannot be located on the same area, you may be able to do it on a different area in the same land parcel. Read section 6 ‘Eligible land in other funding schemes’ in the SFI scheme information for more details.
Advice to help you do this action
The following advice may help you to do this action, but it’s not part of this action’s requirements.
Choose the right location
To give the most benefits for farmland birds, it’s best if you locate this supplemental action:
- on areas next to hedgerows or scrub for yellowhammers and reed buntings
- away from trees, hedgerows or other tall structures for skylarks
- so the fields are not more than around 500 metres (m) apart, as these birds do not usually feed more than 300m from their nests
- on grassland that contains herbs and wildflowers, as it’s usually more effective – but you can also do it on grassland with few herbs or wildflowers (if any)
To provide sufficient spring and summer invertebrate food for birds, you’ll usually need to have at least 1 hectare (ha) of this supplemental action per 100ha of your farm.
Managing the sward
To help you achieve this action’s aim, grazing can be rotational or intermittent. However, to avoid the sward becoming rank during rest periods, try to allow your livestock (cattle, or a combination of cattle and sheep) to eat the sward down well during the grazing periods.
Updates to this page
Published 21 May 2024Last updated 5 August 2024 + show all updates
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Duration - 3 years instead of ‘same as base action’. Where you can do this action - added LIG1, LIG2 as base actions. You cannot do this supplemental action on land in GS2 and GS5. Eligibility of protected land - added ‘your selected’ in relation to the base action. Available area - same as or less than your selected base action. Rotational or static action - added ‘your selected’ in relation to the base action. Other actions or options you can do on the same area - added ‘your selected’ in relation to the base action. Published voluntary advice to help you do this action, but it's not part of this action’s requirements.
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First published.