What the action involves
This action’s aim is that there’s a well-established multi-species cover crop over the winter months. The purpose of this is to:
- protect the soil surface
- provide root growth that benefits soil structure, supports soil biology and minimises nutrient leaching, soil erosion and runoff
When to do it
Each year of your SFI agreement, you must have a well-established multi-species cover crop that’s present for the duration of the winter months. The winter months will usually include December, January and February.
If your agreement starts too late for you to complete this action, you can complete it within 12 months of your agreement’s start date.
After the winter months, you can destroy the multi-species winter cover crop if you choose.
You may destroy the multi-species winter cover crop before the end of the winter months if you’re establishing an early-sown spring crop. This includes grazing the cover crop with livestock. You must not do this more than 6 weeks before you establish the early-sown spring crop.
When you destroy the multi-species winter cover crop, you should try to minimise risks such as compaction, poaching, soil runoff or erosion.
How to do it It’s up to you how you complete this action, as long as you do it in a way that can reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim.
You may find it helpful to read the voluntary guidance on how to establish and maintain multi- species winter cover, but you do not have to follow it.
What evidence to keep You should keep evidence to show what you’ve done to complete this action. This will help if it’s not clear that you’ve completed the action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim. You must supply this evidence if we ask for it.
This evidence could include photographs and other documentation to show what you’ve done to complete this action. It could also include field operations at a land parcel level and associated invoices. If you choose to take photographs, read the guidance on how to take photographic evidence (annex A).
The same action appears in the other schemes under a different code. The work is broadly the same; the rate and the length of the commitment are not.
- SFI26 — CSAM2: £129 per hectare per year, over 3 years
- SFI26 pays the same rate.
Where you can do it
You can do this action on eligible land located below the moorland line. The table below sets out what land is eligible for SAM2.
Eligible land type Eligible land use code Compatible land cover
Arable crops Arable land
Leguminous and nitrogen- Arable land Arable land, including temporary fixing crops grassland FA01 Arable land
TG01 Arable land
Permanent crops – horticultural TC01 Permanent crops
The glossary (annex C) explains what we mean by land types, land use codes and compatible land covers.
The SFI application service will automatically calculate what area may be eligible for this action in each land parcel. This is called the ‘SFI available area’. You must check this area is an eligible land type. Find out how the SFI available area is calculated in the information on land that’s eligible for the SFI actions (section 4.1.2).
You can apply for this action on either the total SFI available area in each land parcel shown in your SFI application, or part of that area.
This action is rotational. You can do it on the same area of eligible land each year of your 3- year SFI agreement, or you can move the area each year.
