April 1, 2024 at 9:39 AM
Background
ZEIST / REGION More and more farmers in Utrecht are switching to herb-rich grassland. Herb-rich grassland is healthy for the soil, climate and environment. The mix of plants ensures a healthier and more climate-resistant soil and more food for insects above and below the ground. Thanks to the 1001 hectare herb-rich grassland campaign, farmers in the province were able to receive a discount on herb-rich seed mixtures, which led to at least 184 hectares of herb-rich meadows in the province of Utrecht. 77% of farmers who once try herb-rich grassland want to continue with it. LTO Noord announced this. The organization says it is very happy with this development.
‘Farmers and gardeners are increasingly committed to biodiversity. This is also evident from the number of participants and the great results. As LTO Noord, we fully support these developments,” says Dirk Bruins, chairman of LTO Noord.
‘We ask all kinds of things from farmers, but most of the money ends up with project advisors. With 1001 hectares, the entire society – citizens, municipalities and provinces – can help the farmer. Successfully. Since 2020, 1,500 farmers have already participated and together they have sown 5,000 hectares. That saves 2,500,000 kg of fertilizer and 10,000,000 kg of CO2,” says Hanneke van Ormondt of Urgenda.
DAIRY FARMER WOUDENBERG
Ben Apeldoorn (54) is a dairy farmer in Woudenberg. He is committed to biodiversity at his company. It has a frog pond, wooden walls and solitary oak trees. He is also working on herb-rich grassland. Ben is positive about the herb-rich grassland. ‘When I look at how things are going, I like it quite well. It is just as productive as other grassland, but you need much less fertilizer,” says Ben Apeldoorn. He does indicate that the costs can be an obstacle for farmers to sow herb-rich grassland. ‘It’s quite expensive. With the financial contribution from the 1001ha campaign it will work out, but I can imagine that it will slow down. All in all, it’s worth a try, but it doesn’t always work. But we still have to use less fertilizer,” says Ben Apeldoorn.
HERBAL GRASSLAND
Herb-rich grassland is a way to increase biodiversity in the pasture. This brings more birds and insects. In addition, herb-rich grassland has nitrogen-fixing clovers. It is therefore advisable not to use nitrogen fertilizer, as leguminous plants in the grassland fix nitrogen from the air. It saves approximately 500 kg of fertilizer and 1000 kg of CO2 per hectare. However, the purchase of seed is more expensive than the purchase of grass seed. 1001ha partly helps farmers with the purchase.
ABOUT 1001HA
1001ha is an initiative of LTO Netherlands and Urgenda. In September 2020, they joined forces to create 1,001 hectares of herb-rich grassland. Since 2023, LTO Noord has also actively helped with approaching provinces and providing information for farmers. Together with ZLTO there is another 1001ha discount promotion, but for biodiverse green manure mixtures for arable farmers. 250 arable farmers sowed 1,250 hectares and saved more than 20% in fertilizer.
