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ClimateQuiet 9d · day 12

Allerton Project farm reverses UK bird decline with no-till methods

A 34-year experiment shows farmland birds can thrive when ploughing stops and habitat strips replace monoculture.

newest coverage 9d agosummary written 9d ago4 pieces110 likes & upvotes NewswiresMastodonBluesky

What to know

  • The Allerton Project has increased farm bird numbers 145% since 1992 via no-till farming, seed strips, and beetle banks—while UK farmland birds declined 23% nationally over the same period.
  • Three core practices drive the results: no-till drilling preserves seeds and insects in soil; 'bird tables' (seed strips of kale, teasel, sorghum, millet) supply winter food; beetle banks harbor pest-control beetles.
  • Leake emphasizes the farm is a working commercial operation, not a nature reserve—proving these methods are economically viable and replicable for mainstream farmers.

“I don't want people to come here and say: 'Oh, that's a nice nature reserve they've got going there'. I want them to go back on to their farms and say: 'Do you know what, I can do that.'”

Alastair Leake, Director, Allerton Project farm · The Guardian ↗

Alastair Leake Director, Allerton Project farmAllerton Project Research and demonstration farm

Allerton Project farm reverses UK bird decline with no-till methods
theguardian.com

How it unfolded 2 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesposts

Peak 2 pieces in 3h at Oct 31, 7 AM; 4 pieces over 12 days (2 articles · 2 posts) Oct 31, 7 AM — 2 pieces · 2 articles — Mastodon 1, Newswires 1Oct 31, 10 AM — quietOct 31, 1 PM — quietOct 31, 4 PM — quietOct 31, 7 PM — quietOct 31, 10 PM — quietNov 1, 1 AM — quietNov 1, 3 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Nov 1, 6 AM — quietNov 1, 9 AM — quietNov 1, 12 PM — quietNov 1, 3 PM — quietNov 1, 6 PM — quietNov 1, 9 PM — quietNov 2, 12 AM — quietNov 2, 3 AM — quietNov 2, 6 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Bluesky 1Nov 2, 9 AM — quietNov 2, 12 PM — quietNov 2, 3 PM — quietNov 2, 6 PM — quietNov 2, 9 PM — quietNov 3, 12 AM — quietNov 3, 3 AM — quietNov 3, 6 AM — quietNov 3, 9 AM — quietNov 3, 12 PM — quietNov 3, 3 PM — quietNov 3, 6 PM — quietNov 3, 9 PM — quietNov 4, 12 AM — quietNov 4, 3 AM — quietNov 4, 6 AM — quietNov 4, 9 AM — quietNov 4, 12 PM — quietNov 4, 3 PM — quietNov 4, 6 PM — quietNov 4, 9 PM — quietNov 5, 12 AM — quietNov 5, 3 AM — quietNov 5, 6 AM — quietNov 5, 9 AM — quietNov 5, 12 PM — quietNov 5, 3 PM — quietNov 5, 6 PM — quietNov 5, 9 PM — quietNov 6, 12 AM — quietNov 6, 3 AM — quietNov 6, 6 AM — quietNov 6, 9 AM — quietNov 6, 12 PM — quietNov 6, 3 PM — quietNov 6, 6 PM — quietNov 6, 9 PM — quietNov 7, 12 AM — quietNov 7, 3 AM — quietNov 7, 6 AM — quietNov 7, 9 AM — quietNov 7, 12 PM — quietNov 7, 3 PM — quietNov 7, 6 PM — quietNov 7, 9 PM — quietNov 8, 12 AM — quietNov 8, 3 AM — quietNov 8, 6 AM — quietNov 8, 9 AM — quietNov 8, 12 PM — quietNov 8, 3 PM — quietNov 8, 6 PM — quietNov 8, 9 PM — quietNov 9, 12 AM — quietNov 9, 3 AM — quietNov 9, 6 AM — quietNov 9, 9 AM — quietNov 9, 12 PM — quietNov 9, 3 PM — quietNov 9, 6 PM — quietNov 9, 9 PM — quietYesterday, 12 AM — quietYesterday, 3 AM — quietYesterday, 6 AM — quietYesterday, 9 AM — quietYesterday, 12 PM — quietYesterday, 3 PM — quietYesterday, 6 PM — quietYesterday, 9 PM — quietToday, 12 AM — quietToday, 3 AM — quietToday, 6 AM — quietToday, 9 AM — quietToday, 12 PM — quietToday, 3 PM — quietToday, 6 PM — quiet 12
Nov 1Nov 2Nov 3Nov 4Nov 5Nov 6Nov 7Nov 8Nov 9yesterdaynow · 7:31 PM ET
  1. 2

    Mastodon and Bluesky users amplify Allerton Project findings

    Social media amplifies the Guardian story. Bluesky account academaxjournals.bsky.social highlights the 145% rise at Allerton against broader EU declines (41%), emphasizing the research's conservation value.

    “Farmland birds rose 145% with no-till, beetle banks or bird tables, while general EU declines hit 41%.”
    — academaxjournals.bsky.social
    • junesim63@mstdn.social

      The Allerton Project is a working farm and research centre on the Leicestershire-Rutland border, where farmers and scientists have spent more than three decades testing how farming can produce food while supporting wildlife. # Farming # Birds # Biodiversity # Agriculture ‘This is a robust recipe’: the experimental farm bucking the decline in UK…

      junesim63@mstdn.socialMastodon10d ago64▲view on Mastodon ↗
    1 more of the top 2 · 2 posts in this stretch
    • academaxjournals.bsky.social

      Thanks to the @theguardian.com for providing coverage to this experiment from the Allerton Project. Farmland birds rose 145% with no-till, beetle banks or bird tables, while general EU declines hit 41%. Follow @academaxjournals.bsky.social for more research on conservation. #Birds #Ecology

      academaxjournals.bsky.socialBluesky9d ago3▲view on Bluesky ↗
    all of them →
  2. 1

    Guardian reports 145% rise in farm birds at Allerton over 34 years

    Matthew Pearce's article details how Allerton Project's bird abundance has risen 145% since 1992, compared with a 23% national decline. Key practices include no-till drilling, dedicated seed strips ('bird tables'), and beetle banks—uncultivated land planted with perennial grasses that provide pest control.

    “When we're watching to see where the birds are landing to feed, none of them are going on to the ploughed side. They're all coming and feeding down here.”
    — Alastair Leake
  3. background

    Allerton Project monitoring begins — The Allerton Project, a working farm and research centre on the Leicestershire-Rutland border, begins a long-term study of how farming practices affect wildlife and agricultural productivity.

Also covered reported alongside — the timeline has no entry for these yet

  1. 2 outlets ‘This is a robust recipe’: the experimental farm bucking the decline in UK birds

    first by Mastodon, 11d ago · also Guardian Environment

What people are saying 0 voices from 0 sites · best of 2 · verbatim