Farmers are taking part in and being paid for on-farm trials as part of the NCS project.
As part of the NCS project, farmers (Pulse Pioneers) are undertaking pulse cropping trials. They will contribute their trials plans and insights to PulsePEP. These trials plans will also be linked to a discussion board on The Farming Forum for sharing ideas and exchanging knowledge.
This topic area is to connect the trials being done as a part of The NCS Project by Pulse Pioneers. See 'Connected Content' for the individual trial pages (these will be uploaded soon).
Content below is from across the PEP community and is not necessarily endorsed by Stewards or by PEP
Farmers taking part in and getting paid for on-farm trials as part of the NCS Project.
Farm Name: Kingsclere Estates Ltd, Pitt Hall Farm, Hampshire Farming System: Organic Trial Plan: The trial field has been established with Winter Oats. To provide a comparison between Pulses versus Cereals Tim has established two tramlines of Spring Beans. Across both crops Tim will treat two strips with Citadel to compare the impact of Citadel on both the cereal crops and pulse crop. The aim of the trial is to monitor differences between pulses versus cereals with a view to understand the impact of Citadel.
We farm 280 hectares of organic arable land in North Northumberland. We grow wheat, barley, oats, beans & clover. As a seed merchant, Smales Organic Seeds, we process a lot of our crops to sell as seed. We rent out the clover leys to a local sheep farmer. We have grown spring beans for a long time. Beans are an important part of our rotation but this year is the first year that we have grown winter beans.
This on-farm trial at Woodend Farm is assessing the impact of Agrii-Start Release on phosphate availability in winter beans and spring oats, alongside monitoring second-year effects of growing beans and clover undersowing on subsequent wheat yield and nitrogen use. The trial also explores the role of home-grown protein from beans in supporting soil fertility and crop performance.
Looking to see if the use of nitrogen fixing bacteria can stilmulate nodulation Field trial with three tramlines treated Nodulation counts will be taken in farm practice and treated area Rooting assessments conducted Tissue analysis and cut down assessments
Year 3 of intercropping trials following a winter wheat and grazed overwinter cover crop. Zero input and all taken to harvest.
Looking for ways to improve pea yield. To help keep the crop in our rotation.
Split field trial with winter beans, winter beans + Nutri-Phite PGA and Spring barley
At Woodend Farm, we are conducting an innovative trial focused on over-sowing white clover into spring and winter beans and spring oats using the Skippy Scout drone. The objective is to establish an understorey of white clover that will enhance nitrogen sequestration, yield, and quality in subsequent winter wheat crops.
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A trial to compare the overall effect on the rotation of a bean crop. The field has been planted with spring beans (Vincent) and winter wheat, following 2yrs of AB15 Countryside Stewardship.
This landmark conference (January 22, 2025) will explore innovative strategies to increase pulse production and use in livestock diets. Register HERE
Year 1 - Growing C1 for C2 Lynx S Beans in an Organic system and looking at 4 trials covering untreated area and 3 plots using various permitted products.
'The NCS Project fits perfectly into our business as we hope that our well looked after soils grow healthy and profitable crops, and being a pulse pioneer is a great way to test this.'
Comprehensive nutritional programme based on tissue analysis. Four tramlines to receive a small amount of Amide N to in an attempt to prolong flowering, boost pod development and seed size.
/The trial plan is being carried out in a field of VESPA Winter Beans. 1 tramline will be treated with QLF Boost and the second will be treated with LEVEE. Tramline 3 will have LEVEE and QLF Boost. These 3 tramlines will be treated with a control being between the replicated trials.
Be amongst the first to hear about the findings from Year 1 of the NCS and TRUTH projects!
We're going to grow a tramline of spring barley in our spring bean field and measure how much teh sopring beans benefit teh residual nitrogen and other soil fertility. We'll also add Vixeran to a tramline of spring beans to see how that helps yield.
In this trial we will be gathering data on the impact of a winter bean crop on the following wheat crop (in terms of soil nitrogen supply, nitrogen available to/taken up by the plant, and any associated impact on crop yield).
Including legumes in the arable rotation clearly has the potential to lower environmental footprints, said Prof Pete Iannetta of The James Hutton Institute. “It’s not just greenhouse gases. There’s water quality improvement to be gained and a whole host of other benefits.”
Sustainable Cattle Farming & Homegrown Protein We are a 300-acre farm finishing 350 Aberdeen Angus dairy-bred cattle on a Total Mixed Ration (TMR) system. Over the last five years, we have eliminated imported protein sources by growing our own beans and successfully wholecropping them. Now, we want to take this further—enhancing cattle performance, reducing our carbon footprint, and continuously improving our soils. Through this project, we aim to refine our homegrown protein strategy, optimize feed efficiency, and build a more resilient and sustainable system. We welcome collaboration, insights, and innovation to help drive these improvements forward.
My family continuously strives to improve the sustainability of our beef and arable operations and have grown beans for many years as a home-grown protein feed source for our beef herd, choosing to shift away from reliance on imported protein sources. This trial intends to test the benefit of applying the biostimulant, Vixeran, to yield as well as how it complements the nitrogen fixing capacity of beans.
As a Pulse Pioneer with the NCS Project, John contributes to the wider effort to build protein self-sufficiency and arable-livestock integration within UK farming. Building
Join us on January 28, 2026, for a landmark conference exploring innovative strategies to enhance pulse production and their use in livestock diets. This event will feature:
This trial looks at what benefit to the crude protein content in the winter wheat that is gained from cropping with winter beans. Both beans and wheat will be separated to analyse the wheat. Both will be used in the organic poultry diet which uses peas and beans instead of soya expeller.
Using beans to rebuild rotational performance after stewardship.
