Could Relay Cropping Help UK Farmers Grow More from the Same Acre?

For Oxfordshire arable farmer Ben Adams, one potential solution could be relay cropping - growing two different crops alongside each other for part of the season, allowing their growing periods to overlap. Inspired by a system he saw being used on a farm in the US, Mr Adams is now putting the concept to the test as part of a two-year, ADOPT-funded trial.

Two crops, one field

The principle behind the trial is relatively simple: rather than waiting for one crop to be harvested before establishing another, relay cropping allows the second crop to become established while the first is still growing. Mr Adams has planted one-metre strips of malting winter barley variety Craft, alternating with one-metre strips of millet, linseed and sorghum. The relay crops were drilled alongside the standing barley in early May.

“The idea was those crops would be growing low, and under the canopy of the winter barley, and then when the winter barley is harvested, the extra crops could catch up and be harvested slightly later,” he explains. “So, basically, two harvests in one season.”

The system does not stop there. Once the barley has been harvested, Mr Adams establishes a cover crop in its place while the relay crop continues growing. Once the relay crop is harvested, winter barley will then be drilled back into the strip. The aim is to create a continuous rotation in which the winter barley and relay crop effectively switch sides of the field each year.

Promising first-year results

The first year of the trial has already produced an encouraging result. A 24-metre strip of conventionally grown barley provides a control against which the relay system can be compared. Despite the relay barley occupying only half of the area, it produced 80% of the control's yield. While further trials will be needed to understand the economics and agronomic implications, the result has certainly caught Mr Adams' attention.

“There’s something unknown, and something is working because I mean I’ve got 80% of the yield on 50% of the area, so there’s definitely something happening there,” he says. One possible explanation could be improved nutrient scavenging, while greater light capture could also be contributing to the performance. Rather than receiving sunlight only from above, the relay barley may be able to capture additional light from the sides of the crop canopy. However, the trial has not been without its challenges.

Adapting the system to UK conditions

One of the biggest tests has been establishing the relay crops and getting them through to harvest, particularly during an exceptionally dry season. That highlights one of the key questions surrounding any new cropping system: what works in one part of the world cannot necessarily be transferred directly to another.

The original inspiration for the trial came from US growers using wheat and soya in a similar system. Mr Adams' challenge was to take the underlying principle and adapt it to UK crops, climate and machinery. “I thought, how can I basically adapt this to fit UK cropping, UK climate, my machinery on farm, and will it work?” he says. The second year of the trial will therefore provide an opportunity to refine the approach. Plans include drilling both crops earlier, switching from malting barley to an early hybrid variety and potentially experimenting with different relay crops.

Farmer-led innovation

The trial also demonstrates the value of farmers being able to test new ideas in real-world conditions. The ADOPT Fund, a £50 million Defra initiative managed by Innovate UK, has been established specifically to support farmer-led innovation trials and experimentation.

Grants range from £50,000 to £200,000, with 80% of eligible project costs funded for farmers. Projects must involve practical on-farm trials with the potential to improve productivity, sustainability, resilience or profitability, while generating knowledge that could benefit the wider farming community. Crucially, the support extends beyond funding. The ADOPT Support Hub helps farmers develop applications, provides support throughout projects and helps share the findings and lessons emerging from trials. For farmers considering whether an idea could work on their own farms, this knowledge exchange could prove just as valuable as the financial support.

It is too early to say whether relay cropping will become a mainstream feature of UK agriculture. The system still needs to be tested across different seasons, soils, crops and farm businesses, while the economics of establishing and harvesting two crops must also stack up. But trials such as Mr Adams' demonstrate why experimentation is so important. With pressure to produce more food efficiently, improve resilience to extreme weather and make better use of land, the future of arable farming may involve looking beyond conventional cropping systems.

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