Rothamsted Research is a world-leading, non-profit research centre that focuses on strategic agricultural science to the benefit of farmers and society worldwide.

Our scientists publish around 300 papers in international science journals each year, of which more than 70% are open access. We also make numerous data, software tools and other information widely available to the global scientific community and other stakeholders or beneficiaries of our work. Rothamsted Research has partnerships with numerous research institutions and universities in over 50 countries.

We take pride in our people and their achievements. Our people are experts in their field and come from all areas of the globe. We provide a modern dynamic working environment and support systems to enable collaboration and development opportunities.

Rothamsted Research is home to three unique National Capabilities that are open to researchers from all over the world; The Long Term ExperimentsRothamsted Insect SurveyNorth Wyke Farm Platform for grazing-livestock systems research.

Related Organisations

Connected Content

Farm-PEP aims to bring together all the sources of useful knowledge for Agriculture, whether from academic science, applied research projects, industry trials, farmers own trials or simple on-farm experience. Listed below are useful websites, organisations and websites that we know of.  Add any we've missed in the comments box or by adding as new content, or better still, as a new Group.  

This Livestock and Pasture study is part of the wider UKRI STFC-funded EO4Agroclimate programme.  

YEN

The Yield Enhancement Network (YEN) was launched in 2012 to support and energise on-farm learning-by-sharing and thus to enhance farming progress.

The Cereal YEN was established in 2012, and is the longest-running Yield Enhancement Network.

Roger Sylvester-Bradley      Tuesday 31st January 2023   It’s news across the world – the biggest wheat crop ever grown, yielding 18 tonnes of grain per hectare! This is fantastic, and laudable in all respects, but it’s no accident.    

A transdisciplinary hub looking to provide to bridge the gap between science and policy to achieve Net Zero

Scientific paper in GCB Bioenergy 2021 by Patricia Ortega- Ramos, Duncan Coston,  Gaëtan Sei

Agricultural research is conducted by a range of organisations, from individual farmers, through advisors, distributors, manufacturers, charities, societies, supply chain companies, levy bodies, universities and research institutes.  This page aims to connect across these often disparate sources.

The IPM Decisions project will create an online platform that is easy to use for the monitoring and management of pests. Access the platform now at https://platform.ipmdecisions.net/ Co-funded by the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme of the European Union Under grant agreement No 817617

Knowledge Exchange in Agriculture in the UK is diverse, with many organisations involved. That is part of the reason for creating Farm-PEP, to help provide connections to what many percieve as a fragmented landscape.

Devon silvopasture 12-year on-farm trial including site at Rothamsted's North Wyke

Together, we’re creating plausible pathways, and practical, open science, to achieve Net Zero through the Agrifood system by 2050.

App and website dedicated to pest, disease & weed identification and management.

Strategic BBSRC & NERC programme with CEH & Rothamsted  - Achieving Sustainable Agricultural Systems,

Physical and online conference at Harper Adams Soil & Water Management Centre on 7th December.

Agri-Tech Week features a mix of in-person and virtual events that are designed to showcase exciting developments in agri-tech. It is coordinated by Agri-TechE working closely with partners across the innovation ecosystem and aims to provide opportunities to attract new customers and partners and to broker collaborations and international connections.

Guide published by BASF and AHDB, written with ADAS & Rothamsted, providing a complete reference book for cereal diseases. 

Series of articles in CPM reporting results from research projects by AHDB & others

Despite the many benefits of growing maize, conventional growing practices can lead to negative environmental impacts, particularly in terms of soil erosion and runoff.   A group of farmers in the SW have set up a field lab to demonstrate that by changing the way maize is grown, you can reduce these negative impacts without reducing yield.  These changes include a move to strip tilling rather than conventional ploughing, and trialing different cover crops, both seasonal and perennial,  to enhance soil health and reduce inputs.

AHDB Guide from 2021 incorporating WRAG guidelines. Weed control is vital for high yields of good-quality crops and to prevent the spread of pests and diseases, e.g. ergot. Yet with fewer active ingredients, a need to protect water and manage herbicide resistance, the weed challenge must be managed across the rotation.

Webinar hosted by GWCT with David Powlson - watch the video below.

A concise guide to the identification of five weedy species by Dr Stephen Moss

Scientific paper from Rothamsted on SOM levels: Prout JM, Shepherd KD, McGrath SP, Kirk

Genetic technologies can help deliver the objectives of regenerative agriculture, say

Article in Remote Sensing about estimating wheat yields from satellite data:

Biostimulants for Global Food Security

  https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/north-wyke-farm-platform

CEH

Centre for Ecology & Hydrology

AHDB Guide published in 2018.

A TOOLKIT FOR BREEDING RESISTANCE TO ADULT AND LARVAL HERBIVORY BY THE CABBAGE STEM FLEA BEETLE. BBSRC Industrial Partnership project led by Rachel Wells at JIC looking to breed oilseed rape with resistance to CSFB.

In July 2022 the Science and Technology Committee of the House of Commons took evidence on how to unlock the potential of agricultural science and technology.

AHDB webpage highlighting the national network of aphid suction traps and yellow water traps run by Rothamsted Insect Survey, supported by BBSRC. Delivering regional information on aphid species and numbers, this monitoring resource can help guide insecticide treatment decisions.

YEN      Friday 3rd January 2023   Russ McKenzie awarded YEN's Innovator of the Year in 2022 at the 10th Anniversary YEN Conference.

Co-ordinating Global Wheat Research

Long-term experiments (LTEs) are valuable resources to assess the sustainability and resilience of agricultural practices and systems.

Sarah Clarke      Friday 3rd January 2023   Excellent grain quality as well as high yields were celebrated at the YEN 10th Anniversary Conference, with the Milling Quality Awards sponsored by UK Flour Millers. All UK Group 1 milling wheat entries were eligible for this competition, a total of 20 for 2022.

Wild-oats are a highly competitive grass-weed in the UK of which there are two important species: common wild-oats (Avena fatua) and winter wild-oats (Avena sterilis ssp. ludoviciana). Failure to control wild oats in arable fields can lead to high penalties to yield, seed crop contamination, income loss for farmers and reduced competitiveness of UK agriculture. Whilst herbicide resistance selection has been slower in wild-oats compared to other grass weeds such as Black-grass (Alopecurus myosuroides), it is still a growing problem and since this report was published in 2001, resistance has been reported across hundreds of farms across many UK counties.  Continuing development of herbicide resistance in wild-oats will limit pesticide choice and possibly lead to a higher dependence on environmentally 'risky' herbicides that are more likely to reach water. The objective of this project was to conduct and collate research on the characterisation of herbicide resistance in wild-oats with the aim of informing strategies for the prevention, containment and control of herbicide resistant populations. Links to the full project are provided at the bottom of the page.

In Devon, a group of six farmers and Rothamsted’s North Wyke research farm have teamed up through Innovative Farmers to form the Devon Silvopasture Network.

New study suggests “techno-grazing” approaches can support more cattle in less space without adversely affecting soil structure and function

The Lot 1 Innovation project ‘Accelerating Willow Breeding and Deployment’ project led by Rothamsted Research has just released a ‘Growers guide to short rotation coppice willow (SRCw) varieties for biomass’.

Ever wondered which regenerative arable farming practices are the most effective or which combinations work best together?

Root structures and genetics give the weed an advantage over wheat and explain field patches.  

BREAKTHRU is A BBSRC funded project led by the University of Nottingham in collaboration with Rothamsted Research, Lancaster University and ADAS aimed at developing compaction resistant wheat. 

Join Biomass Connect and Rothamsted Research at our North Wyke Demonstrator Hub in Devon for an enlightening afternoon focused on the practical aspects of selecting, cultivating, integrating, and utilising a diverse array of biomass crops for fuel, animal health, and soil health on your farm.

Scientists based at Rothamsted Research have found a clear link between the weight of lambs early in their life and subsequent meat quality – which is good news for consumers, farmers, and the environment.

As part of the development of the IPM Decisions platform, we carried out additional research and development both on the technical and social aspects relating to improving access to and uptake of decision support systems for IPM.   The results of this work have been published, and links are provided below.  

AHDB Publication 2018.

Rothamsted's Insect Survey is host to a nationwide network of light-traps and suction-traps that

Scientific paper from

Scientific paper reporting analysis of hay yields from Park Grass long term experiment in Her