This week's highlights from F&FF (21st May 2022)

6 factors that can reduce ammonia on poultry farms 
Poultry Network (2022): Keeping ammonia emissions under control and reducing them where possible is increasingly a focus for commercial poultry producers. And ammonia management is particularly under focus in Wales, where the poultry sector’s rapid expansion has come under criticism from some quarters. 

Deep-C storage: Biological, chemical and physical strategies to enhance carbon stocks in agricultural subsoils 
Erik S. Button, Jennifer Pett-Ridge, Daniel V. Murphy, Yakov Kuzyakov, David R. Chadwick, Davey L. Jones, (2022): Agricultural subsoils may be more suited to long-term C sequestration than topsoils. Sequestration strategies have variable effects on C stocks, depending on soil type. Enhanced subsoil storage can bring ancillary tangible benefits to cropping systems. Subsoil sampling and incorporation in models and maps is essential. Policies are needed for C sequestration in the whole soil profile, not just topsoils. 

What we're still learning about how trees grow 
Phys.Org (2022): The key takeaway is that vegetation models, which use mathematical equations and plant characteristics to estimate future forest growth, may need to be updated. "Virtually all these models assume that tree growth is source limited," Cabon says. For example, he says, current vegetation models predict that forests will thrive with higher atmospheric carbon dioxide. "The fact that tree growth is often sink limited means that for many forests this may not actually happen." That has additional implications: forests currently absorb and store about a quarter of our current carbon dioxide emissions. If forest growth slows down, so do forests' ability to take in carbon, and their ability to slow climate change. 

How hybrid plant varieties could address the challenges of food security and climate change 
Wageningen U&R (2022): Hybrid agricultural and horticultural crops can play an important role in supporting global food security. They produce higher yields and are often more resistant than non-hybrid varieties to diseases and climate stress. But for many crops, no hybrid varieties are available. Why is that? 

Farming finance – Cash flow is king 
CPM Magazine (2022): "Experts in the industry are saying that prices will settle, and though this isn’t assured, we think they will." If there’s one adage that will ring true for all industries, it’s that turnover is vanity, profit is sanity, but cash is king for business. CPM magazine explores the current financial challenges farmers face and their cashflow considerations for the coming season.

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