With increasing pressure on input costs plus a drive to find effective break crops and therefore reap the benefits of more diversified markets, UK arable growers continue to turn to maize. CPM weighs up the differences between crimped and dried.
“What started as an alternative break crop has grown to the point where maize is now our main crop.” TIM SAMSOME
By Rob Jones
For many arable farmers, grain maize aligns closely with their mindset and existing infrastructure, offering a relatively straightforward crop to grow compared with many alternatives plus offering a range of marketing options.
The growing number of AD plants in the UK present an obvious home, but with an increasing number of marketing contracts available for grain maize, many producers are looking at the crop and pondering which of the two options – crimped or dried – best fits their system.
One grower who’s fully embraced the potential of crimped grain maize is Warwickshire-based farmer and contractor Tim Sansome. With 12 years’ experience of growing the crop, he’s seen crimped maize evolve from a niche alternative to the foundation of his rotation at Little Chase Farm in Kenilworth.
“What started as an alternative break crop has grown to the point where maize is now our main crop, with up to 160ha grown every year compared with a wheat area of around 40ha,” he explains.
“While a small proportion is grown for silage, the majority is for grain maize with around 80% being crimped and the rest dried depending on the season and whether it’s a viable option.”
Tim says choosing the right variety has been key to ensuring maize can be harvested in good time as well as delivering the yields required to produce the necessary financial returns.
He adds that variety selection plays an important role in maximising output and ensuring crops stand strong for late season combining, with crimped maize presenting a lower-energy alternative to drying, with high feed value for local livestock farms.
“We prefer a reasonably early variety as we require the reassurance it’ll harvest in good time when there’s a cereal following, but not at the sacrifice of yield.
“Consistency across seasons and different growing conditions certainly trumps our desire for high yield potential. Harvest is later than for forage maize, so stem stiffness is also key to avoid it collapsing.”
Varieties he’s grown in the past have been Like-it and Agriaxx, whereas Micheleen and Crosbey are now showing great promise.
“Micheleen is the one that’s really stood out. It’s later maturing than others but catches up in the season so is ready to be harvested at the same time. But, the yields are noticeably higher and this has been the case for several years now.
“Even in the difficult conditions of last year, it finished on time with a high yield so really does seem to have the balance of yield, maturity and consistency which is so crucial.”
Tim adds that its good starch content and cob ripeness make it an ideal variety for grain maize when grown on good sites or established under film. “This is with a recommended seed rate of 99,000 to 105,000 seeds/ha (36,000 to 42,500 seeds per acre) to maximise its output.
“All the maize is drilled with DAP starter fertiliser down the spout with 250kg/ha (2cwt/acre) of urea in the seedbed.”
At harvest, the grain from the combine is taken by trailers to an old forager used for the crimping process which blows the finished product straight into a large clamp, he points out.
“There are enough local dairy and beef customers in the area to keep us busy and we’ve supplied some to AD plants too. People take it 15-20t at a time because it’s a moist feed and has to be used relatively quickly compared with dried maize.
“Price-wise, grain maize tends to follow the feed wheat grain price with a little influence from barley. But the inputs are much less than with wheat, so I’m confident we’ll see improving returns in the future, particularly if we experience something like a nitrogen tax. It’s a crop we have a lot of confidence in.”
While crimped maize offers a flexible, on-farm feed option with minimal processing, others are maximising the crop’s potential through dried grain maize – tapping into premium markets and managing it like any other high-value arable crop.
One such grower is Maize Growers’ Association (MGA) council member Will Oliver of AH Oliver & Sons in Leicestershire, who’s made dried grain maize a key part of his spring rotation, backed by careful agronomic planning, nutrient recycling from broiler muck, and attention to grain quality at harvest.
After looking for a spring crop which would make best use of the 2000t of manure from the business’ broiler sheds each year, their first grain maize crop in 2020 immediately impressed with the results, he recalls.
“The gross margin matched our best first wheats that year – £1365/ha, with a dry yield of 9.51t/ha at 15% moisture. That was a lightbulb moment, and we dropped oilseed rape from the rotation not long after.
“Maize now occupies around a quarter of the farm’s 800ha, grown in rotation with wheat and beans.”
In the spring, ahead of drilling, fields are spread with chicken muck at 6t/ha or sewage sludge at 18t/ha to provide a nutrient-rich base. “We spread it carefully using a weighbridge system to make sure it’s accurate,” notes Will.
Cover crops of rye and vetch are grazed twice annually by a local farmer’s sheep to manage biomass and improve soil condition, and the maize is drilled with a contractor using a Väderstad Tempo at around 89,000 seeds/ha.
“We started at 110,000 seeds/ha but we’ve learned that with grain maize, we want less canopy and bigger cobs – it’s a density game,” he says.
Early nutrition is supported with 100kg/ha of DAP, and post-drilling, molasses-based QLF Boost is applied. “I’m trialling a handheld chlorophyll sensor to guide nitrogen applications. I don’t just leave the maize to get on with it – I’m always looking at how to tweak things.”
Harvest takes place in mid-October and everything is dried on-farm, usually coming off the field at 32% and then being dried down to 15%.
“We dry 24/7 and it’s not without its challenges –it costs around £18.90/t in diesel and is labour intensive,” admits Will. “But the market makes it worth it; we’re typically targeting £200/t which gives us a premium over wheat.”
Sticking to early, stiff-stemmed varieties which combine well is crucial for his system. He says ES Constance has emerged as a standout performer, yielding 8.44t/ha in 2024 and achieving a gross margin of £1386/ha.
“Constance has really proved itself being the highest yielder on the farm and stands brilliantly. It’s a group 8, mid-season variety offering lots of mature grain which translates into excellent levels of metabolisable energy and starch to produce excellent grain crops, particularly when crimped.”
Grain maize is also helping with rotation flexibility and improving timeliness for following crops, he adds. “We don’t harvest unless we know we can drill wheat the same day, and because maize leaves a clean stubble and the trash is chopped back in, it makes a great seedbed. You don’t even have to use a pre-emergence herbicide.”
For Will, dried grain maize has become a key part of his system helping to prioritise soil health, nutrient recycling, and profitability. “It’s not just a break crop – it’s a main crop now. And as long as we’re getting margins like this, it’s going to stay that way,” he concludes.
This article was taken from the latest issue of CPM. Read the article in full here.
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