CNUM3: Legume fallow (updated for SFI26)

This is a Sustainable Farming Incentive 2026 ( SFI26 ) action. Read the SFI26 scheme information tounderstand what you’re required to do under an SFI26 agreement and how to apply.

Select ‘See all updates’ at the start of this page to find out how this action has changed for SFI26 compared with SFI24 .

For SFI24 actions, read the  SFI24 agreement holder’s information .

Duration

3 years

How much you’ll be paid

£532 per hectare ( ha ) per year

Action’s aim

This action’s aim is that there’s an established legume fallow with plants that:

grow and flower from late spring and during the summer months

provide green cover over the winter months

The purpose of this is to:

manage nutrient efficiency and improved soil health

provide food for farmland wildlife, such as pollen and nectar for pollinators and farmland birds

support an integrated pest management approach by reducing grass weeds and, if located close to cropped areas, encourage natural crop pest predators

Where you can do this action

You can do this action on agricultural land located below the moorland line that’s:

an eligible land type (as defined in section 5.1.1 ‘Eligible land types’ in the SFI26 scheme information)

registered with an eligible land cover on your digital maps

declared with a land use code which is compatible with the eligible land cover

Eligible land

Eligible land type Eligible land cover Compatible land use code

Arable land used to grow crops Arable land Land use codes for arable crops or leguminous and nitrogen-fixing crops

Temporary grassland Arable land TG01

Arable land lying fallow Arable land FA01

Permanent crops – horticultural Permanent crops TC01

Eligibility of protected land

Sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs): Eligible – you must:

give notice to Natural England to get SSSI consent before the Rural Payments Agency ( RPA ) offer you an SFI26 agreement

have received SSSI consent from Natural England before you do this action (read  section 10.1 ‘SSSI consent’  in the SFI26 scheme information for more details)

Historic and archaeological features: Eligible – you must get an SFI HEFER before you do this action (read section 5.3 ’Land with historic or archaeological features’ in the SFI26 scheme information to find out how to do this).

Available area you can enter into this action

Total or part of the available area in a land parcel. It’s your responsibility to check that the area you enter is eligible for this action.

You must do this action on the area entered into your SFI26 agreement. If something happens which means you cannot complete this action on some or all of the area, you must tell the RPA in writing as soon as possible. Read section 12.2 ‘What to do if you cannot comply with your agreement’  in the SFI26 scheme information to find out how to do this.

Rotational or static action

This action is rotational or static. This means you can either:

move its location for the second and third years of this action’s duration

do it at the same location each year of this action’s duration

What to do

You must establish a legume fallow on land entered into this action.

You must use a seed mix which contains at least 6 flowering species, including legumes. The seed mix can contain legumes such as:

alsike clover

bird’s foot trefoil

black medick

common vetch

lucerne

The seed mix can also include:

non-legume flower species

grasses, such as cocksfoot or timothy, which can help to control blackgrass

You must avoid growing deep rooted legumes, such as lucerne, on any area in a land parcel that contains historic or archaeological features. These are identified in your SFI HEFER .

Once the legume fallow is established (usually from the second spring after sowing), you must maintain it. To do this, you must manage it in a way, and for a period of time, that can reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim.

You must not do the following on the established legume fallow:

graze it with livestock – if you want to do this you may want to consider action CSAM3 (herbal leys) instead which allows grazing activity

use the area for regular vehicular access, turning or storage (for example, storing bales or machinery)

cut it, except to prevent blackgrass from setting seed or to control other annual grass weeds

apply any fertilisers and manures

apply pesticides, except for herbicides to weed wipe or spot treat to control injurious weeds , invasive non-native species , nettles or bracken

You can maintain an existing legume fallow to get paid for this action if it:

meets this action’s requirements

is not already being paid for under another environmental land management scheme option, such as CS option AB15 (two year sown legume fallow)

When to do it

You must:

establish the legume fallow by the autumn, within 12 months of this action’s start date

maintain the legume fallow at the same location for a period of time that can reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim – this will usually be until the end of the second summer after sowing

re-establish the legume fallow by the following autumn (either at the same location or a different location) and maintain it until this action’s end date

If you want to establish a legume fallow in the spring and remove it in the summer during the same year, you should apply for the summer-sown cover crops action (SOH3).

How to do it

It’s up to you how you do this action, as long as you:

follow this action’s requirements – these are identified by a ‘must’

do the action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim

You may find it helpful to read the ‘advice to help you do this action’, but it’s not part of this action’s requirements.

Evidence to keep

You must keep evidence to show what you’ve done to complete this action, such as:

field operations at a land parcel level and associated invoices, including details of the seed mix used

photographs or other documentation

If it’s not clear that you’ve done this action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve its aim, we may ask for this evidence. You must supply the evidence if we ask for it.

Other actions or options you can do on the same area as this action

You can do the following actions or options on the same area in a land parcel as this action.

Scheme Action or option codes

SFI 2026 actions AGF1, AGF2, OFC3, OFC4, OFC5, OFM4, OFM5, OFM6, PRF2, SOH1

SFI 2024 actions AGF1, AGF2, CIPM1, CNUM1, CSAM1, OFC3, OFC4, OFC5, OFM4, OFM5, OFM6, PRF2, SOH1

SFI 2023 actions IPM1, NUM1, SAM1

CSHT actions from 2025 CAGF1, CAGF2, CAGF3, CAGF4, CSP13, CSP14, CSP15, CSP20, CSP21, CSP9, CWS1, CWS3

CS options OR3, OR4, OR5, OT3, OT4, OT5

ES options No ES revenue options

If an action or option cannot be located on the same area, you may be able to do it on a different area in the same land parcel. Read section 5.6 ‘Land that’s already in other funding schemes or grants’  in the SFI26 scheme information for more details.

You can do the following actions or options on the eligible boundaries of a land parcel entered into this action:

SFI 2026 actions: CHRW2, BND1, BND2 and WBD2

SFI 2024 actions: CHRW1, CHRW2, CHRW3, BND1, BND2 and WBD2

SFI 2023 actions: HRW1, HRW2, HRW3

CSHT actions: CHRW4

CS options: BE3 (management of hedgerows)

Advice to help you do this action

The following advice may help you to do this action, but it’s not part of this action’s requirements.

Choosing a seed mix

This action explains the minimum requirement for flowering species, including legumes, in the seed mix (under ‘What to do’).

Your seed supplier can help you choose a seed mix that’s the best match for your land and local conditions.

Where to sow the seed mix

When you establish the legume fallow, by law you cannot cultivate or apply fertilisers or pesticides to land within 2 metres (m) of the centre of a hedgerow. Read the guidance on  Hedgerow management rules: buffer strips  to understand how these rules apply to you.

When you sow the seed mix, it can help to use sites:

that receive plenty of sunlight, for better foraging habitat for pollinators and other beneficial insects

where you wish to control grass weeds, such as blackgrass

where soil health and compaction need improving

where you want to reduce soil run-off during winter

where you want to reduce your fertiliser use in the following crop

Try to avoid sowing the seed mix on sites that are:

difficult to access and manage (like remote field corners)

known to contain rare arable wildflowers

known to support injurious and other broad-leaved weeds which can be difficult to control, such as common ragwort, creeping thistle, spear thistle, broad-leaved dock, curled dock

Spreading the legume fallow areas across the farm can help to provide a network of habitats for farmland wildlife.

How and when to sow the seed mix

Your seed supplier can advise you on an overall sowing rate for the seed mix you choose.

It can help the seeds to germinate if they’re sown:

into a consolidated seedbed that’s firm, fine, level and weed free

when the weather and soil moisture is best for the crops in your seed mix – this is usually spring or autumn, but it will be easier to control grass weeds in spring-sown fallows

You can either:

broadcast the seeds onto the surface of the seedbed to help germination

shallow-drill the seeds up to a depth of 1 centimetre (cm) – small seeds usually struggle to germinate when sown deeper than 1cm

After you have sown the seed mix (if the soil is dry enough), you can roll the seeds to:

improve seed-to-soil contact

keep moisture

reduce the risk of slug damage

During establishment of the sown legume fallow

In the first few months after sowing, it’s advisable to check the area for successful germination and pest damage.

If establishment is poor, you may need to re-sow part or all the area. Your seed supplier can help you if you’re unsure what to do.

Maintaining established areas of legume fallow

Once the area is established, you can maintain it by managing it in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim.

During the first spring and summer after sowing, you can control annual grass weeds, such as blackgrass, by:

cutting as soon as it starts to produce seed heads

doing follow up cuts as necessary to remove further seed heads

During the second year after sowing, you can control blackgrass by:

cutting between March and mid-June

leaving the area uncut for around 8 weeks between June and August – this will help to allow plants to flower for as long as possible to provide pollen and nectar for insects

Check the area for signs of nesting birds before you cut it.  Birds, nests and eggs are protected by law , so if you see signs of nesting birds, delay cutting until the birds fledge

Remove the cut vegetation (where possible) to limit weeds and reduce the risk of it smothering the flower species. If this is impractical, you can finely chop the vegetation to spread them as thinly as possible.

Eligible land

Eligible land type Eligible land cover Compatible land use code

Arable land used to grow crops Arable land Land use codes for arable crops or leguminous and nitrogen-fixing crops

Temporary grassland Arable land TG01

Arable land lying fallow Arable land FA01

Permanent crops – horticultural Permanent crops TC01