Profitability through soil health and efficiency – Farmers Guide
A recent Claydon Drills open day showcased how farmers can boost profitability through innovative soil management and efficient machinery solutions ...
With margins tighter than ever and sustainability under increasing scrutiny, there is pressure on farmers to find systems that deliver both economically and environmentally. Claydon Drills’ recent open day, held at the company’s base in Suffolk, sought to address exactly that. Growers from across the UK attended the event, which included technical talks, soil pit demonstrations, and a factory and farm tour, as well as the chance to speak with Claydon Drills staff.
Central to the discussions was the Opti-Till” system, a low disturbance approach developed over two decades ago on the Claydon family’s own farm. The event aimed to show how this system supports soil structure, reduces establishment costs, maintains or improves yields, and fits into wider sustainability goals. But, just as important was the company’s willingness to show the full picture. This included trials that didn’t work, machinery that had evolved through mistakes, and land still facing agronomic challenges.
From frustration to innovation
Owner Jeff Claydon gave visitors a brief history of the company and the development of its direct drilling system. Far from a top- down innovation driven by market research, Opti-Till emerged from frustration on his own farm. In the early 2000s, declining wheat prices and rising fuel costs made conventional cultivation increasingly difficult to justify.
“We needed to find a way to cut costs without cutting corners,” Jeff explained. “That meant reducing the number of passes, improving soil structure, and making the most of every litre of diesel.”
What began with a modified tine and a home-welded frame quickly evolved into the first Claydon drill. Since then, the range has expanded to include straw harrows, interrow hoes, and mounted fertiliser systems. All are designed around the same core principle; disturbing only the soil that needs to be disturbed.
Jeff was candid about the fact that the process hasn’t always been smooth. “We’ve made a lot of mistakes along the way,” he admitted. “But that’s a huge part of what’s got us here – trying things out, learning, and adapting.”
Digging into soil structure
A soil pit demonstration was led by Dick Neale of Hutchinsons. Standing above a trench dug into one of Claydon’s long term fields, he used the soil profile to illustrate what happens below the surface in a reduced disturbance regime.
*This system leaves alternating zones of moved and unmoved soil,” he explained, pointing to the firm vertical columns that stood untouched between each drilled row. “That’s important – it means we’re only disturbing what we need to disturb and leaving the rest to do its job supporting weight, draining water, and hosting biology.”
Dick highlighted the structured vertical fissures left in uncultivated columns between drill rows: “You’re not destroying soil to get seed in. These columns act as support pillars for machinery and promote drainage, gas exchange, and worm activity… Worms are your unpaid cultivators,” he said.
He also emphasised that no system is a silver bullet. Cover crops, thoughtful rotations, and ongoing management were key to maintaining progress.
Data meets dirt
Omnia’s digital services specialist James Lane explained how Claydon Farm uses digital tools to inform key management decisions throughout the year.
Omnia is a cloud-based platform that brings together a wide range of information from yield maps and soil type data to spray records, climate data, costings, and even photographic evidence for environmental schemes.
“This isn’t just about mapping yields anymore,” James explained. “We’re generating compliance reports, input logs, pest and disease modelling, and even carbon costings – all in one system. You can track everything from application rates to stock levels in real time. Importantly, all this feeds into live cost-of- production figures.”
Built to last
Visitors were invited into Claydon’s on-site manufacturing facilities. Led by R&D manager Matt Bowe, the tour moved through each stage of production, from raw steel to finished drills ready for delivery. “We do almost everything in-house,” he explained. “That gives us control over quality, lead times, and the flexibility to make changes quickly when needed.”
One point Matt emphasised was Claydon Drills’ investment in surface preparation. Every part is shot blasted, edge-rounded, and carefully cleaned before being painted. “The paint’s no good if it doesn’t stick,” he said. “And yellow is particularly unforgiving. If the prep isn’t perfect, it shows.”
Pulse welding is now used across the production line, reducing spatter and improving speed without sacrificing strength. “It’s given us a 10-15% gain in output without any compromise,” Matt noted. The factory also reflects Claydon’s commitment to efficiency. Rainwater is collected for on-site use, and solar panels now generate the bulk of the plant’s electricity. “We’re trying to run a sustainable business as well as building sustainable machines,” Matt added.
A working farm
The trailer-led tour around the Claydon family’s fields was an unvarnished look at how the Opti-Till system performs across a working commercial farm. Despite a dry spring and no irrigation, the crops were uniform, healthy, and consistent across different soil types. Jeff pointed out specific areas where drainage had improved over the years: “Now the structure supports machinery, drains better, and we’re getting roots down to depth.”
He explained how shallow establishment and a focus on residue management after combining had helped suppress weeds and reduce inputs. “It’s not just about the drill, it’s about what happens in the system either side of it. If we chop and spread residue properly, we’re halfway there.”
Pointing towards the innovation and research that’s ongoing at Claydon Drills, a section of the tour included a field that had been undergoing fertiliser trials Including micro fertilisers, protected phosphates, and various blends. Although there were some visual differences, yield data will ultimately determine the result. Jeff commented on their experimental approaches “Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t, but you don’t know unless you try?”
What stood out was the lack of compaction damage or poor emergence, even in headlands and tramlines.
Farmer feedback
David Gunn, a contractor and arable farmer from Kent who farms 40ha of his own land and 160ha of contracted land has been using a Claydon Hybrid drill for several seasons. He said that the Hybrid, with its auto-reset legs and simplified layout, allowed him to work across a range of soil types with fewer stoppages and less wear. When asked what his main driving factor behind using Claydon Drills equipment, he said: “It’s extremely well built. And the central metering system makes it easy to calibrate. You can drill rape down to the last coffee- cup of seed, there’s no guesswork”
Nick Kiddy is a tenant farmer near Saffron Walden who hasn’t yet made the switch to Claydon Drills equipment but is now seriously considering it. Nick had previously brought in a neighbour with a Claydon drill to sow barley and wheat on the land he was farming. “The establishment was so consistent, even in a dry year. That got us thinking.” He was especially interested in the interrow hoe, which he sees as a potential gamechanger for weed control. “If we can keep blackgrass at bay without upping chemical costs, that’s a win,” he said. After conversations with the Claydon Drills team during the event, Nick is now exploring second-hand options.
The theme of the day was clear: profitability doesn’t come from a single piece of equipment, but from the way systems are integrated, with drilling, spraying, residue management, and data all pulling in the same direction.
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