Key dates - Cross Compliance Wales
A full list of farming key dates that you must follow to be compliant with Welsh cross compliance rules and regulations.
Please note that these key dates are specifically for Wales. Key dates for England, Scotland and Northern Ireland may differ.
January
| 1st | SMR1: You can now apply organic manure with a high readily available nitrogen content to grassland or tillage land on shallow or sandy soils. |
| 16th | SMR1: You can now apply manufactured nitrogen fertilisers to grassland and tillage land if conditions are suitable. |
| 16th | SMR1: You can now apply organic manure with a high readily available nitrogen content to grassland on soils which are not shallow or sandy. |
February
| 1st | SMR1: You can, from this date, apply organic manure with a high, readily available nitrogen content (for example, slurry, poultry manures or liquid digested sewage sludge) to grassland and tillage land on all soil types if conditions are suitable and you adhere to the quantity restrictions for applying these manures. |
March
| 1st | GAEC 7: You must not cut hedgerows or trees from this date, but you can carry out hedge laying and coppicing during March providing nesting birds are not disturbed. |
| 1st | GAEC 4: Maintain minimum soil cover following harvest until this date. |
| 15th | GAEC 6: You must not burn heather, rough grass, bracken, gorse or vaccinium on land other than upland areas after this date. |
| 31st | GAEC 6: You must not burn heather, rough grass, bracken, gorse or vaccinium on land anywhere, including upland areas, after this date. |
| 31st | GAEC 7: You must not carry out hedge-laying or coppicing from this date unless you have permission from Welsh Government for training or educational purposes. |
April
| 30th | SMR 1: You must have recorded the number and type of livestock kept on your farm and the amount of time the livestock spent on your farm during the previous calendar year. You must also have calculated the amount of nitrogen they produced in the previous calendar year by this date. You must also record the number and type of livestock in a building or hard standing during the previous storage period. |
August
| 1st | SMR 1: Start of closed period for applying organic manure with a high readily available nitrogen content to tillage land on shallow or sandy soils (application is allowed between 1st August and 15th September as long as a crop is sown on or before 15th September). |
| 1st | GAEC 7: On arable land where the normal agricultural practice requires a winter arable crop is planted before 31st August, you may cut back relevant hedges or trees from this date as long as nesting birds are not disturbed. |
| 31st | GAEC 7: You may trim hedges and trees after this date. |
September
| 1st | SMR 1: Start of closed period for applying organic manure with a high readily available nitrogen content to grassland on shallow or sandy soils. |
| 1st | SMR 1: Start of closed period for applying manufactured nitrogen fertilisers to tillage land. |
| 15th | SMR 1: Start of closed period for applying manufactured nitrogen fertilisers to grassland. |
October
| 1st | SMR 1: Start of closed period for applying organic manure with a high readily available nitrogen content to tillage land on soils which are not shallow or sandy. |
| 1st | GAEC 6: You can burn heather, rough grass, bracken, gorse or vaccinium on land in upland areas from this date. |
| 15th | SMR 1: Start of closed period for applying organic manure with a high readily available nitrogen content to grassland on soils which are not shallow or sandy. |
November
| 1st | GAEC 6: You may burn heather, rough grass, bracken, gorse or vaccinium on all land types from this date. |
December
| 1st | SMR 8: Stocktake record all sheep and goats being kept on 1st December. |
