Now, in autumn 2023, one of the key issues for farmers is what will count as fallow land with mulch eligible for GAEC 8 in 2024. Unlike this year, despite the strong position of Hungary and a number of other Member States in favour of the GAEC 7-8 derogation, the European Commission does not see the need for farmers to be able to grow food crops on their fallow land and at the same time count them towards the GAEC 8. It is therefore important that farmers plan their crops in such a way that they comply with the GAEC 7 crop conversion rules and the GAEC 8 non-productive area rules. The aforementioned GAECs 7 and 8 are based on an earlier our communiqué We've already explained. The purpose of this information is to explain how farmers who wish to account for fallow land with mulch when complying with GAEC 8 in 2024 can do so in the absence of a derogation. Basically, land lying fallow is defined as land on which no crops are sown, planted or harvested between 1 January and 31 August, or on which only cleansing mowing and mechanical weed control can be carried out by farmers. The use of pesticides is also not allowed, as we have been accustomed to using ecological focus areas (EFAs) for greening. In application of GAEC 8, in addition to compliance with these conditions, only land lying fallow from which the hay is not taken during the set-aside period shall be accepted. It is extremely important to be aware that any fallow land eligible for GAEC 8 must have some form of mulching. In other words, the uncovered EFA parcel area known from the greening rules of the previous period is no longer eligible for GAEC 8. So, during the set-aside period, it is necessary to ensure that the soil is covered, for which the farmer basically has three options: first, sowing or planting mulch vegetation, second, sowing or planting a mixture of bee pasture and wildflower, and third, leaving stubble residues and spontaneously appearing plants. These are described in detail below.
Sown/planted mulch vegetation is the most useful and desirable way of mulching the fallow land in terms of soil. In this case, fallow land obtained by sowing or planting only the plants listed below or a mixture thereof shall be accepted. For the listed plants, we have clearly indicated in the table below that they can be accepted as ground cover vegetation either alone or in combination with other plants on the list.
| Plant | Can be planted or planted as a cover crop |
|---|---|
| White-flowered sweet lupin | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Yellow-flowered sweet lupin | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Blue-flowered sweet lupin | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Fodder vetches (spring vetches) | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Blonde vetches | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Pannonian vetch | Covering plants which may be sown or planted on their own |
| Lucerna | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Lucerne with hops | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Sárkerep alfalfa | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Spotted alfalfa | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Red clover | Covering plants which may be sown or planted on their own |
| Purple clover | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| White clover | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Korcshere (Swedish herb) | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Persian clover | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Alexandriai here | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Lodi clover | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Yellow-flowered mulberry (medical mulberry) | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| White-flowered mulberry | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Feed baltic acid | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Deer trap | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Rabbit puppy | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Seradella | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Crowned axe flower | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Rape rape | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Tifon | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Turnips | Only cover crops that can be planted or sown with other plants in this list |
| Fodder beet | Only cover crops that can be planted or sown with other plants in this list |
| Jerusalem artichokes | Only cover crops that can be planted or sown with other plants in this list |
| Beets (Moroccan -) | Only cover crops that can be planted or sown with other plants in this list |
| Variety of crown clusters | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Eastern goat roulette | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Honeygrass (Steel) | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Grass alfalfa Grass testicles |
A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Mallows (Fodder -) | Only cover crops that can be planted or sown with other plants in this list |
| Horseshoe | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Temporary grassland | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Field of grass | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Greenugar culture | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Ebtippan | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| The Giant Tip | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| White tipan Threadtippan |
A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| French ryegrass | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Beetle's spear | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Italian ryegrass (threaded ryegrass) English ryegrass |
A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Hybrid rim | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Ligeti's ryegrass | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Réti ryegrass | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Swamp rim | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Lean rim | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Hungarian rye | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Green Sash | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Knotted eaves | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Cane-faced fescue | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Sheep’s cricket | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Meadow fescue | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Red fescue | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Red pants fescue | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Comochine with tubers | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Meadow Comochine | A cover crop that can be sown or planted on its own |
| Rye | Only cover crops that can be planted or sown with other plants in this list |
| Black oats (sand oats) | Only cover crops that can be planted or sown with other plants in this list |
We would like to draw your attention to the fact that only in the year 2024, if the farmer chooses sown or planted mulch on the given area and wants to count it as fallow land, but in the autumn of 2023 has already sown there a crop that is not included in the above list, he has to perform drying on the whole area at the latest by the end of the period for submitting the 2024 single application and will have to declare it in the manner laid down in the Single Application Regulation.
Sowing or planting a bee-pasture mixture or wildflower mixture can also create mulch. In this case, the fallowing period typical of the fallow area may be interrupted; if the farmer wishes to create mulching on his fallow land by doing so, he may, in addition to using certified material, sow or plant the wildflower mixture and the bee pasture mixture by 15 April of the year in question. The list of species that can be sown as bee pasture mixtures will be identical to the list of bee pasture plants known from AKG. The concept of wildflower mixture is a novelty in aid policy. Following international practice, the aim is to create a plant stock where three to four of the species listed below are mixed into an existing mixture, e.g. grass-formers, green manure plants, in a ratio of 5 to 10 percent, in order to expand biodiversity and the habitat of arthropods. The following plants are expected to qualify as wildflowers from the aid year 2024:
| Scientific name of wildflower | Hungarian name of wildflower |
|---|---|
| Achillea millefolium | Common yarrow |
| Agrimonia eupatoria | Ordinary distillation grass |
| Angelica sylvestris | Angel roots of the forest |
| Anthemis arvensis | Parlagi Pipitér |
| Anthemis tinctoria | Painting pipette |
| Anthoxanthum odoratum | Veal paste |
| Anthriscus sylvestris | Forest chervil |
| Barbarea vulgaris | Basil grass |
| Bellis perennis | Daisy |
| Betonica officinalis | Bakgrass |
| Calendula officinalis | Calendula |
| Campanula persicifolia | Bellflower |
| Campanula rapunculus | Raponcharang flower |
| Campanula rotundifolia | Round-leaved bellflower |
| Campanula trachelium | Nettle-leaved bellflower |
| Capsella bursa pastoris | Shepherd's bag |
| Carduus nutans | Ruffled thistle |
| Centaurea cyanus | Wheat blossom |
| Centaurea jacea | Meadow imola |
| Centaurea scabiosa | Iron horn imola |
| Chrysanthemum leucanthemum | Wild daisies |
| Cichorium intybus | Field chalk |
| Clinopodium vulgare | Peppergrass |
| Consolida orientalis | Eastern crow's foot |
| Consolida regalis | Seeding crow's feet |
| Coronilla varia | Variety of crown clusters |
| Crepis biennis | Meadow rattles |
| Crepis rhoaedifolia | Poppie-leaved rattan |
| Cynoglossum officinale | Bilingual grass |
| Dianthus deltoides | Meadow carnations |
| Dipsacus fullonum | Blessings of the Forest |
| Eryngium planum | Blue iringo |
| Eupatorium cannabinum | Hemp hemp |
| Filipendula ulmaria | Meadow fangrass |
| Galium verum | Milk-extinguishing pigeon |
| Hypericum perforatum | St. John's wort |
| Hypochaeris radicata | Stinky bloody leaf |
| Isatis tinctoria | Painter's ringing |
| Knautia arvensis | Carnations of the field |
| Lathyrus pratensis | Meadow led |
| Leontodon hispidus | Common lion's tooth |
| Leonurus cardiaca | Prickly pearl lip |
| Leucanthemum vulgare | Meadow margit flower |
| Linaria vulgaris | Common incendiary grass |
| Linum perenne | Wild flax |
| Lychnis flos-cuculi | Meadow thyme |
| Lysimachia vulgaris | Common lysine |
| Lythrum salicaria | Meadow figs |
| Malva moschata | Musk mallow |
| Malva sylvestris | Wood marshmallow |
| Melandryum noctiflorum | Evening honeycomb |
| Orlaya grandiflora | Large-flowered laputurbolya |
| Ornithopus sativus | Chicken feet |
| Papaver rhoeas | Field poppies |
| Pastinaca sativa | Pastes |
| Pimpinella major | Great earthen incense |
| Pimpinella saxifraga | Useful incense |
| Plantago lanceolata | Strawberry with spear |
| Plantago media | St. John's wort |
| Potentilla neumanniana | The Spring Pimp |
| Prunella vulgaris | Common lizard grass |
| Reseda lutea | Wild rezeda |
| Rumex acetosa | Meadow sorrel |
| Salvia austriaca | Sage of Austria |
| Salvia pratensis | Sage of the field |
| Sanguisorba minor | Csabaíre |
| Saponaria officinalis | Medical soapgrass |
| Silene dioica | Red honeycomb |
| Silene latifolia | White honeycomb |
| Silene vulgaris | Foam cloves with blisters |
| Sinapis arvensis | Rape |
| Tanacetum vulgare | Giliston varádics |
| Thymus pulegioides | Mountain thyme |
| Tragopogon orientale | Common salsify |
| Tragopogon pratensis | Meadow beard |
| Trifolium arvense | Clover |
| Trifolium campestre | Mezei testicle |
| Trifolium vesiculosum | Blistered testicle |
| Tripleurospermum inodora | Dill-leaved oatgrass |
| Verbascum Lychnitis | Horned oxtail with chandeliers |
| Verbascum nigrum | Black oxtail |
| Verbascum thapsiforme | Wolverine |
| Vicia angustifolia | Sowing vetches |
| Xeranthemum annua | Iron blossom |
Finally, soil cover can be achieved by leaving stubble residues or spontaneously appearing green vegetation on the ground. If the farmer chooses this way of mulching on his field, he shall prevent flowering or the development of propagating formulae on the whole field by mowing or shredding spontaneously appearing green vegetation, irrespective of whether the spontaneous green vegetation is an orphanage of the previous crop or a common weed, including dangerous and invasive weeds. In these areas, too, the spread of dangerous weeds and invasive plants must be prevented by respecting the minimum requirements associated with the eligible areas, for which an appropriate method is to prevent flowering and the development of a reproductive formula. In all cases, therefore, the maintenance of the cultural condition on the land lying fallow is permitted only by means of cleansing mowing and shredding. It is also important that in the fallow land to be accounted for under GAEC 8 no pesticides, including seedlings, may be applied during the fallowing period. At the same time, it is recalled that coupled support is not available in these areas in the current year.
The full article is also available in PDF format by clicking on the link below:
Focus on mulching fallow land