Paul Vicary celebrates bumper silage

After last month’s deliberating over cutting some grass, I took the risk and cut 30 acres of Italians that were very forward on 31 March. I then faced the horrible wait on the weather, which forecast snow in the Midlands (who has ever heard of silage making interrupted by snow?). But more by luck than judgement the weather cleared and we had two lovely days for a good wilt and easy collection, which resulted in 70t of probably the best silage we have ever made. We await analysis. The highs certainly got excited by me stacking it beside their shed.

The early silage has made the weather turn and we have now had a real deluge and all spring jobs are on hold, which has given us some time to potter and mainly tidy up after the builders. I think I could rival Screwfix for the amount of nails and screws I have collected, but the place is starting to resemble a farm again and our love for the place is starting to show in how it looks.

The investment has opened my eyes to how to do the job. “Invest is always best” is certainly true here. The day to day is becoming a pleasure rather than the struggle it had become in the old set up and I’m excited by what the unit can and will do over the next few years.

Paul Vicary farms 458hs (1,200acres) as Hilders Farm, Kent, in partnership with his parents Helen and Graham. They milk 220 cows three times a day and have 200 followers and plan to increase herd size to 350 by 2015. They also run 500 ewes and ewe lambs.

Read more articles by Paul Vicary

Read more from our livestock Farmer Focus writers