Farmer Focus Livestock: Tom Rawson tackles second cut

Friday tea time is firmly reserved for looking on the Potter website to see the latest goings on in UK dairying.

The past few weeks have left my job of remaining positive for this article a tough one; the collapse of DFoB, low milk price contracts being offered and industrial espionage; oh well the only way is up.

Second-cut silage looks good to go and by the time you read this, all being well, it should be in the clamp.

Grass growth has been steady, to say the least; between 50 and 70kg/ha DM a day, our demand is 57, so, as a result, we haven’t had to take any silage off the milking platform.

I have been away on a discussion group trip to Devon. As usual, you get as much out of the company of 16 other farmers on the tour as the people you visit.

A good range of businesses with one common theme: Block calving. Calving once a year seems to have a direct correlation with high profit and it is something we must look at in our business, counting the true cost of split block.

Finally, my baby-sitting skills hit rock bottom. I was pushing William in his pram through the garden when my nephew Harry challenged me to a game of football. Not being able to resist, I promptly put the brakes on the pram and ran after him. Unfortunately, I hadn’t noticed the sprinkler was on and William was rapidly soaked.

Before I had time to think of some cunning excuse why he was wet, Catherine appeared just to see the sprinkler go round for the second time.

• Read more columns from Tom Rawson