Livestock Farmer Focus FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Sheep dip disposal plan threatens scab controlI am writing this after finishing our first day dipping our breeding ewe flock. I can’t say it is one of my favourite jobs with the sheep, as they know… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Dry matter error spotted in transition dietThe wet fifth-cut silage has come back at a staggering 16% dry matter. I don’t think that’s a record, but it must be pretty close. We’re feeding it already to… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: New grazing challenges heifer immunity to ticksIt has been a welcome change to the weather here. With the drop in temperature and some much-needed rain, it is easy to forget how dry it was during the… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Electrical inspection prompts sockets updateGrass seeds went in at the end of September and, thanks to a spell of warm weather and steady showers, they have soon got away. The conditions also allowed us… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Late season grazing helps winter silage budgetAutumn came with a flush of quality grass, so we stopped feeding silage for the cows during September and only reintroduced it back into their diet in mid-October. But the… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: All three cuts in ration provides consistencyI’ve not fallen off the new bike, yet! We managed a couple of days up in Angus for half term with the boys and took it with us in the… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Fourth cut makes a Grand Canyon in the clampWell, who would have thought after one of the driest summers on record, that when the rain finally came and the grass started growing, the challenges we would have trying… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Weather helps loading, but some rain is neededWhat a glorious autumn we’ve had so far. Excellent for reducing straw use in the outdoor pigs thanks to the lack of rainfall. But not so good for the growing… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Rough grazing picture sparks tupping rethinkWe have been playing hunt-the-grass this month, largely unsuccessfully. The false hope of a little rain at the start of September was dashed with high temperatures and more wind. The… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Beef herd assessment rewards longevityThis October, we hosted our final Monitor Farm meeting and drew the four-year programme to a close. It has been an enjoyable time, during which our business has undergone considerable… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Welsh farming scheme is at least workableOn a recent train journey to Birmingham, the whole countryside looked picture perfect: good grass covers in fields, cattle and sheep grazing, fields harvested and being drilled. To the urban… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Farm shale cuts costs of new cow trackWhen it comes to what value we put on an acre of land, we often consider the age of the sward, the soil type, or even the money spent to… More articles
