Farmer Focus: Morale boost as lambing and calving completed

The beginning of May must be the happiest time of year.

I don’t know if the general public share these good vibes, or if it’s just a farmer’s thing.

We are the people who work and live outside, and smell and breathe the arrival of spring. And what a spring it has been.

See also: How a shift in grazing grew more beef for less money

About the author

Dafydd Parry Jones

Dafydd Parry Jones and wife Glenys, Machynlleth, Powys, run a closed flock of 750 Texel and Aberfield cross ewes and 70 Hereford cross sucklers cows on 180ha. Their upland organic system uses Hereford bulls, Charollais terminal sires and red clover silage, multispecies leys and rotational grazing.

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This time of year feels like the first chance to have a breather, having accomplished a great deal of work over the past weeks and months, and sets us up for the coming summer.

And there is nothing better for any farmer’s morale than a sense of accomplishment: we are all happy when the work is done.

For us, April saw most of the cows calving and calves tagged and moved out of the sheds to their summer pasture at the far end of the farm.

Meanwhile, lambs have been marked, castrated and weighed for estimated finishing times.

Some single lambs born in the beginning of March were nearly 30kg by the end of April, which proves that continuous sunshine can have a positive impact on growth.

We estimate more lamb will be available to sell in June, compared with last year. The twins have been marked and moved from the lower fields, enabling the silage fields to be closed off.

The fallen branches from the windy winter were gathered before slurry was applied to fields. We also chain-harrowed before the much-needed rain we received mid-April.

Contractors have been brought in for ploughing, power harrowing and reseeding of 10ha (25 acres).

We’ve used red clover, ryegrass and mixed herbs undersown with an arable silage mix to protect the seeds during their first two months of growth.

These fields were last reseeded 10 years ago with the same mixture.

We found the composition of the ley developed over time, with red clover and herbs for the first five years and white clover taking over in the later five.

As May emerges, the continuous feeding work in the sheds gives way to essential maintenance work out in the fields. Our fencing contractors and a tree surgeon are due to arrive, which works well as I’ve got plenty of time to be there to assist them, and get the jobs done.

So, another happy farmer!