Spring weather helps keep lamb losses to a minimum
Spring weather helps keep lamb losses to a minimum
Excellent weather conditions
made the exhausting job of
lambing much more bearable
this year at Pen-yr-Ochr.
Robert Davies reports
EDWARD Wozencraft cannot remember a better early spring. Around 80% of the ewes have lambed and losses are low. While he is wary of tempting providence, he anticipates that lambing percentage should be above average.
However, on the severely disadvantaged farm that means only around 105 lambs reared from every 100 ewes tupped.
"We always have a large number of barren ewes, especially among those that run on the common, and not a huge number of twins. Having dry conditions and the sun on their backs should make a big difference to the lamb survival rate."
He and his wife Eunice share lambing duties. For 11 of the past 12 years a friend has also taken time off from his own small farm to help out for two weeks at the peak time.
Mrs Wozencraft manages twin-bearing ewes when they are housed and immediately after turnout. That means checking regularly until 2am – doing book-keeping between visits – and then grabbing three hours sleep.
"Unless the weather is really bad we only keep ewes and lambs inside until we are sure there is bonding between them," says Mrs Wozencraft. "This spring it has been a pleasure to be able turn them out under ideal conditions."
Most of the ewes carrying singles lamb outside with few problems. Lambs born to the Elan Valley-type Welsh Mountain ewes are usually very lively and, if their dams have sufficient milk, they are incredibly hardy.
Grass is needed to ensure ewes lactate well, but applying fertiliser to get it can cause problems. Too often, rain makes it impossible to spread at the optimum time when soil temperature is starting to rise.
"Fortunately I managed to get 2t of early-bite compound onto little fields near the lambing shed and the results were tremendous," says Mr Wozencraft. "I was able to dress only half of one field and the contrast in early grass growth between the two halves was astonishing."
Ewes suckling twins are still getting the dry feed used before lambing. It is made up of 50% of an 18% protein blend, 25% sugar beet and 25% maize and cost £134/t.
Only 60 lambs are left from the 2001 crop. The last 60 sold went through the collection centre at Penybont, Radnorshire. The lightest averaged 30kg and realised 90p/kg. Others weighing around 38kg made 105p/kg.
"I have found it very difficult over the last year to predict trends. The price seems to drop suddenly for no apparent reason, which is what happened the day we sold. We were far from happy."
He was much more content when six store cattle were entered for a special catalogue sale at Rhayader. Two picked up second prize cards in a pre-sale show and all the cattle sold very well.
One 475kg steer on a red card made £645 and the whole consignment returned £3306.
"Trade was tremendous, probably the best since 1996. But there is a shortage of store cattle following foot-and-mouth. I think that there are also a lot of stores trapped on farms that have had TB reactors."
A consignment of finished cattle sold deadweight through the Safeway Beef Producers Group brought disappointment. While he was reasonably happy with the 175p/kg deadweight price paid for those that matched specification, two steers were over the 400kg carcass weight limit and their price was only 132p/kg.
"I knew the rules and should have pulled them out and sold them elsewhere. I will not make the same mistake again."
Selling cattle has eased pressure on fodder and straw stocks and the partners estimate they have enough if grass growth is good.
After reading lots of leaflets and consulting other farmers, the Wozencrafts have invested in a new grass tedder. They wanted one that was robust enough to handle heavy crops of grass and had to pay £2595 to get one.
After a quiet spell, Edward Wozencrafts livestock lorry is doing more work, including moving sheep home from away-wintering farms. Post F&M biosecurity measures have become a little less Draconian, but still involve a lot of extra work.
"I suppose we have to accept that moving and marketing livestock will never be quite the same again," he says. *
FARM FACTS
• Pen-yr-Ochr, Llangurig, Powys, home farm for a business extending over three blocks of land totalling 184ha (442 acres), farmed by Edward and Eunice Wozencraft.
• All land is classified as severely disadvantaged.
• The business runs 850 Elan Valley-type Welsh Mountain ewes, including a 60-head nucleus flock of elite females that are part of a group-breeding scheme. Forty crossbred suckler cows are run with Blonde and Limousin bulls. Calves are marketed as stores.
• The partners are members of community group linked to a technology transfer project focus farm, and are involved in scrapie genotyping scheme.
• There is one part-time worker and casual help is hired as required.