Livestock Farmer Focus FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Drought won’t disappear with first rainfallNot much has changed in terms of drought conditions since my last article. I think we are all starting to realise that the drought of 2026 is not something that… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Managing risk is the essence of farmingThis farming job seems pretty good, doesn’t it? Well, no, not if you believe the doom-laden videos filling up my social media feed over the past couple of weeks. Or,… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Cell counts and mastitis up in heatwaveRain is still nowhere to be seen. We’ve had barely a drop since mid-June, and the second-cut aftermaths haven’t come back at all. The forecast doesn’t show much hope for… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Lucerne crop is only green area on farmLike many others this summer, harvest was all wrapped up and finished before the end of July. This was a first for us, having finished in the middle of August… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Early winter feed costing extra £1,000/dayWith not much rain for August in the forecast, we took the decision earlier in the month thatthe silage harvest campaign on our ground was over for 2026. The focus… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Grass challenge – but drought not to blameAugust is the time of year when farming in Ayrshire becomes less about careful planning and more about staring at weather apps until one eventually tells you what you want… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Vaccine is best hope against bluetongueWell, how things have changed. The country is facing one of its driest summers on record and the countryside is turning various shades of brown. Having heavier ground, we are… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Neighbour’s straw averts bedding shortageThe big question looming over me back in June was whether we would have enough straw to last us until harvest. And this included putting all top bales through the… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Lambs on pellets as ewes pick at dry grassLast month, I said we were making second-cut silage. That was optimistic: weeks of strong, hot winds have ripped all the moisture out of everything. Stock have eaten all that… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Mother Nature still controls 90% of the outcomeWell, my optimism for harvest of 12t/ha average yield was short-lived once the combine started to roll. We planned to start wheat harvest at the start of August, but we… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Drought focuses minds on water resilienceThe stream that runs past our house has completely dried up. Two other streams on the farm are just about running with enough water for some of the sheep. Our… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Drought mitigation priority as smoke clearsIn my last article, I commented how great our spring grass growth had been. Silage crops were abundant and we were set up for a fruitful grazing season. Well, how… More articles
