Livestock Farmer Focus 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… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Farm does worryingly well in my absenceThey say you should be able to leave your business without worrying for it to be successful. I'm recently back from 19 days in Australia and New Zealand, and things… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Haymaking done, but feed value is debatableThe past few days have been manic. The winter barley yielded about 8.15t/ha at 13% moisture; not the boldest sample we have ever seen, but there is a large pile… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Bull hire - quality genetics at lower costThe prolonged dry spell is beginning to bite. Winter feed stocks are disappearing far quicker than we had planned, as everything is now being fed on haylage. Not only is… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Culling and concentrates up as drought bitesMany people reading this from England will be rolling their eyes when I say we haven’t had decent rainfall in more than four weeks in Northern Ireland. Our rocky knowes… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Dry weather great for site work but not cowsAfter almost two years of planning and waiting, the electricity transformer blocking the new parlour site has been moved. That’s allowed us to make the most of the dry weather… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Misting system averts disaster in broiler shedBy the time you read this, I am hoping the prolonged dry spell we have been experiencing will have come to an end, because we certainly do need some rain.… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Hats off to sheep shearers in sauna-like shedIt's dry, hot and our ground is burning, turning a lovely shade of reddish brown. It's the constant topic of conversation among neighbours, how desperately we are in need of… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Schoolkids look on as crews tackle field fireIt has been a busy time in the run-up to harvest. The silage yielded better than expected, thanks to a bit of rain beforehand. Salisbury Plain is currently very burned… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Hosepipe and fan rigged up to cool cowsWe finished drilling maize on 23 May, followed almost immediately by an inch of rain. The crop emerged within four days and has established really well. Second-cut silage was delayed… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Cows drinking 100 litres/day to combat heatSilage was again done in glorious weather – this was second cut done in four days, roughly 138ha (340 acres). There were no breakdowns, staff performed well and 1,400 bales… FARMER FOCUSFarmer Focus: Milk yields up but hot spells hit fertilityWith a week of good weather finally forecast, we’ve knocked down 12ha (30 acres) of mature grass to bale as hay for dry cows. We seem to spend all summer… More articles
