Our first outdoor calving for a generation here at Balbirnie is complete. We managed to get the cows off kale and onto grass on the 15th March. The grass was deferred from July last year. Daily moves were planned, and due to the very wet conditions, absolutely necessary. On the worst of the days, we were moving twice daily. Calving, due to start 10th April, started as planned with few problems.
Can we justify the expense? Do we have enough staff? Do we know anyone who speaks German? Where is Hannover? These were the questions being discussed at Horizon in 2021, but the decision was finally made; “we’re going to Agritechnica 23 and we will make it a success!’”
The increasing threat of barley yellow dwarf virus in winter wheat and the potential of resistant varieties to overcome it was the focus of a recent open day at TWB Farms, near Lichfield. Host farmer Clive Bailye set up an observation trial last autumn, comparing 15ha of BYDV-resistant RGT Grouse with a similar area of …
BYDV threat under the spotlight at TWB Farms open day Read More »
I finished my last DD article (Sept 23) by wishing everyone well for the Autumn drilling campaign – well I do not think anyone could have predicted what the weather gods were about to throw at us! A relentless wet Autumn, winter and spring have taken their toll, on crops, the land and everyone associated with getting crops through to harvest. I have never ever wished away time, but I think getting harvest 24 done, in the shed and slate wiped clean will be a welcome relief for everyone.
With the delayed Spring, forages stocks have been severely challenged, late turn out meant that already depleted Winter stocks were used, and grazing paddocks left longer than expected in warm wet conditions continued to grow so quality was reduced. This alongside being unable to apply fertiliser particularly in the heavier soils of the west has meant a late start to both grazing and silaging in the livestock sector. Even now soils have not recovered, recent silaging has been under challenging conditions in many areas trailers and foragers being pulled in and out of fields. This means that the silage is likely to be poorer quality due to late cutting, little or no fertiliser applied so yields not what they could be and the resulting damage and compaction to fields potentially having a knock-on effect for 2nd cut. Upon completion of VESS soil inspections around the country, compaction can be seen because of heavy winter rainfall, animal treading following a wet Autumn and Spring, this will mean that plant roots will be restricted from taking up water if the summer turns dry reducing the ability of the plant to endure periods of drought.
The ADAS Nutrition Challenge is back for 2024 with thirteen growers competing against ADAS crop scientists and RB209 best practice guidelines to see whose crop nutrition strategy ends up achieving the highest gross margin over nutrient costs.
Farmers are crucial in managing one of our most vital resources: soil. The health of soil impacts not only the yield and quality of crops, but also its ability to store carbon, an increasingly important tool in global efforts to combat climate change.
For those in agriculture, understanding how to measure soil carbon accurately is not just beneficial; it’s a necessity. Here’s a straightforward look at how to approach soil carbon measurement, with accuracy and reliability front-of-mind.
It looks like arable movers, shakers and advisors seem to be moving away from yield, costs and profits towards the birds, bees and ecology. They’re ‘following the money’ as Warren Buffett might say. Today they are making the choice between AHL1 (pollen and nectar flower mix) at £739 / ha/year or leaving their Sustainable Farming …
Never fear, I’m not venturing into Shakespeare here. Not only are my writing skills lacking, but I can’t see Direct Driller ever making it to the stage either. However, I am questioning the desire to be labelled a “regenerative farmer”. Do you want or need to be labelled at all? This is not quite weighing …
January 2024 Neurodiversity and oubaitori, 2 words that presented themselves to me towards the end of 2023, 2 words which answer a lot of questions to many of my life’s struggles, thankfully something that seems to have been put well behind me since finding regenerative agriculture and realising this would cure my mental health issues. …
