The next Nithsdale Monitor Farm meeting on Thursday 20 September will focus on improving pasture productivity through soil and grass management.
Independent grassland consultant Charlie Morgan from GrassMaster Ltd will be the key speaker at the meeting, which will be held at Clonhie Farm, Nithsdale Monitor Farm, Penpont, near Thornhill.
Andrew and Aileen Marchant, who farm at Clonhie, run 900 breeding ewes, a small herd of 20 Luing cattle and have recently invested in 100 deer hinds on their 300-hectare upland tenanted farm.
In the morning, the group will visit various fields and Mr Morgan will lead a discussion on how Clonhie’s current grassland management could be improved.
“We have already done some reseeding, soil testing and applied lime to some of the fields at Clonhie but are keen to learn from Charlie if there is more that we can do to improve our grazing and utilise our grass better,” said Mr Marchant.
“Last year we deferred some grass and paddock grazed over the winter for the first time to help keep our winter feed costs down. This worked well, and we want to look at ways of developing this further,” he added.
The group will also visit neighbouring Glengar farm, which the Marchants took over the tenancy of in 2016.
“This is the first time we have taken silage off the fields at Glengar and which are currently being used as paddock grazing for sheep. We want to see what can be done to increase grass yield and quality in the future,” said Mr Marchant.
Also at the meeting, Rhidian Jones of RJ Livestock Systems will share the winter feed budget that has been developed for Clonhie and explain what farmers can do to try and get their ewes into optimum condition before the tupping season begins.
The Nithsdale monitor farm is one of nine monitor farms that have been established around Scotland in a joint initiative by Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds. The aim of the programme, which is funded by Scottish Government, is to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Scottish farm businesses.
The meeting at Clonhie Farm on Thursday 20 September will begin at 11am, end at 3.30pm and will include lunch.
To book your place please contact facilitator Judith Hutchison on 07718 919055 or email judith.agridigm@icloud.com.
The next North Ayrshire Monitor farm meeting on 12 September will focus of the important, but sometimes sensitive, subject of succession planning.
At the meeting, which will be held at Auchens Restaurant, Dundonald, and begin at 7.30pm, Heather Wildman from Saviour Associates will highlight the advantages of planning for the future and suggest ways of approaching the process for farming businesses.
“People avoid starting the process of succession planning for many reasons,” said Mrs Wildman.
“Some are afraid that it will cause conflict, the process will be too difficult, or they simply don’t know how to approach it with their family.
“It can also be difficult, when you are busy running a business, to find the time to consider long term succession planning. However, it makes sense to consider succession planning at an early stage if you wish to secure the success of your business for the next generation,” said Mrs Wildman.
The meeting will address some of the reasons why those involved in farming too often avoid planning for succession and suggest some questions farmers should ask themselves at that start of the process.
Mrs Wildman, who has published a guide to succession aimed at farmers, acknowledges that every farm business and situation is different, and it is important that each business develops a succession plan that works for them.
“By the end of the meeting I hope that attendees will be able to create an action plan and vision for the succession of their own businesses,” added Mrs Wildman.
John Howie from Girtridge Farm, North Ayrshire’s Monitor Farm, runs the 140-hectare livestock farm in partnership with his mother Margaret and his sister Mary. He is hoping this meeting will help support farmers in the area who may be looking for guidance on the succession planning process in their own businesses.
“Succession is often viewed as quite an emotive subject and as a result many farming families find it difficult to talk about,” said Mr Howie. “We hope that this meeting will help to address that and encourage farming families on the best way to talk about this topic and prepare for the future.”
The North Ayrshire Monitor Farm is one of nine monitor farms that have been established across Scotland in a joint initiative by Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds, with funding from the Scottish Government. The aim of the programme is to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Scottish farm businesses.
The meeting at the Auchens Restaurant on 12 September will begin at 7.30pm prompt. Those attending the meeting are invited for a meal at the Restaurant at 6pm. Attendees who are unable to attend the meal should aim to arrive at 7pm for a 7.30 pm start. The meeting is expected to finish by 9.30pm. All are welcome and the event is free.
For catering purposes, those interested in coming along should confirm attendance by calling 01292 525252 or emailing FBSAyr@sac.co.uk by 11 September.
Forage crops and pasture management are set to be the focus of the next Shetland Monitor farm meeting on Saturday 25 August.
Monitor Farm Community Group Chairman, Jamie Leslie, will host the meeting at Scholland Farm. Mr Leslie, who farms in partnership with his father John with help from brother Alistair, cousin Steven, wife Louise, and his three children, runs 850 ewes and over 70 cows. He also contract farms at Sumburgh Farm.
Mr Leslie has been rotational grazing his livestock for a few years and has recently been experimenting with crops such as Plantain and Fodder Beet.
The group will also hear from independent consultant Michael Blanche who will address how profit can be made through pasture management, practical ways of making rotational grazing work and how to manage higher stocking rates with challenging winters.
Mr Blanche is a first-generation farmer who started with 50 sheep on seasonal lets, and now has 1,000 ewes on a tenanted farm in Perthshire. He is also the host of The Pasture Pod podcast.
He has completed a Nuffield Scholarship which investigated growing a livestock business from very little and concluded that pasture management was the golden key to profit and equity growth.
Monitor farmers Kirsty and Aimee Budge, who farm at Bigton, are looking forward to visiting Mr Leslie’s farm and hearing from Mr Blanche on how to make profit through pasture management.
“We are really grateful that Jamie has offered to host the visit to his farm next week,” said Kirsty Budge.
“We, like lots of other farmers in the group, are keen to learn about how forage crops can help make our own business more efficient.
‘’We are also really looking forward to hearing from Michael Blanche on how pasture management can aid profit and growth.”
At the meeting on 25 August, Kirsty and Aimee Budge will also update the group on developments at Bigton including the barley trial plots and the grazing season.
The Shetland Monitor Farm is one of nine monitor farms that have been established around Scotland in a joint initiative by Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds. The aim of the programme, which is funded by Scottish Government, is to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Scottish farm businesses.
The meeting on Saturday 25 August will begin at Ness Boating Club at 2.30pm and end at 6pm after a barbeque.
To book your attendance (and place at the barbeque) please contact Graham Fraser, SAC Consulting Lerwick on 01595 693520 or email frbslerwick@sac.co.uk
Bull fertility will be among the key topics discussed at the forthcoming meeting of the Borders Monitor Farm on 22 August.
Whitriggs, a 480 hectare farm near Denholm, is run by Robert and Lesley Mitchell, along with their son Stuart. The farm runs a suckler herd of 140 Beef Shorthorn and Aberdeen Angus cross cows and a flock of 1,000 Lleyn ewes across two units. Their current bull team consists of Angus, Simmental and Shorthorn bulls.
With an eye on continuous improvement, the Mitchells are keen to shorten their calving period and make sure that their bulls are working to their full potential. At the meeting, Colin Penny from Zoetis will discuss what checks to make on bulls, including a semen test, and what to look out for while the bulls are working.
“At Whitriggs we are always evaluating our business and the way we do things,” said Robert Mitchell.
“Making our cattle more efficient and reviewing when we sell calves is a priority for us so I’m looking forward to hearing from Colin Penny who will no doubt give us a greater insight into managing our bulls more efficiently.”
The meeting, which is free and open to all farmers, will also look at fodder and bedding options to address the challenges posed by the dry summer. The facilitators will lead the group in creating feed budgets as well as looking at alternative feed and bedding materials.
As a mixed farm, the importance and economics of growing crops will also be scrutinised at the meeting. Given the addition of a new deer operation, the group will also review the other farm enterprises to ensure they are operating efficiently and complement each other.
QMS Director of Economics Services Stuart Ashworth will also attend the meeting to update the group on market prices and trends.
Whitriggs farm is one of nine monitor farms that have been established across Scotland in a joint initiative by Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds, with funding from the Scottish Government. The aim of the programme is to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Scottish farm businesses.
The meeting on 22 August at Whitriggs farm, will begin at 6pm and finish at 9pm. There will be a BBQ during the meeting. All are welcome and the event is free.
For catering purposes, those interested in coming along on 22 August should confirm attendance with Stephen Young, one of the project facilitators, on 07502 339613 or email stephen.young@saos.coop.
A deeper look at soil profile and improving drainage will be the main topics of discussion at the next meeting of the North Ayrshire Monitor Farm on Wednesday 15 August.
At the meeting, which will be held at Girtridge Farm, Dundonald, the results of the #soilmyundies trial to assess soil health will be discussed. Five members of the community group have buried their underpants in a range of soils on their own farms and are looking forward to seeing how they have fared.
The microbial activity of soil, an indicator of soil health, can be visually assessed in the simple practical experiment known as #soilmyundies. Originating in Canada, this simple test is a popular way for farmers to get an indication of how healthy their soils are.
Drainage Specialist Gavin Elrick from SAC Consulting will give an overview of the practical aspects of drainage repairs and maintenance in the field and outline the specification and costs of new drainage systems.
Using host monitor farmer, John Howie’s wettest field, Mr Elrick will explore options and costs to make it more productive.
Mr Howie runs the 140-hectare Girtridge Farm in partnership with his mother Margaret and his sister Mary. They also own an additional 35 hectares of grazing nearby.
As well as the 200 bought-in cattle that they finish, the Howies also run 240 breeding ewes.
“I am really looking forward to discussing the results of the #soilmyundies trial and also hearing the insights of Gavin Elrick,” said Mr Howie.
“It has been a very challenging year here in the South West of Scotland with extremely dry weather following a very wet spring when ineffective field drainage systems hindered access to land and reduced pasture utilisation.
“Hopefully Gavin will provide an insight into how we can manage and improve our wet fields so we can maximise grass production in the future.”
At the meeting, which is free and open to all farmers, David Kerr from ScotEID will also demonstrate the technologies available and the potential benefits of EID in cattle management.
Mr Howie has tagged cattle with both frequencies of EID tags – low frequency (LF) and Ultra High Frequency (UHF) – and Mr Kerr will demonstrate read ranges of tags.
Malcolm Young from SAC Consulting will also attend the meeting to discuss woodland opportunities at Girtridge.
The North Ayrshire Monitor Farm is one of nine monitor farms that have been established across Scotland in a joint initiative by Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds, with funding from the Scottish Government. The aim of the programme is to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Scottish farm businesses.
The meeting on 15 August at Girtridge Farm, Dundonald, KA2 9BX, will begin at 10.30am. Lunch will be provided and the meeting is expected to finish by 3pm. All are welcome and the event is free.
For catering purposes, those interested in coming along should confirm attendance by calling 01292 525252 or emailing FBSAyr@sac.co.uk
Livestock farmers are being urged to take steps now to make the most of feed stocks and limit the effects of the exceptionally dry conditions on farm.
The topic has come up at a number of recent Monitor Farm Scotland meetings, including events at the Morayshire and Borders monitor farms. At the recent Morayshire Monitor farm meeting the advice was “Plan, prepare and don’t panic” and a practical guidance sheet was circulated for farmers concerned about coping with drastically reduced feed stocks.
The guidance was repeated at the Nithsdale Monitor Farm Open Day held today (Thursday 19 July) at Clonhie near Thornhill, when consultant Rhidian Jones from RJ Livestock Systems, part of the 5Agri group, outlined potential solutions to managing feed supply and demand during droughts
“The current dry spell we are experiencing is unprecedented in recent years and follows a late spring where silage stocks were used up and more concentrate feeding was required,” said Mr Jones.
“It is inevitable that it will be a costly year for livestock farmers, but there are some basic steps that can be taken to alleviate the situation. The key is for farmers to do these things now and not wait until they are forced into actions when they have no choice.”
He suggested that farmers establish a feed budget as a useful first step to work out what feeds are currently available and how much livestock can be carried with that feed. He also highlights several things that livestock farmers could consider to try and increase the supply of forage on their farm.
Stitching in some Italian Ryegrass with/without forage rape or stubble turnips to some fields will provide a supply of feed in the autumn, early winter and an early bite for the spring. Italian ryegrass will last 12-18 months and should give a silage crop next year as well.
Applying nitrogen in small quantities (20-30kgN/ha) where there may be heavy dew in the mornings or rain forecast will also help boost grass growth.
Alternative sources of feed should also be explored, whether it is hay, straw, moist feed, by-products or waste vegetables, and in some areas it might be feasible to cut poorer cereals for whole crop.
Depending on your location it may also be worth talking to arable neighbours to determine whether cereal crops can be made into wholecrop silage or whether there are windows in their rotation where stubble turnips can be sown after the cereal is harvested. Any silage or wholecrop that is made should be well wilted to reduce straw requirements in winter.
As well as trying to identify ways to increase the feed supply Mr Jones suggested ways to reduce feed demand.
“Consider weaning lambs once they are 12 weeks of age,” said Mr Jones.
“From eight weeks they will be deriving more nutrition from grass than milk and will be directly competing with ewes for valuable grass. The ewes’ DM requirements will be more than halved and they can be dried off on very little grass.”
Another suggestion he gave was to consider selling cull ewes earlier to reduce demand on grazing as well as selling store lambs earlier in the year if they can.
Cattle farmers may also wish to scan their cows earlier and then sell any barren cows at the earliest opportunity. They may also benefit from weaning autumn born calves as soon as they can, and wean spring born calves at 250 kg or 5-6 months of age. This will leave some body condition on the cows, which will also save feed in the winter.
“Creep feeding calves earlier will boost calf growth rates and help to take the pressure off the cows and grassland,” said Mr Jones. “This may also help conception rates of the cows depending on when the bulls are put in,” he added.
Finally, he said, housing finishing cattle earlier on a more intensive diet may cost more per day but will mean that the cattle take less time to finish and less straw will be used as well.
Mr Jones stressed that there may be other options open to farmers, but the key is to take action now before the situation worsens.
“This may also be an opportune time to have a more strategic look at your farm business in terms of stocking density, enterprise mix, wintering options, resilience to cope with extreme conditions and whether investment is required for future sustainability,” he added.
The Monitor Farm Scotland Programme is a joint initiative by Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds with funding from the Scottish Government. The aim of the programme is to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Scottish farm businesses through establishing a network for nine monitor farms throughout Scotland.
The opportunities for farmers to use technology to increase efficiency will be the focus of the next Sutherland Monitor Farm meeting on Wednesday 25th July.
Thurso farmer Donald Macdonald from Taldale Farm at Forss, will host the meeting. Mr Macdonald, who farms in partnership with his wife Fiona, runs a flock of 900 North Cheviot sheep over a total of 240 hectares and has attended many of the past meetings at Clynelish Farm in Brora, Sutherland’s Monitor Farm.
Like many farmers in Scotland, Mr Macdonald has limited access to additional labour, so has embraced technology and invested in several systems to help save him both time and money.
“I need my enterprise to be as efficient as possible, and with a landscaping business to run as well as the farm, any system that is labour saving is of interest to me,” said Mr Macdonald.
Five years ago, Mr Macdonald invested in a Racewell sheep handling system with weigh crate and autoshedder. The system will be demonstrated at the meeting next week and Jane Thomson from Shearwell Data will explain how the information collated from the software on the weigh crate can be used to improve the efficiency of the sheep enterprise.
The group will also have an opportunity to learn about the ClipEx fencing system that Mr Macdonald uses on his farm. Originally from Australia, the claim is that the system is quick to erect, stronger and more cost effective than other forms of traditional fencing in the market.
After seeing some listeria in his sheep due to mouldy silage, Mr Macdonald began using Silostop bale wrap three years ago and the oxygen barrier film has proved very successful at Taldale.
“The seal on the bale is so much more effective, and the colour, the weight, and the analysis all demonstrate how the reduction of oxygen ingression into the bale improves the quality of the silage,” said Mr Macdonald.
“I’ve also found that bales wrapped in Silostop retain their weight better than standard wrapped bales, which means I have more silage to feed through the winter. The forage I have now is also better quality, so I need to feed less purchased feed, so overall the cost of production is lower, despite increased wrap costs.”
Vic and Jason Ballantyne, who farm at Clynelish Farm, are looking forward to visiting Mr Macdonald’s farm and seeing how he has managed to save time and money by investing in technology.
“We are really grateful that Donald has agreed to host the visit to his farm next week,” said Jason Ballantyne.
“We, like lots of other farmers in the group, are keen to learn how technology can help make our own business more efficient.”
Also at the meeting on 25 July, Highland Drones will give a demonstration of agricultural drones and explain some of their potential uses on livestock farms, including animal monitoring, crop growth, soil health and thermal imaging.
“We are really excited to see if drones can help us check our livestock at Clynelish,” said Vic Ballantyne.
“We have a lot of hill and checking sheep in the dense bracken area’s is a nightmare on foot by truck or tractor – especially in the winter months.”
Clynelish Farm is one of nine monitor farms established in Scotland as part of a joint initiative by Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds with funding from the Scottish Government. The aim of the monitor farm programme is to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Scottish farm businesses.
The meeting at Taldale Farm on Wednesday 25th July is free to attend and open to all. It will begin at 11am, with coffee and registration from 10.30am. Lunch is included.
Farmers interested in attending the next Sutherland Monitor farm meeting should confirm attendance with the facilitators Willie Budge or Cat MacGregor by phoning SAC Thurso on 01847 892602 or emailing FBSThurso@sac.co.uk
Lothians Monitor Farm will form closer partnerships with research institutes James Hutton and Moredun over the next eighteen months.
Monitor farmers Peter Eccles and Bill Gray will discuss developing closer ties with scientists, utilising research to improve the efficiency of their livestock and arable enterprises, at the coming Lothians Monitor Farm meeting on 25 July.
They will also look back at the first half of the project focusing on particular successes including the collaboration between their two farms, benchmarking costs with the business group, and the pollinator project run at Prestonhall with SRUC.
For arable farmer Bill Gray the next year will largely be about how to overcome key challenges the sector is facing.
He says: “We want to offer potential solutions to problems, like glyphosate, how would we cope if we lost it? It might have been renewed recently but the direction of travel indicates that chemical use will only be further restricted in future.
“We also want to work with the James Hutton Institute’s Centre for Sustainable Cropping to see how the systems they are developing, which should be more sustainable long-term, could be rolled out commercially.”
Livestock farmer Peter Eccles will be working more this year with the Moredun Research Institute on issues of livestock disease and parasite challenges, as well looking to expand further on potential environment and diversification projects at Saughland Farm.
Peter says: “There’s some really interesting stuff coming up this year. We will be looking at the results and realising the benefits from our new TST (Targeted Selective Treatment) trial on worming lambs and after a difficult autumn and the dry summer so far we need to be really prepared when it comes to the winter feed budget.
“This year we will incorporate fodder beet for the first time into both sheep and cattle rations, but it might not be enough to plug the potential gap caused by a loss in dry matter this summer.”
At this meeting – run by the project’s management team – there will be discussion on both the livestock and arable business figures which have been revealed in the benchmarking group.
The arable updates will focus on the new grain store, outcomes of the new tractor/cultivator and pollinator project, as well as discussion of key issue Prestonhall faces including succession, staff management and rotation.
On the livestock side there are performance figures to share from the last 18 months as the Saughland sheep flock has increased. After a period of expansion, the management group want to refine the performance and evaluate the industry-leading technologies developed by Moredun and applied at farm level.
For project facilitator Colin MacPhail this coming year will give the team a chance to develop both the collaboration work between the two farms further and embrace innovation.
“When we started this project, we said we wanted to develop a blueprint for successful collaboration between the arable and livestock sectors. We have made good progress but we need to continue to measure the cost benefit of collaboration in more detail so we can put together a toolkit for others to use” Colin says.
“Linking with JHI and Moredun gives us access to some exciting arable and livestock research which we can apply at farm level. Innovation and technology is advancing at an incredible pace and by forging links with these organisations we will have access to new technologies and research as they become available.
“This meeting gives everyone an opportunity to contribute and ensure we are focused on the pertinent issues as we head into the many unknowns of the next 18 months.”
The Lothians Monitor farm – a partnership between neighbouring farms Saughland and Prestonhall – is one of nine monitor farms established in Scotland as part of a joint initiative by Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds with funding from the Scottish Government. The aim of the monitor farm programme is to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Scottish farm businesses.
The meeting on 25 July will begin at Rosemains Farm, Pathhead, EH37 5UQ, all are welcome and the event is free. Tea and coffee will be available from 10am and lunch will be provided, however for catering purposes those interested in coming along on should confirm attendance with Colin MacPhail on 07747 046461 or at colin@macphailconsulting.co.uk. The meeting is expected to finish by 2.30pm.
At the Angus Monitor Farm Open Day on 15 July the Stodart family will discuss how far they have come, and where they want to be by the end of the project.
Since the family signed up to the Monitor Farm Scotland programme late in 2016 they have made some big steps forward. They’ve moved into egg production, their sheep numbers have almost doubled without taking on any more land and they have significantly improved their cattle fertility, however they know there is more to be done.
Monitor farmer Rob Stodart explains: “We’ve been really pleased with our progress this year, we have made some really big changes to how we work and we are starting to see the benefits. At this coming meeting we’ll talk about what we’ve covered but we’ll also be discussing what we do in the next 18 months.
“A couple of key areas will be the sheep, taking a more focused approach to rotational grazing, making sure we have the right breed for our system and then moving towards a closed flock. We want to trial using EID with the cattle to improve our feeding and management there, and we want to focus more on arable, looking to maximise our yield without increasing inputs, with a focus on soil health. We are also in the process of succession planning.”
Local farmers will be able to make suggestions for areas to cover in the next 18 months at the coming Open Day which starts with a farm tour at the family’s Drowndubbs unit. Attendees will visit four stations – cattle, sheep, grassland and arable – and speak to the Stodarts, and members of the project’s Management Team, about the plans for the year ahead. Karen Stewart from SAC Consulting will also discuss managing forage during prolonged dry periods.
After the tour the groups will return to Mill of Inverarity Farm for a charity stock judging contest (using a selection of the Stodart’s livestock) which will cost £5 to enter and the proceeds will be donated to research into Crohns disease. The afternoon will be closed with a BBQ
The Angus Monitor is one of nine monitor farms established in Scotland as part of a joint initiative by Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds with funding from the Scottish Government. The aim of the monitor farm programme is to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Scottish farm businesses.
The Monitor Farm meeting will take place on Drownubbs Farm, on Sunday 15 July from 2pm to approximately 6pm. The event is free to attend but to assist with catering attendees should book a place by contacting Stacey Hamilton by phone (01569 762305) or email (frbsstonehaven@sac.co.uk).