Pelvic measuring of heifers will now be a regular activity on Morayshire Monitor Farm after recent try outs found merit in it as a management tool.
Pelvic measuring is a simple process where the height and width of the pelvis are recorded before pregnancy; the data can then be used to improve breeding practices.
Monitor Farmer Iain Green decided to try out pelvic measuring last year and so took measurements from a group of 31 heifers, all put to the same bull. The team then gave each heifer a score for calving ease and also for calf size.
Mr Green said: “Most of the heifers were selected due in part to their reasonably large pelvic measurements, and most of them did very well at calving with only five of the 31 needing any assistance.
“However, there was one heifer in the mix with a particularly small pelvis who I left in because she just looked such a cracker, and unfortunately she was one of just two heifers who needed a caesarean. Her calf was a good size but not that large, the other heifer which had a caesarean had a very large calf.
“For me it proved that pelvic measuring can be a very helpful tool to eliminate those heifers which are more likely to have problems. From now on we will be measuring all the heifers and those with small pelvises will be fattened on farm.”
The Morayshire Monitor 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.
Vet Mark Pearson from Moray Coast Vet Group, who demonstrated the pelvic measuring procedure at a recent meeting on the Morayshire Monitor Farm, agrees that it is a useful tool, especially in light of statistics which suggest that 40 per cent of heifers need some assistance when it comes to calving.
Mr Pearson said: “Calf mortality is very much affected by calving and so anything we can do to make that process as easy as possible should be put in place.
“However, pelvic measuring is just one tool in the toolbox, there are lots of other variables that farmers need to be aware of which affect calving ease; the genetics of the bull, the age and condition of the heifer as well as nutrition and stockmanship.
“We need to ensure all these factors are optimal, and then look at the pelvis measurements, when managing heifer breeding.”
The changes introduced at Strone Farm during its first year as the Lochaber Monitor Farm Monitor will be highlighted by host farmers Chris and Malcolm Cameron at an open day at Strone Farm near Banavie, Fort William on Wednesday 13 June.
The meeting, which will begin at Strone at 1.30pm, will be free to attend and an invitation is extended to all. During the meeting, the Camerons will review the changes they have made on their 1,200-hectare hill farm so far and highlight what they plan to do next.
“So far the monitor farm programme has touched every aspect of our business,” said Chris Cameron. “Our community group is a vibrant bunch and I have enjoyed getting their feedback, good and bad, on the way we currently farm. The project has also seen me grow in confidence which has helped me to drive the business forward.
“We are keen to try and establish, with the help of the monitor farm programme, a business that is financially sustainable and provides a living for the family. We want to make enough net profit to allow for re-investment back into the business,” he added.
During the open day next week, attendees will have the opportunity to hear how the Lochaber Monitor Farm has developed its cattle, sheep and grassland policies and will also visit parts of the farm previously not seen as part of a farm tour.
Chris Cameron has made some significant changes to the sheep enterprise at Strone. The farm runs a flock of 500 Cheviot ewes, and has historically produced store lambs, with hoggs kept as replacements.
Due to a serious predation problem around Strone, ewes have been sent away to lamb for several years. The Camerons recently took on an additional 42 hectares of additional rented grazing at Fassfern, 11 miles from the home farm. This year they lambed their ewes with twins there and the ewes with singles were sent to rented grazing land near Inverness shortly after lambing.
Following a very successful Vision for Hill and Mountain Farming meeting in February, jointly hosted by the Lochaber monitor farm and NFU Scotland, Chris Cameron has been exploring the options available to hill farmers to add value to their lambs and already has some ideas for using this extra grazing.
“I’m keen to see if it would be feasible for us to use the extra grazing land at Fassfern to finish some lambs from our twin-bearing ewes, rather than selling them as store as we have done in the past. We are also running a small fattening trial with Harbro with our lambs are the moment.”
Strone farm also has 40 pure Limousin cows which are in-wintered. During the meeting Chris Cameron’s father Malcolm will report on how the herd is performing in relation to the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) set by the community group at the beginning of the programme.
Another part of the farm enterprise to be highlighted at the open day, will be the work that has been done to improve the grazing land at Strone. After conducting a detailed soil analysis of several fields at Strone, some have benefited from being ploughed, reseeded, and treated with appropriate levels of lime and fertiliser in order to improve soil health and grass production.
During the afternoon the group will have the opportunity to visit one of the areas which has benefited from investment to discuss the results of the treatments.
“Of all the improvements we have made at Strone through the monitor farm programme, I am most pleased with the grass. We have more grass, it is better quality and so we are getting much better value for money from it,” said Chris Cameron.
Finally, the open day will feature a tour of the hill parks and foot of the hill, an area of the farm not yet visited in previous meeting. The group will also visit Clunes, an area of rented seasonal grazing six miles from Strone that has also benefited from reseeding. Whilst there the group will see some of Strone’s heifers with calves at foot .
The Lochaber 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 Strone on Wednesday 13 June will begin at 1.30pm and will end at 5pm. Attendees are then invited to stay on for a BBQ and some light entertainment. As there will be a farm tour as part of the programme, attendees are encouraged to bring wet weather gear.
To book your attendance (and place at the BBQ!) please contact Niall Campbell or Morven MacArthur on 01631 563093 or email fbsoban@sac.co.uk.
Ways to improve soil and crop health and to reduce compaction issues will be the focus of the next meeting of the North Ayrshire Monitor Farm on Friday 8 June.
At the meeting, which will be held at Girtridge Farm in Dundonald, Dr Bill Crooks, Soil Specialist from SRUC, Scotland’s Rural College, will explain how soil health influences grass growth, describe the essential soil nutrients and highlight options for improving soil structure.
The meeting will also look at a number of other areas important for soil health, including soil compaction and liming strategies. For host farmer John Howie, these issues are particularly relevant at Girtridge.
“At the beginning of the monitor farm programme we got our soil tested and found that some of our fields are high in Potash however most are very low in pH.”
Girtridge grew 28 hectares of spring barley last year and this year will grow eight hectares of winter barley too, however Mr Howie found that the barley fields in particular need to be limed regularly. Based on the results of soil tests, he has spread over 72 tonnes of lime so far this year and plans to do more in the coming months.
Also at the meeting next week, Mr Richard Bray, an agronomist from Agrovista, will look at Girtridge’s spring and winter barley crops and discuss issues such as crop disease, plant density and fungicide treatment options in order to optimise the health and the profitability of the crop.
The North Ayrshire Monitor farm, like many others around Scotland, has some soil compaction around gateways and in other sections of grazing land. Options to minimise compaction will be covered by Dr Crooks at the meeting and a range of aeration machinery will be demonstrated to show different ways to open up the soil to improve plant growth and water flow.
John Howie, North Ayrshire’s monitor farm host, runs a flock of 250 breeding ewes which started lambing at the beginning of April. As well as finishing over 200 cattle each year, Girtridge also runs a small suckler herd of continental cross cows, which started calving on 14 April.
Mr Howie, who farms in partnership with his mother Margaret and sister Mary, will give an update to the group at the meeting on 8 June about how this year’s lambing and calving went.
“Calving went really well this year and we were pleased that none of our cows needed assistance. Lambing was more challenging though due to the weather. Although we didn’t see much snow at Girtridge, the wet, cold weather meant that we unfortunately lost some lambs and ewes after we turned them out. We are also seeing an increased number of mastitis cases in our ewes this year,” said Mr Howie.
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 8th June at Girtridge Farm, Dundonald, KA2 9BX will begin at 10.30am. Lunch will be provided, and the meeting is expected to finish by 2.30pm. All are welcome and the event is free.
For catering purposes, those interested in coming along on 8thJune should confirm attendance by calling 01292 525252 or emailing FBSAyr@sac.co.uk
The importance of managing summer pastures and what factors influence profit during the summer months will be the focus of the next meeting of the Sutherland Monitor Farm on Wednesday 6th June.
At the meeting, which will begin at Brora Golf Club at 10.30am, Trevor Cook, a vet and grassland consultant, will share his knowledge on how livestock farmers can best profit from pasture based systems. Mr Cook, who is from New Zealand, is one of the most respected consultants specialising in advising farmers on all aspects of production from grass based systems.
Trevor visited Clynelish Farm, the Sutherland Monitor farm, last September and suggested that husband and wife team Jason and Vic Ballantyne, who run the 125 hectare farm in Brora in partnership with Jason’s dad Murdo, try establishing a winter paddock grazing system for their sheep last winter.
However, following Mr Cook’s visit, the plans the couple had to establish the paddocks were halted due to the severe weather.
“We were completely waterlogged from the middle of October,” said Vic Ballantyne. “And half the farm was underwater during November, so any plans we had to establish winter paddock grazing had to be abandoned.”
Like lots of other farmers and crofters across Scotland this winter, the Ballantynes had to buy in extra feed for their stock this year.
“Our swede crop wasn’t as good as hoped so we bought in an extra 51 tonnes. We also bought some bagged feed for the first time in ten years and a lot of extra silage, plus rented extra grazing, so it was a very expensive winter,” said Jason Ballantyne.
“So we are keen to find ways to maximise our grazing this year to mitigate these costs and ensure we have more feed ready for this winter,” he added.
Although the Ballantynes were disappointed that they weren’t able to put their winter grazing plans into action, they are well placed to use more rotational grazing this year having installed eight extra water troughs and mains electric fencing across the farm.
They have also permanently split some fields and will split more this summer allowing them to better manage their grazing. The flock has already been split up into three groups of approximately 300 ewes plus followers on fields of three to five hectares and moved every three to five days.
Also, following previous advice from Trevor Cook, the Ballantynes got fertiliser on as soon as it was dry enough and saw the benefit in the resulting grass growth, which meant that they were able to turn their cows out on 27 April, just a few days later than usual.
“This means they are feeding themselves through most of lambing. A later outdoor calving means we don’t have to do too much with them when we are busy with sheep” said Mr Ballantyne.
After lunch at the golf club, there will be a visit to nearby Clynelish Farm where the Ballantynes will provide an update on how lambing and calving has gone this year. Clynelish calve 70 cows outdoors from 5th May and carries a flock of 900 breeding ewes, of which about half are Lairg type Cheviots and the other half Lleyn cross, which currently lamb outdoors at the end of April.
“The lambs are looking good,” said Vic Ballantyne. “Although we had a lower than average scanning rate, probably due to the hard conditions this winter, we are very pleased that we have had hardly any losses post lambing.”
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 Clynelish Farm on Wednesday 6th June, is free to attend and open to all. It will begin at Brora Golf Club 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
The potential to make better use of pasture and barley variety trials will be among the areas under the spotlight of the next meeting of the Shetland Monitor Farm on Saturday 2nd June.
Shetland generally has longer winters and shorter summers than the rest of the UK, which can make it difficult for livestock farmers to grow enough grass or crops to feed their animals all year round.
Last year, sisters Kirsty and Aimee Budge from Bigton, the Shetland Monitor Farm, tried rotational grazing for the first time to help better utilise the grass that they had.
“We invested in some electric fencing and set up about seven acres of rotational grazing for our cows last year,” said Kirsty Budge. “It worked really well, so we plan to set up around 20 acres this summer.
“One thing we learnt last year was the importance of keeping track of grass growth, so this year we will be using a grass measuring plate meter to make sure that we know when to move stock to keep the grass at the optimal height.”
Trevor Cook, a vet and grassland consultant will be the key speaker at the meeting. Most of his time is spent as a sheep and beef production consultant, working one-on-one with farm owners and managers around New Zealand and more recently in the UK.
At the meeting, which will begin at Bigton Hall at 11am, Mr Cook will cover issues including pasture utilisation, nitrogen use and the ewe and cow feed requirement throughout the year, to help Shetland livestock keepers achieve optimal performance in their livestock.
“Using the minimum amount of pasture to achieve the production targets set is the essence of profitable farming.” Said Mr Cook.
“Livestock keepers can calculate the feed demand of their animals and how much grass and crops they are likely to produce. By anticipating the likely feed supply and knowing what the feed demand of their animals will be, they can make changes to their management to ensure that supply is enough.”
At the meeting on 2nd June, Kirsty and Aimee Budge will also give a round-up of lambing and calving at Bigton this spring. The sisters currently lamb around 360 ewes and calve 68 cows starting in May. “This year’s lambing kicked off really well with 89% of ewes lambing in the first two weeks,” said Aimee Budge. “Calving has also gone well so far. We did lose three calves at the beginning, but have had a couple of sets of twins which has helped.”
Bigton farm is one of the few farms on Shetland that grow barley. The Budges are keen to find ways to maximise the yield of their crop and are currently running a small trial with AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds to see if there is a variety more suited to their farm than the Wagon variety they currently grow.
The farm has therefore established four one-acre plots and sown Golden Promise, Fairing, Anneli and Brage varieties in each. The four trial plots have also benefited from recommended nitrogen and other fertiliser supplementation and it is hoped that the results will highlight whether an investment in agronomy and seed varieties can increase their barley yield in the future.
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 2nd June will begin at Bigton Hall at 11am and end at 3pm. Lunch will be provided.
To book your attendance (and lunch!) please contact Graham Fraser, SAC Consulting Lerwick on 01595 693520 or email frbslerwick@sac.co.uk
Farmers will get the chance to compare notes on an extremely challenging season, as well as finding out how their local monitor farm coped, at the coming Lothians Monitor Farm meeting on 23 May.
Project facilitator Colin MacPhail explains: “We see the whole day as chance to catch up after a really difficult period for the livestock and arable farmers. We’ll look back over what the farms have been doing over the winter and spring months, and find out what the plans are for this season.”
For Lothians Monitor Farmer Bill Gray the meeting is a good chance to find how the wider group is dealing with the issues he is currently facing, such as late drilling of winter and spring crops.
He says: “We are dealing with problems that began back in the autumn when our winter barley was established three weeks later than usual in mid-October, and some of our winter wheat wasn’t sown until early in November into poor seedbed conditions
“Ideally after such a late start we would have been hoping for a kind winter, followed by an early spring, but of course we got quite the opposite.
“While some of the crops seem to be doing fine despite the difficulties, some fields are clearly struggling and that means we need to make some difficult decisions about adjusting inputs – including possibly limiting nitrogen applications
“It’s a really delicate balance. The aim is to match nitrogen use to the yield that we are potentially able to produce, so if that yield potential is low we look to adjust inputs. However, that means we need to judge the crop’s potential as accurately as possible, which isn’t straightforward. It would be all too easy to reduce too far and not reach what potential we have.”
Lothians Monitor Farmer Peter Eccles, who manages the farm neighbouring Bill’s, has also had a tough season, although his focus is on livestock.
He says: “In some ways we were fortunate as we didn’t start lambing until 10 April, after the snows. However, the ewes weren’t in as good condition as we would have liked, although we did try to minimise condition loss through hard feeding over February and March.
“I think this has led to lower quality colostrum with a number of joint ill cases in lambs, something they have never suffered from before in our outdoor system.”
On the cattle side the situation has been far rosier, with an excellent calving period, but of course feed costs have increased significantly.
“We’ve had to buy in a lot of additional feed and bedding this year,” Peter explains. “The stock have endured a particularly harsh winter yet we have come through it and our contingency plans have held firm and we are now able to enjoy the better spell of weather.”
As well as hearing detailed updates from Bill and Peter, the group will tour the arable fields, discussing the challenges of the coming season with Bill and agronomist David Paul. In the afternoon there will be market updates on both the livestock and arable sectors.
The final part of the day will focus on Saughland’s livestock with tours of the cattle and sheep and the group will discuss sheep to cattle ratios, sheep and cattle performance, grass growth and management as well as the farm’s marketing policy.
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 23 May will be start at Prestonhall Farms, Rosemains, 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 23rd May should confirm attendance with Colin MacPhail on 07747 046461 or at colin@macphailconsulting.co.uk. The meeting is expected to finish by 3pm.
A farm tour will give attendees at the next Nithsdale Monitor farm meeting the opportunity to see the changes made on Clonhie Farm over the last 12 months.
One of the things to be reviewed during the tour of Clonhie Farm on Thursday 17 May, will be the overwintering grazing system the farm established for the first time last winter.
“We’ve always struggled to find enough grazing for our ewes over winter,” said Andrew Marchant, who runs 1,000 breeding ewes and a small suckler herd of 20 Luing cows over a total of 303 hectares.
“So when the management group suggested that we try paddock grazing on deferred grass and strip grazing on kale for the ewes last winter, I was keen to give it a go.”
The Marchants set up 25 hectares of deferred grass for paddock grazing, and four hectares of kale that was sown in May last year. The flock was then split between the two systems with the flock of twins and triplets strip grazing the majority of the kale after scanning.
Although there was a time cost in moving the ewes every two days in the paddock grazing system, Mr Marchant was enthused with the result. He said: “I think it went really well. We definitely saved money on feed as I didn’t have to buy in as much concentrate, and I was really pleased with the condition of the ewes.”
Clonhie expanded in 2015 when it took over the tenancy of neighbouring Glengar farm which gave an extra 135 hectares of grazing.
“We haven’t really done anything with this land yet, other than have the soil sampled and analysed,” said Mr Marchant. “We are therefore really keen to get suggestions from other farmers about how we can manage this land and maximise its output.”
The farm tour will also give those attending the opportunity to see the red deer that have recently moved to Clonhie. Mr Marchant invested in 65 in calf hinds to complement his existing sheep and cattle enterprises.
“I’ve worked with deer before so, after doing some research and looking at the financial benefits of running a deer enterprise, it seemed like the natural choice for us to diversify in this way,” he said.
“They have settled in really well and are due to calve any day now, so there might even be some young calves to see at our next meeting.”
He has already fenced 40 acres of land and although admits that there is a substantial financial investment required to establish a deer enterprise, he is confident that the 400 strong herd, which he hopes to establish over the coming years, will help increase the profitability of his business.
After lunch, Mr Marchant will give a report on how lambing and calving went at Clonhie this Spring and the group will turn their attention to planning for the remainder of the spring and summer season. They will also look at the costs of setting up the deep enterprise and the projected margins expected.
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 17 May will begin at with tea and coffee at 10.30, with the farm tour leaving at 11am sharp. Lunch will be provided and the meeting is expected to finish at 3.30pm.
To book your place please contact facilitator Judith Hutchison on 07718 919055 or email judith.agridigm@icloud.com .
At the next meeting of the Borders Monitor farm on Wednesday 16 May, the host farmers will share their thoughts on a plant growth enhancer which they have been trying out on their farm.
After one of the most challenging periods of weather Scottish farmers have faced in decades, the Mitchell family at Whitriggs Farm, near Denholm, decided to try out Smart Grass, to help boost grass growth on their farm.
SmartGrass is a sprayable plant growth enhancer designed to increase dry matter production during cool weather.
“After the awful weather we had at the start of the spring we wanted to see if we could boost grass growth on the farm to help bring our lambs on, and save us having to buy in extra feed,” said Stuart Mitchell. “However, although we wanted more grass, it was also important that we didn’t compromise on its quality.”
The Mitchells heard about SmartGrass from their monitor farm facilitator and after doing some research sourced a small amount of the NuFarm Uk product from local distributor MSP. They sprayed 20 hectares of their grass with SmartGrass in the middle of April and have been very impressed with the results so far.
“We could see a visible difference in the grass almost straight away,” said Mr Mitchell.
“The first two weeks after we applied SmartGrass, the grass really shot up but was yellow in colour. Over the next two weeks the grass gradually turned green. Now you can notice a mile away the difference in height between the treated and untreated grass. What we will look to do now is quantify that benefit, so we need to know how much more grass there is and just as importantly, has the quality of this extra grass been affected?”
The Mitchells are very aware that grass quality is also important and will continue to measure and analyse both the treated and untreated grass over the coming months to see if the investment they have made, both in time taken to apply, and the product itself, has been worthwhile.
The Mitchells will also give an update on how the lambing went this year, at the meeting. After discovering that some of their 1,000 lleyn ewes tested positive for Maedi Visna (MV) last year, the family lambed their 300 gimmers in two seperate locations in an attempt to keep the disease from spreading.
They therefore lambed the 154 gimmers and all of the ewes which tested negative at Whitriggs and lambed the 146 gimmers which tested positive for MV at their neightbouring farm, Denholm Mill.
“Running two different lambing flocks was definitely a challenge,” said Lesley Mitchell. “We basically had to keep separate tractors and trailors, equipment and tags at each farm to avoid cross-contamination and anyone who needed to work with either flock had to change clothes and disinfect themselves thoroughly.”
The family believe, though, that the precauctions they took have been worth it to re-establish a flock which is flock clear of the disease.
At the end of March the family sent 63 of their store bullocks to United Auctions in Stirling. At a previous monitor farm meeting the community group thought that the bullocks would average £885 at sale. However on the day they averaged £930, much to the delight of the Mitchell family.
Finally, at the meeting on 16 May, the family will give an update on their decision to compliment their current beef and sheep enterprises with a deer enterprise. With the new deer sheds nearly up, and fencing beginning in May, the 120 hinds should arrive at Whitriggs in September.
After lunch there will be a talk from Mags Granger from RSABI on the importance of identifying and managing stress and mental health issues, with advice on what to do if you, or someone you know is having problems.
Whitriggs 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 on 16 May, which will be held at Whitriggs Farm, near Denholm, is due to begin at 10.30am and is expected to end at 2.30pm. Lunch will be provided. All are welcome and the event is free.
For catering purposes, those interested in coming along on 16 May should confirm attendance with Stephen Young, one of the project facilitators, on 07502 339613 or email stephen.young@saos.coop.
Maintaining feed levels after a difficult spring will be on many farmers’ minds right now, and this challenging topic will be tackled at the coming meeting of the Angus Monitor on 17 May.
Rotational grazing will be covered by Poppy Frater, a sheep and grassland specialist with SAC Consulting. While the Stodarts have been trying out rotational grazing this year they are keen to take a more systematic approach and the group will be exploring how to get the most out of the grass through managing key areas such as stocking densities and shift patterns.
Monitor Farmer Rob Stodart says: “Getting the most out of grass is critical for us, especially as we have been building our sheep numbers and we need to feed them efficiently throughout the year. Grass growth has been very slow so far this season, I would normally look to rent grass parks for ewes, but it’s an expensive option so I want to find other solutions.”
Another avenue the family is exploring with consultant Kirsten Williams is using fodder beet. Fodder beet is of particular interest to the Stodarts as while it’s not yet a popular fodder crop locally they have heard positive reports of in terms of yield, nutrition and its potential to improve soil structure. Kirstin will explain more about the crop and also introduce the group to other alternatives such as chicory and plantain.
“We’re putting in five acres of fodder beet this year,” Rory Stodart explains. “I’m told that it has the potential to feed a lot of livestock over a fairly small area, and we need to give the grass a break over the winter and encourage early spring growth. Putting the ewes on the fodder beet should allow us to do that.”
Of course, the family has also been looking into other areas to improve animal feed management, and they will reveal the results of one such pilot at the meeting. Last autumn some of their spring barley was under sown with grass for winter grazing for the sheep. Having tried this previously and found that the grass growth led to a decreased spring barley yield the Stodarts are hoping to see better results this year.
Finally, Robert McCoul, an agronomist from the Glenside Group, will discuss how to improve yields in poorly performing arable fields. One such field at the Mill has long been a mystery, with the usual tests unable to solve why its yields are low. Robert has been digging deeper into the field’s soil biology to find an explanation, and he will share his results at the meeting.
Mill of Inverarity is part of the Monitor Farm Scotland initiative, managed by Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds.
The aim of the programme, which is funded by the Scottish Government, is to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Scottish farm businesses through practical demonstrations, the sharing of best practice and the discussion of up-to-date issues.
The meeting will be held at Mill of Inverarity Farm, Forfar, Angus, DD8 2JN, starting at 11am and closing at 2.30pm. 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).
The message that livestock farming in Scotland’s hills and mountains can create productive larders for quality beef and lamb as well as delivering environmental benefits, was highlighted at an event near Fort William.
Speaking at the “Vision for Scotland’s Hills and Mountains” event at Benavie, organised jointly by the Lochaber Monitor Farm and NFU Scotland, Claudia Rowse, Head of Rural Resources Unit, Scottish Natural Heritage, said the role of farmers and crofters in delivering environmental benefits needs to be properly recognised.
“We at SNH strongly believe that the role farmers take in managing their land to benefit nature and wildlife should be recognised,” she told the packed-out event near Fort William attended by more than 70 farmers and crofters.
Ms Rowse, who took a series of questions from farmers attending, said that in her view it is vital that farmers and environmentalists work together to inform those who might doubt the value hill farming delivers to nature in Scotland’s hills and mountains.
“We’ll accomplish so much more by working together to benefit both farming and nature. We share many of the same goals, and we’re committed to supporting farmers to be as environmentally friendly as possible and encourage wildlife on their farms.,” she added.
Attendees heard from a range of expert speakers who explored different views on the future use of Scotland’s hills and mountains – from the environmental perspective to the market opportunities.
Among the other key speakers were Donald Cameron MSP, Laurent Vernet of Quality Meat Scotland and Jonnie Hall of NFU Scotland.
Angus MacFadyen, of Bragleenmore Farm, Oban set the scene for the day by posing some challenging questions to farmers and crofters attending.
“We need to consider our stock, our support and our product. Are our stock as good as we can get them? Should we be making more of technology like EBVs? Do we need to change? Are we properly qualified?” he asked.
In other countries farmers are, he said, really taking on EBVs and performance recording.
“In Norway, for example, no tup gets used unless it has a good set of figures behind it, and this has definitely taken them forward. Sheep there are very much considered environmental animals and there are payments for sheep going up to graze in the mountains in the summer,” said Mr MacFadyen.
He said Scottish hill farmers were also doing an excellent environmental job but the challenge was how to translate that public good into income.
“I am very optimistic about the future. We can turn these hills into productive larders for sheep and cattle – it’s a highly skilled job and opportunities definitely exist because I am confident there will be demand for our products going forward,” he said.
Laurent Vernet, Director of Strategic Engagement with Quality Meat Scotland, shared this view.
“Hill lamb is a product which is very different and there will be opportunities for it going forward but it needs to be from a properly finished animal, not just a store animal,” said Mr Vernet.
The size of hill lamb from Scotland could met the requirements of some markets in the UK and overseas, he said.
A good example can be seen in Iceland, he said, which has the biggest head of sheep to population ratio and highest consumption of lamb per capita in Western Europe.
“In Iceland they have a small lamb which they have succeeded in aggressively marketing and is now much sought after around the word,” added Mr Vernet.
The idea to host the “vision” meeting came from the Lochaber Monitor Farm management group. Lochaber 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 next meeting of the Lochaber Monitor Farm is on March 15th. For more
info please contact Niall Campbell or Morven MacArthur on 01631 563093 or email fbsoban@sac.co.uk.