Livestock handling systems and the control of parasitic worms will be the main topics for discussion at the next meeting of the North Ayrshire Monitor farm on Wednesday 31st May. 

The main enterprise at the 140-hectare Girtridge Farm, which is run by John Howie with help from his mother Margaret, is buying in store cattle and finishing them for sale direct to local abattoirs.

The Howies are keen to look at opportunities to improve their cattle handling systems with the dual aim of increasing their cattle management efficiency and ensuring they are handling animals safely.

“We are currently finishing 200 cattle as well as our own suckler herd, so we need handling facilities that are fit for purpose, keep the cows calm and keep us safe,” said Mr Howie.

At the meeting Dr Simon Turner, a senior researcher from Scotland’s Rural College, will talk about cattle behaviour and suggest how livestock handling systems can be designed to minimise stress in cattle and therefore reduce the risk of those working with them from becoming injured.

Dr Turner will then lead a discussion, with input from the farmers present, about how the design of the existing handling facilities at Girtridge could be improved.

The family also have a flock of 140 breeding ewes and there will be a demonstration of a mobile sheep handling system at the meeting. 

Another key focus area at the meeting will be the control of parasitic worms which can seriously affect the productivity of both sheep and cattle. At the meeting Dr Heather Stevenson, a veterinary investigation officer from SAC Dumfries, will advise farmers how they can control parasitic worms in their livestock and discuss any other livestock health issues that may be a concern for local farmers. 

The North Ayrshire 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.

Girtridge Farm will be hosting regular meetings over the next three years as the North Ayrshire Monitor Farm. The focus will be on the technical and financial challenges that their business, and many other farming businesses in the area, face.

The next North Ayrshire Monitor Farm meeting will begin at 10.30am on Wednesday 31 May and will be held at Girtridge Farm, Dundonald, KA2 9BX. Lunch will be included and the meeting is due to end at 3pm.

To book your lunch and confirm your attendance please contact facilitators Raymond Crerar and Carol-Anne Warnock, SAC Consulting Ayr on 01292 525252, or email FBSAyr@sac.co.uk

Farming in dry conditions will be a key theme for the coming Morayshire Monitor Farm meeting on Tuesday 30 May. Discussions on the day will range from barley varieties to grass mixtures and pelvic measuring of heifers.

Corskie Farm is one of nine recently selected to host the three year Monitor Farm Scotland programme, a joint initiative between Quality Meat Scotland and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds and funded by the Scottish Government.

Monitor Farmer Iain Green says that finding crops which can thrive in dry conditions in Morayshire is vital.

“Up here, whether you are a livestock or arable farmer, you need to tailor your decision making to the potential for drought conditions for much of the year. At the moment we have a number of spring and winter barleys being trialled on farm including Laureate, Fairing and Bazooka, none of which have been irrigated, so I’m sure seeing how they are faring will be of great interest to those attending on the day.

“We are also looking at grass mixtures which should do better in drier soils with Paddy Jack from DLF Seeds, he’ll be able to discuss options with the livestock farmers on what will be of most benefit both in terms of making silage and grazing.”

Andrew Linscott from Alltech will tell attendees more about the UK-wide biostimulants trial which Corskie farm is taking part in, while Brian Mathieson and Mark McCallum from the Black Isle Monitor Farm will be on hand to talk about their experience of business groups and benchmarking. 

Iain himself will take on the topic of pelvic measuring of heifers, a process he has just been through to help him decide which heifers should stay in the herd. As well as 380 commercial Simmental crosses, the farm has 200 pedigree Simmental cows.

“Basically we have tried to keep on more heifers with larger pelvises, as that should make calving less risky for the calves and stress free for both. On the day I will talk about how the procedure works and then next spring we will be able to judge how successful it has been.” Iain says.

The Monitor Farm meeting will take place on Corskie Farm, Garmouth, IV32 7NN, on Tuesday 30 May from 1.30pm until 5pm.  The event is free of charge but to assist with catering it would be appreciated if you can book a place by contacting Samantha Stewart by phone (01343 548 787) or email (samantha.stewart@sac.co.uk).

The Lothians Monitor Farm’s next meeting on Thursday 25 May will drill into both farms’ financial figures with a focus on business performance and benchmarking. The group will also find out more about the arable and livestock enterprises of Prestonhall Farms and Saughland Farm. 

Both farms are now 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.

Monitor Farmer Bill Gray, who manages Prestonhall Farms, explains: “We have spent time sifting through our physical and financial data to start looking at the performance of our farms using benchmarking tools and hope to share some of this with the group. “We also have significant arable and livestock expertise in our management group and wider community group. We would like to tap into this expertise as we drive round and look at the soils, livestock and crops. Hopefully we can get some good interactive discussion as we focus on each sector.” 

The event will kick off at 10.30am with a morning session devoted the farms’ current financial performance, data generated using the new AHDB Farmbench programme. This meeting will set the benchmark, providing a base which the group can use to decide where savings and or changes need to be made.

The afternoon session will offer the attendees the choice of joining smaller arable or livestock focused groups, so they can focus on the areas most relevant to them.

Facilitator Colin MacPhail explains: “Having two farms hosting the Lothians Monitor Farm gives us a lot to look at; from agronomy policy to sheep genetics and herd fertility. We want to make sure those farmers attending are learning about those topics most relevant to their business while still appreciating how those sectors and topics come to together to form the whole business enterprise.”

The host farmers and members of the management group will lead discussions detailing the arable at Prestonhall and the livestock at Saughland. This session will give the group a better understanding of the current farming techniques and systems in place which will form the foundation of future business improvements.

Monitor Farmer Pete Eccles will discuss how Saughland is faring with lambing outside and using a new paddock grazing system. He says: “We are almost finished lambing and calving and so far, with the exception of a day of snow, the weather has been on our side. We are just starting out on our journey with outdoor lambing and rotational grazing and are therefore learning as we go. We are keen to engage with the group, share with the group and learn from experience within the group to ensure we can maximise the success of our new system.”     

On the arable side, Bill Gray hopes to look in more depth at recent soil scanning and analysis results and compare them to technical data from aerial scanning using a drone. He says: “We’ve been using GPS variable data for some time now but perhaps we should be looking to establish its true value and whether what we are doing currently is relevant and cost effective. We might even try to organise a drone demonstration. In addition, we will focus on topical crop issues as we take a farm tour.”

Over 90 farmers attended the first meeting and a management group of local farmers and others involved in agriculture has now been established to work with the community group and facilitators to drive the project over the next three years.

The meeting will be held at Saughland Farm, Pathhead, Midlothian, EH37 5XP, with teas and coffees available from 10am. The meeting will run from 10.30am to 2.30pm with lunch provided. The event is free of charge but to assist with catering it would be appreciated if you can book a place by contacting Colin MacPhail on 07747 046461 or at colin@macphailconsulting.co.uk.

Farmers and crofters are invited to the next meeting at the Lochaber monitor farm on Tuesday 23 May, where the focus will be on grassland management for west coast farms.

Strone Farm, a 1,200-hectare hill farm, located in the Great Glen, one of Scotland’s most scenic locations, is run by Chris Cameron in partnership with his father Malcolm and mother Eileen.

At the meeting next Tuesday, which begins at 11am and includes lunch, Chris Cameron will outline the current grassland policy at Strone.

“We are keen to try and improve our grassland and are looking for suggestions as to how we can do this at Strone. We have limited quality grazing land here and want to learn how we can manage it better in order to reduce feed costs for our livestock,” said Chris Cameron.

Since the last monitor farm meeting in March, the Camerons have oversown one of the fields at Strone with three different seed mixes with the intention of increasing the quality of the grass.  At the forthcoming meeting, Jonny Watson from Watson Seeds will talk about this trial and review the impact so far.

With input from the community group, recommendations will be made about how the Camerons should manage the oversow going forward in terms of weed control, fertiliser and grazing management.  

David Lawson, SRUC grassland specialist, will also be attending to add his expertise to issue found at Strone  such as the effect of nitrogen applications on pH, how to avoid lodging in silage crops, the latest advice on phosphate and potash in soil and the impact of an aerator on soil structure. 

Strone’s location is unique in that it is split by the Caledonian Canal. Access to fields on the other side of the canal is via a 6ft high tunnel, restricting access to by foot or quad bike only. Alternatively, the fields can be accessed by road via a ten mile round trip.

There are 16 hectares of land on the other side of the canal that is mainly used for silage at the moment. The Camerons are keen to receive guidance from those who attend the meeting next week about how this land could be managed in the future and whether the fields should be oversown between cuts this year. The group will have an opportunity to visit the land before breaking into groups to develop a revised grassland policy for Strone.

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, with funding from the Scottish Government. The aim of the programme is to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Scottish farm businesses.

Strone farm will be hosting regular meetings over the next three years as the Lochaber Monitor Farm, which will focus on technical and financial challenges that their business, and many other local farming businesses, face.

The Lochaber Monitor Farm meetings are open and free for all farmers to attend.  Attendees will also have an input into topics covered, speakers invited to meetings and visits to other enterprises and businesses.

To book your attendance (and lunch!) please contact Niall Campbell or Morven MacArthur on 01631 563093 or email fbsoban@sac.co.uk.

The next meeting at the Nithsdale monitor farm (on Thursday 25 May) will focus on the summer plans for managing soils, grassland, the breeding flock and suckler herd at Clonhie Farm.

Chaired by local farmer Colin Forsyth, chair of the management group at Clonhie, the meeting on 25 May runs between 1.30pm and 4.30pm and will have a packed programme covering a range of subjects of interest to livestock farmers.

Host farmer Andrew Marchant said: “Lambing has gone well, and with only a handful of our Luing cattle left to calve, we are beginning to make plans for the year ahead.”

As well as a tractor and trailer tour of Clonhie and Glengar Farms, which are run as one unit by the family, there will be an update from the Marchants on the monitor farm’s activities since the last meeting and their plans going forward.

Improving the quality of their soil and grassland is a real focus for the farm. The Marchants have already limed some fields and plan to rake out a couple of fields this spring. They are also considering moving towards a winter paddock grazing system and have been measuring grass around the farm every three weeks.

Mr Marchant said: “We want to manage our grass better in order to reduce costs and increase output per hectare on the farm.”

Andrew Best from Watsons Seeds will lead a discussion about how farms can improve their soil quality and share the results of the soil analysis from Clonhie.  

Andrew Marchant believes that monitoring lamb growth weights using EID technology will be a useful tool to measure performance of the Clonhie flock in the future. With almost 1,000 ewes, the need for a decent sheep handling unit is paramount and at the meeting there will be a demonstration of a Te-pari Racewell sheep handler and auto-drafter, along with the new cattle handling system the Marchants have just invested in.

The meeting will also give a progress report on a small trial they are running looking to see if there is a difference in growth rates in castrated lambs compared to those left entire, and to lambs offered a creep feed compared to those without access to creep. 

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.

Monitor farm meetings are open and free for all farmers to attend.  Attendees will also have an input into topics covered, speakers invited to meetings and visits to other enterprises and businesses. 

To book your place please contact Judith Hutchison, by 12 noon on Monday 22 May, on 07718 919055 or email judith.agridigm@icloud.com .

The Angus Monitor Farm’s next meeting on 23 May will look at key issues affecting herd health as well as grass seed trials which aim to identify a mix which can be sown under spring barley.

Monitor Farmer Rory Stodart explains: “We’re really keen to find a mix which won’t decrease our spring barley yield, but at the same time produces good quality grass for overwintering sheep. It is all about making the most of our resources, we are a classic mixed farm, we have livestock and arable and only so much land, and I don’t want to see it sitting unproductive for half the year.”

Seed merchant Charlie Murray will talk through the trial which consists of eight plots where four different grass mixes have been sown, using three different sowing rates. The spring barley variety Concerto has also gone in, and the harvested yield will indicate which of the mixes is best grown under the barley.

The Stodarts’ 200 hectare arable enterprise, growing winter wheat, winter barley, winter oilseed rape and spring barley, will also be the focus for agronomist Sam Ruddell, who will review the farm’s agronomy policy with an emphasis on managing weeds and crop spraying.

The livestock enterprises at Mill of Inverarity comprise of 200 suckler cows, 440 breeding ewes, 300 bought in store lambs and finishing cattle. Vet Tim Geraghty, who is advising the Stodarts on moving to a closed herd, will focus on the beef enterprise as he leads a discussion on cattle health and fertility.

Finally, the group will discuss the farm’s current financial figures which have been assessed using AHDB’s new benchmarking programme Farmbench.

The 358 hectare mixed unit farmed by the Stodart family is now 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.

Over 100 farmers attended the first meeting and a management group of local farmers and others involved in agriculture has now been established to work with the community group and facilitators to drive the project over the next three years.

The meeting will be held at Mill of Inverarity Farm, Forfar, Angus, DD8 2JN from 10.30am to 2pm, with lunch will provided on farm.

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).

Plans to improve grassland management will be the focus of the next Borders monitor farm meeting on Wednesday 17 May.

With the bulk of calving over and lambing finished for this year, the Mitchell family at Whitriggs near Denholm, are turning their attention to their 442 hectares of mainly semi-permanent and permanent grassland.

With 140 Beef Shorthorn cross,  Aberdeen-Angus cross suckler cows and 1,000 Lleyn ewes, Robert and Lesley Mitchell, along with son Stuart, are keen to see if they are able to finish more stock off grass, and save money on bought-in feed.

At the meeting, independent advisor Rhidian Jones will lead a discussion about the benefits of improved grassland management and the various systems available to farmers with an interest in boosting their production from grass.

“For cattle and sheep producers, grazed grass is the lowest cost feed.  Managing this valuable resource to its full potential can reduce costs and increase output per hectare,” said Mr Jones. 

The Mitchells currently produce 1,600 tonnes of silage each year, to help feed their stock over winter. They took their first cut of silage at the beginning of May and plan to take a further 1-2 cuts later this year.

 “We have an Italian ryegrass and red clover mix and are generally happy with the quality of the silage we produce,” said Robert Mitchell. “However, we are keen to look at how we can improve quality even further, so that we can reduce the need for bought in feed for our stock.”

Soil management is key to ensuring grass performance and at the meeting the Mitchells will share the results of recent soil analyses to see if they need to change the pH or add any nutrients to the soil to help improve their land for both grazing and silage, and for the 40 hectares of winter wheat and oats they produce to help feed their stock.

Andrew Robinson from Hawick vets will also share this year’s lambing performance from the 1,000 Lleyn flock and lead a discussion about reducing lamb mortality in all flocks.

Whitriggs farm is one of nine new monitor farms established in Scotland as part of a joint initiative by Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds and is being funded by £1.25million secured from the Scottish Government and European Union’s Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund.

The aim of the programme 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.

Over 80 farmers attended the first meeting and a management group of local farmers and others involved in agriculture has now been established to work with the community group and facilitators to drive the project over the next three years.

The meeting on 17 May will start at Whitriggs Farm, Denholm, TD9 8QR at 10am, with lunch at the nearby Cross Keys, and should finish by 2.30pm. All are welcome and the event is free.

For catering purposes, those interested in coming along on 17 May should contact Stephen Young, one of the project facilitators on 07502 339613 or email stephen.young@saos.coop.

Grass management, succession and livestock health were all up for discussion at the first meeting of the Angus Monitor Farm which was attended by over 100 local farmers. 
The farm was recently selected as one of nine monitor farms which have been established in Scotland as part of a joint initiative run by Quality Meat Scotland and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds with funding from the Scottish Government.
The Stodart family, who are hosting the project at their Mill of Inverarity farm, took the visitors on a tour of the main enterprises which include suckler cows, breeding ewes, bought in store lambs and finishing cattle. They also have a 200 hectare arable enterprise growing winter wheat, winter barley, winter oilseed rape and spring barley.

At this first meeting there were a range of issues discussed but one in particular cropped up again and again; grass management.

Rory Stodart, the family’s eldest son who has just returned to work full time on the farm, explained:

“Whether we are talking about sheep, cattle or cereals, grass always comes up in the discussion; and making best use of it is something we hope to look at throughout the project.

“For example, last year we tried under sowing our spring barley with grass to increase our winter grazing and fulfil our greening obligations. However, our barley yields were negatively affected due to the increased competition. This year we’d like to try again, but sowing the grass a little later so the barley has a better chance to establish.”

The family also tend to turn over poorly performing arable fields to grass for a few years to improve soil fertility and they are keen to increase rotational grazing so they can keep more livestock on farm and reduce their reliance on rented land. Ensuring good quality grazing could be an issue going forward as last year they increased their ewe numbers from 200 to over 400.

Other areas they are likely to focus on include cattle health and breeding, increasing arable yields, soil structure and nutrition and succession planning, however local farmers will be closely involved in setting the agenda over the course of the three year project. The community group will be able to suggest topics and speakers relevant to the local area and contribute practical ideas for improving farm efficiency.

Alison Stodart said: “We’re really looking forward to being a part of the Monitor Farm programme. Everyone in our local community has been so supportive and enthusiastic and I think we just need to harness that enthusiasm to drive the project forward.”
 

Opportunities to improve scanning percentages and lamb survival rates will be among the key discussion areas at the next meeting of the Shetland Monitor Farm.

Farmers and crofters are invited to the free meeting, which will include a focus on the management of pregnant ewes, on Saturday 1 April.

Host farmers Kirsty and Aimee Budge from Bigton Farm are due to start lambing their 240 Shetland cross Cheviot ewes outside in May.

At the meeting, which starts at Bigton Hall at 11am, the Budge sisters will explain how they manage their ewes in the run up to lambing, and their hopes for this year’s lambing.

The Budges are generally happy with their scanning results. In 2016 the ewes scanned at 157%, and this increased to 164% this year. However the sisters, who have managed the farm since 2014 with support from their family, are keen to improve their current rearing percentage of 109%.

“Bigton generally has a good scanning percentage but we lose a lot of lambs before weaning,” Kirsty Budge said.

“So we are keen to hear from others on Shetland about how we can improve this as clearly every lamb successfully reared makes an important contribution to our farm income.

“We would also like to learn why some of our ewes lose their lambs after scanning and hope that others who farm on Shetland will share their experiences so that all the flockowners in Shetland can benefit and reduce losses in their own flocks.”

Both Kirsty and Aimee Budge know that it is important that pregnant ewes receive the right nutrition throughout pregnancy. The influence of protein in the ewes’ diet before lambing will be discussed, as well as the ewe’s other nutritional requirements to produce strong lambs with good survival rates.

Assessing condition score of ewes plays a very important role in achieving this and at the meeting facilitator Graham Fraser from SAC Consulting Lerwick will demonstrate some condition scoring techniques to ensure ewes are in the correct condition in the run-up to lambing. 

He will be joined by Jim Tait of Shetland Vets, who will give an overview of how flockowners can prevent and minimise problems at lambing and provide tips to help save hypothermic lambs. 

Aimee Budge commented: “We are really looking forward to getting some thoughts on how we can boost the number of lambs born and successfully reared at Bigton. Hopefully information shared at this meeting will help us and others in the area looking to improve their flocks’ efficiency.”     

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, with funding from the Scottish Government. The aim of the programme is to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of Scottish farm businesses.

Bigton farm will be hosting regular meetings over the next three years as the Shetland Monitor Farm, which will focus on technical and financial challenges that their business, and many other local farmers and crofters in Shetland, face.

The Shetland Monitor Farm meetings are open and free for all farmers and crofters to attend.  Attendees will also have an input into topics covered, speakers invited to meetings and visits to other enterprises and businesses.  Lunch will be provided and the meeting will finish at 3pm.

To book your attendance (and lunch!) please contact the project facilitator Graham Fraser, SAC Consulting Lerwick on 01595 693520, or email frbslerwick@sac.co.uk