Field of standing grass

nick...

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
south norfolk
I’ve got 7 1/2 acres of a horse hay mix that wants cutting pretty soon.a neighbor is interested so what should I be asking for it.not yet been in 2 years and had a feed this spring too.
Nick...
 

Ted M

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Shropshire
Why not charge by the bale? Fair to both sides then. Small bales £2 round bales average size £10 - 12, 4 stringer £12 - 15 and 6 stringer £18 - £25.
We buy straw like this off one farm, agree the average price per acre locally then just divide by the tonne /bale.
Seems to work well and like you say, fair to both sides.
Good crop we pay a bit more, but not paying for bare patches, poor crop in a year like this.
 

Ted M

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Shropshire
£10 if that's just for the grass sounds a bit steep to me
If you take the average price of a silage bale at around £20+, putting in rough contractor costs (mow, ted, rake, bale) will work out minimum £10/bale on a 10 bale /acre crop.
Fertiliser can easily be £30/acre which leaves you around £7 for just the grass.
Obviously not many 10 bale crops around this year so £10 for the grass may turn out cheap.
Lots of variables to consider obviously.
Our £90/acre seems a lot on the face of it but when you take the fert into the equation and the fact it neighbours our own ground hopefully it won't be too bad as long as the crop is half decent ?.
Personally I would be happier with a £10 bale charge as I doubt it will do nine...
 

neilo

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Montgomeryshire
I’ve agreed to sell mowing grass to a near neighbour by the bale, as he’s expanding his dairy herd at home. He’s doing all the harvest work, just buying a standing crop. No way it will do 10 bales an acre of ‘milking cow’ silage, but more likely 6/ac this year, cut at that stage (sheep grazed it hard through April).
I’m not charging him £10/bale, but I won’t have several £k of contractors baling charges for a stack of several hundred bales that were worth bugger all to sell last winter. I chose to sit on them, so I don’t need any more myself, and still have several hundred to sell.
I’d rather charge a bit less to someone I know will pay, I know will cart it in reasonable time and who I’d like to have a long term agreement with. All worth money imo.
 

steveR

Member
Mixed Farmer
.
I’m not charging him £10/bale, but I won’t have several £k of contractors baling charges for a stack of several hundred bales that were worth bugger all to sell last winter. I chose to sit on them, so I don’t need any more myself, and still have several hundred to sell.

Sitting on a goldmine there Neil!!

The fodder will be coming from Wales this winter, not the other way round!! :(
 
Location
Suffolk
Were you a film star?
:ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: No just rented land & buildings to a variety of film co's. Redcaps, Midsomer murders, The lost Prince, Paul and Barry The Chuckle Brothers, Poirot to name a few.
My Dad managed to get all the TV ariels removed from every house in Hambleden for the filming of Chitty Chity Bang Bang at a cost of £15 per household and I carried this idea on.
SS
 

steveR

Member
Mixed Farmer

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

  • 0 %

    Votes: 79 42.0%
  • Up to 25%

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  • 25-50%

    Votes: 30 16.0%
  • 50-75%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 75-100%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 100% I’ve had enough of farming!

    Votes: 7 3.7%

Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

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As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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