David Handleys piece today

[neilo]

Criss Crossing Suckler cows on upland or marginal land probably works easier…Angus Bull and a Sim bull each bulling each other’s heifers….each needs to be moved on before they normally would to avoid inbreeding.
Sheep are a entirely different kettle of fish…yes the idea is sound…but.
It needs considerable skill and stockmanship to avoid the pitfalls….with cows…the best heifers are bulled and become the herd replacements..
Sheep…..probably need a nucleus flock to breed your replacements adding another management requirement…and reducing the main flock size to accommodate it…increasing the Labour / Management input considerably.
Never forgotten a Scottish Colleges guy …..his comment…
” I don’t know, if there is an easy way to do something in agriculture farmers will find a way to make it difficult”.

I can’t say I’ve ever found it particularly hard or complicated to breed my own replacements, but I guess it depends on how much effort you can be bothered to make.

Pick your best ewes out, numbers according to how many replacements will be needed, put those with a maternal ram of your choice, and the rest to a terminal (Charollais, of course). Whethers go out fat with the others, at a small price penalty and your replacement ewe lambs have cost as much as a fat lamb. You are then in control of biosecurity and have the option to make genetic improvements in any traits you wish (or still breed for pretty heads if you like).

 

[Old Tup]

I can’t say I’ve ever found it particularly hard or complicated to breed my own replacements, but I guess it depends on how much effort you can be bothered to make.

Pick your best ewes out, numbers according to how many replacements will be needed, put those with a maternal ram of your choice, and the rest to a terminal (Charollais, of course). Whether she go out fat with the others, at a small price penalty and your replacement ewe lambs have cost as much as a fat lamb. You are then in control of biosecurity and have the option to make genetic improvements in any traits you wish (or still breed for pretty heads if you like).

It needs considerable skill and stockmanship to avoid the pitfalls
Was careful to mention that bit….
Plenty of places…don’t have it…..but have sheep.

 

[Henarar]

The bitch will be long gone from number 10 by the time severe hunger sets in…

can't they afford food after paying for the wallpaper

 

[le bon paysan]

can't they afford food after paying for the wallpaper

He can't afford food now, supplied free from Dalesford. It's not free really but he won't pay. Only the little people pay.

 

[Henarar]

He can't afford food now, supplied free from Dalesford. It's not free really but he won't pay. Only the little people pay.

Seems like his mates even have to bring a bottle to a lock down p1ss up

 

[CopperBeech]

I’m being booted out for beavers. If you didn’t laugh, you’d cry.

 

[Henarar]

I’m being booted out for beavers. If you didn’t laugh, you’d cry.

Really?

 

[CopperBeech]

Really?

Just been informed i no longer fit with the direction of one of my main blocks of ground. They are going rewilding.

 

[JP1]

Just been informed i no longer fit with the direction of one of my main blocks of ground. They are going rewilding.

Sorry to hear that. Folks from outside of farming have no idea how long it takes to build these things up or change direction

 

[Old apprentice]

Just been informed i no longer fit with the direction of one of my main blocks of ground. They are going rewilding.

Ignorance is bliss not a fan of rewilding wasting land!

 

[le bon paysan]

Ignorance is bliss

Can you eat beaver?

 

[glasshouse]

Or (and this will be incredibly unpopular but I’m saying it anyway)you re-wild all the hill land/areas completely reliant on subsidy and bring the livestock back to the east in order to bring back more mixed farming systems. You could encourage joint ventures between young livestock farmers with nowhere to go to partner up with solely arable farms to create a mutually beneficial system.
i think a lot of people are seriously questioning the viability of conventioral arable farming long term with its reliance on buying inputs, we certainly have for a while now.

I took on a very rundown arable farm in the east. Half had been in five yr setaside
There were no modern buildings on 900 ac.
It was a limited partnership with the landlord.
I built a new genersl prpose shed of 27,000 sq feet all concrete with grain drier.
After grain prices-collapsed in 97, i sowed a third in grass and ran 1000 ewes and wintered 200 cattle
I put up 20km of fence
2000ton of hen litter applied annually
The landlord agent accused me of devalueing arable land with livestock
I was evicted after 22 years with next to no compensation.
They broke almost every agreement in the “partnership”

They tore out all my fences, and the hedges too, ploughed everything even the pony paddock.
Young farmers beware

 

[glasshouse]

Good piece in herald today

 

[Henarar]

Just been informed i no longer fit with the direction of one of my main blocks of ground. They are going rewilding.

Thats a bugger
Is that private ownership?

There is some land near here that used to have sheep on it 50 plus year's ago and now its rewilded with bracken and withy scrub, can't really see its any sort of wildlife heaven, just rubbish