Farmer Roy's Random Thoughts - I never said it was easy.

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
As a Uk farmer I am totally convinced the climate has changed over my lifetime. 40 years ago we would never even consider needing to irrigate for example yet now it would be a mistake not to think it is almost a must. This is on fruit and veg.
We did have one off events such as the summer of 1976 that always gets used as a reference point whenever the sun comes out. We did have a few very prolonged wet times in the 80s that get less comment but we’re quite a thing for us at the time. These things are also quite often local events even in our small isle, I’ve had plenty of rain for now but others are still dry. Just as I read of people having a bad time of wet weather when I haven’t had any rain just 50 miles away.
Are you guys in Australia seeing a big change in trends or are you a country of extremes anyway so hard to see any trend.
of course as we aren’t here for long we don’t really see trends on any real scale, it’s all been an improvement since the last ice age so far.
l think its pretty general.
and for certain, springs that ran in 76, aint running now
 

bumkin

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
pembrokeshire
As a Uk farmer I am totally convinced the climate has changed over my lifetime. 40 years ago we would never even consider needing to irrigate for example yet now it would be a mistake not to think it is almost a must. This is on fruit and veg.
We did have one off events such as the summer of 1976 that always gets used as a reference point whenever the sun comes out. We did have a few very prolonged wet times in the 80s that get less comment but we’re quite a thing for us at the time. These things are also quite often local events even in our small isle, I’ve had plenty of rain for now but others are still dry. Just as I read of people having a bad time of wet weather when I haven’t had any rain just 50 miles away.
Are you guys in Australia seeing a big change in trends or are you a country of extremes anyway so hard to see any trend.
of course as we aren’t here for long we don’t really see trends on any real scale, it’s all been an improvement since the last ice age so far.
i am not sure if you are right, here in pembs most if not all spud farms had irrigation going way back in the sixties or even earlier
 

Yale

Member
Livestock Farmer
As a Uk farmer I am totally convinced the climate has changed over my lifetime. 40 years ago we would never even consider needing to irrigate for example yet now it would be a mistake not to think it is almost a must. This is on fruit and veg.
We did have one off events such as the summer of 1976 that always gets used as a reference point whenever the sun comes out. We did have a few very prolonged wet times in the 80s that get less comment but we’re quite a thing for us at the time. These things are also quite often local events even in our small isle, I’ve had plenty of rain for now but others are still dry. Just as I read of people having a bad time of wet weather when I haven’t had any rain just 50 miles away.
Are you guys in Australia seeing a big change in trends or are you a country of extremes anyway so hard to see any trend.
of course as we aren’t here for long we don’t really see trends on any real scale, it’s all been an improvement since the last ice age so far.
This is the quirk of our microclimates.

I‘m near Mold,Kidds is near Beeston,30 miles, 45 minutes.

We have been dry this spring / summer however have had rain just when we critically needed it.

We are a little short of grass but not drastically. In fact the weather has been really good for harvesting, shearing etc.

I think we were drier in 2018.

65885B0D-90EC-41E5-953D-E526A65B6633.jpeg
 

Kidds

Member
Horticulture
i am not sure if you are right, here in pembs most if not all spud farms had irrigation going way back in the sixties or even earlier
I can only comment on my own area/farm. My grandfather bought my place in 1966 and I have been farming it all my life, my comments were based on my experience of growing fruit and veg on this land in that time.
Over the years we spent a lot of money on drainage, then tried to figure out how to block it up. We also spent a lot on laying irrigation and then tried to set it to suck. There have been ups and downs but the current trend is dry to very dry, next year may well be the wettest on record. I have long thought that the best thing to do in a prolonged dry spell is to sort your drains out because when they rain comes there will be lots of it. I expect even @Farmer Roy would agree with that at the moment.
 

Wombat

Member
BASIS
Location
East yorks
This was 22 July 2018 and we were feeding the sucklers.

View attachment 1054546

Haven’t put any bales out yet and we are still just keeping some grass ahead of them this year and hopefully with the couple of inches of rain we have had recently grass will get ahead of them for a bit.
Obviously more rain than over here then, we had bales in the sucklers a month ago, had a little rain a couple of weeks ago so stopped for a few weeks but will be feeding in a couple of weeks I think. Cows and calves have done way better than a wet time anyway so a small price to pay compared to the sh!t of 2012
 

Wombat

Member
BASIS
Location
East yorks
I can only comment on my own area/farm. My grandfather bought my place in 1966 and I have been farming it all my life, my comments were based on my experience of growing fruit and veg on this land in that time.
Over the years we spent a lot of money on drainage, then tried to figure out how to block it up. We also spent a lot on laying irrigation and then tried to set it to suck. There have been ups and downs but the current trend is dry to very dry, next year may well be the wettest on record. I have long thought that the best thing to do in a prolonged dry spell is to sort your drains out because when they rain comes there will be lots of it. I expect even @Farmer Roy would agree with that at the moment.
That’s the thing this year has overall been excellent and if I could book it for the next 5 harvests I would. We all know it will overcompensate and bit a fecking swap all winter
 

bumkin

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
pembrokeshire
I can only comment on my own area/farm. My grandfather bought my place in 1966 and I have been farming it all my life, my comments were based on my experience of growing fruit and veg on this land in that time.
Over the years we spent a lot of money on drainage, then tried to figure out how to block it up. We also spent a lot on laying irrigation and then tried to set it to suck. There have been ups and downs but the current trend is dry to very dry, next year may well be the wettest on record. I have long thought that the best thing to do in a prolonged dry spell is to sort your drains out because when they rain comes there will be lots of it. I expect even @Farmer Roy would agree with that at the moment.
I am a Cheshire boy who lived near Sandbach all my family farmed in Cheshire some very near you whether or not one has irrigation depends on the value of the crop with the price of fuel one wonders if it is worth irrigating or drying grain
 

Kidds

Member
Horticulture
The climates of Northwich and Tarvin are very different despite being only 10 miles apart and the soil type between mine and next door changes from sand to clay.
There are not many folk around here with irrigation and I have only ever seen it on potatoes as far as I remember. As for drying or irrigating it is always going to depend on crop price isn't it? Even then it is a gamble because irrigating isn't a cheap job.
 

Deerefarmer

Member
Location
USA
l think its pretty general.
and for certain, springs that ran in 76, aint running now
My personal opinion, but referencing springs going dry as a guage of rainfall is not very accurate measurement. You need to take into consideration the amount of water that is pulled from underground aquifers (through water wells) today compared to 76
 

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
My personal opinion, but referencing springs going dry as a guage of rainfall is not very accurate measurement. You need to take into consideration the amount of water that is pulled from underground aquifers (through water wells) today compared to 76
there's a massive complex near us, that have sunk 2 new boreholes. The water company seem to be around there, virtually every day. There were supply issues with water supply there, when it was just a farm, now, its fountains, waterfalls and ponds, all pumped, no natural supply.
Our bore goes into an underground river, or so they told us, no issues yet.
 

Farmer Roy

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
NSW, Newstralya
Well, I got the spicy cough a couple of weeks ago

knocked me bloody hard the first week, all I wanted to do was sleep, but I was coughing all the time & was constantly short of breath.
Couldn’t think straight, still can’t. Was on the phone to someone in the first week & said “sorry, I can’t think of the words I need or know how to say what I want to say” . . .
Over it now, but think I’m up for “long covid”. Still short of breath, easily tired, no stamina & still got “brain fog”
Was driving today & had trouble tearing open the plastic wrap around a 6 pack. Thought I’d be clever ( cos I forgot to put my Leatherman knife on my belt this morning ) & use a cigarette lighter to open it. While driving. I used the lighter to melt the wrap, but it caught fire & filled the cab with burning plastic smoke 🤦‍♂️
While driving at 100km / hr on a gravel road 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️
3A736DB3-549B-408E-8391-F8775734C7AF.jpeg
4439CFEE-45CD-43BF-A8CC-EE0ACBE1A311.jpeg
 
Well, I got the spicy cough a couple of weeks ago

knocked me bloody hard the first week, all I wanted to do was sleep, but I was coughing all the time & was constantly short of breath.
Couldn’t think straight, still can’t. Was on the phone to someone in the first week & said “sorry, I can’t think of the words I need or know how to say what I want to say” . . .
Over it now, but think I’m up for “long covid”. Still short of breath, easily tired, no stamina & still got “brain fog”
Was driving today & had trouble tearing open the plastic wrap around a 6 pack. Thought I’d be clever ( cos I forgot to put my Leatherman knife on my belt this morning ) & use a cigarette lighter to open it. While driving. I used the lighter to melt the wrap, but it caught fire & filled the cab with burning plastic smoke 🤦‍♂️
While driving at 100km / hr on a gravel road 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️View attachment 1055214View attachment 1055215
I never got short of breath when I had it. Had a tickle in the throat for a few days at first then got the tiredness and afternoon headaches and temperature. Cough only got bad as I got over it and lasted a couple of weeks. Brain fog lasted two weeks. I did a bit of sowing and kept just missing things with the airseeder. Eventually I ripped a gate off going into the paddock and bid a round dragging it before I noticed.
 

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
I never got short of breath when I had it. Had a tickle in the throat for a few days at first then got the tiredness and afternoon headaches and temperature. Cough only got bad as I got over it and lasted a couple of weeks. Brain fog lasted two weeks. I did a bit of sowing and kept just missing things with the airseeder. Eventually I ripped a gate off going into the paddock and bid a round dragging it before I noticed.
sons pal has long covid, caught it before lockdown, still has days when he is completely incapable of doing anything. Very slowly improving.
he was a serious personal trainer to the wealthy, reckons he caught it off one of them, when they returned from their skiing holidays.
There are some very nasty side effects hanging round.
 

sahara

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Somerset
sons pal has long covid, caught it before lockdown, still has days when he is completely incapable of doing anything. Very slowly improving.
he was a serious personal trainer to the wealthy, reckons he caught it off one of them, when they returned from their skiing holidays.
There are some very nasty side effects hanging round.
From the various reports and personal stories that I have seen and heard it would appear that in the first round of Covid the very fit people (gym bunnies we call them) have been the worst affected, most of whom now have serious long covid.
Un healthy old tubs like me seam to have pottered on ok..
Why I've no idea.
 

Humble Village Farmer

Member
BASE UK Member
Location
Essex
From the various reports and personal stories that I have seen and heard it would appear that in the first round of Covid the very fit people (gym bunnies we call them) have been the worst affected, most of whom now have serious long covid.
Un healthy old tubs like me seam to have pottered on ok..
Why I've no idea.
Not taking it steady after you have had it seems to have been the wrong thing to do.
 

Farmer Roy

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
NSW, Newstralya
@Farmer Roy,
Got any more on the story in the paper ( daily mail) of the body (buried) they have found in your neck of the woods.

apparently a “large bone” was found while doing some excavation work at the local Catholic high school, declared a crime scene while forensic stuff is done. That’s all I know.

 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

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  • 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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