Holistic Grazing event in Berwickshire

Jungle Bill

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Angus
The Farmers Weekly Graze initiative has organised an open day with Charley and Andrea Walker, Abbey Saint Bathans, Berwickshire on 11th March. @Sheila Cooke will also be talking there.

Further information and booking (free) details here:

It would be a chance for some of us to meet up, I’ve heard Charley talk and it should be a good day.
 
The Farmers Weekly Graze initiative has organised an open day with Charley and Andrea Walker, Abbey Saint Bathans, Berwickshire on 11th March. @Sheila Cooke will also be talking there.

Further information and booking (free) details here:

It would be a chance for some of us to meet up, I’ve heard Charley talk and it should be a good day.
Thanks for mentioning this Jungle Bill. I am looking forward to meeting Charley, seeing his farm, and having a chance to speak with people about what is possible with holistic planned grazing.
 
This isn't far from me and I would love to go. Must try and get a day off work.

I know the Walkers do a great job of rotational grazing. Wasn't aware they would be classed as holistic? Just listened to the second part of the pasture podcast featuring them and it is excellent ?
 

Jungle Bill

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Angus
This isn't far from me and I would love to go. Must try and get a day off work.

I know the Walkers do a great job of rotational grazing. Wasn't aware they would be classed as holistic? Just listened to the second part of the pasture podcast featuring them and it is excellent [emoji106]

They say they are grazing holistically in the FW details for the day and from what I heard in their talk at a Soil Association talk last year they are seeing, thinking and making decisions holistically.
@Sheila Cooke will also be giving a talk on holistic planned grazing so there will be a strong holistic element to the day.
Allan Savory says you can no more manage a little bit holistically than you can be a little bit pregnant and I think we will see undeniable signs of holism at Barnside, and after all holistic thinking is a journey rather than a destination.
 
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This isn't far from me and I would love to go. Must try and get a day off work.

I know the Walkers do a great job of rotational grazing. Wasn't aware they would be classed as holistic? Just listened to the second part of the pasture podcast featuring them and it is excellent ?
Where do I get the pasture podcast? I would like to hear it too.
 
Just Google 'pasture pod podcast' or it is available on i-tunes I think. There's 12 in total and the Walkers feature in a double-header.

Trying to get a day off work so that I can come along on the 11th. Fingers crossed!
Thanks! I spoke with the organisers today and they are limiting to 70 farmers, and are nearly full, so please register soon if you plan to go!
 
A very interesting day at Barnside, set in the scenic Lammermuirs. This is the third time I've been at an event there and you always come away knowing more than you did when you arrived. Nice to have some 'facetime' with @Sheila Cooke and @ShooTa. And a deer farming lurker. You know who you are :D

Anyway, my learning points were:

-To get most benefit from these types of planned/rotational grazing systems, you want big mobs of commercial animals. The Walkers run 110 cows in one bulling group to this end and all 500 ewes are tupped in a big mob. If you're precious about pedigrees and genetics are important to you, you won't get quite as much out (but it will still be an improvement). Even better if you're happy to trade stock, as @Kiwi Pete does, which again could make it difficult to maintain the health status of any capital stock.
-The consumer will push us down the sustainable/regenerative, high welfare road, if we're not already heading that way ourselves.
-Tall grass/holistic planned grazing has great potential with cattle but I think it would be a brave shepherd that tried it with sheep alone. The 3LM presentation sounded almost too good to be true, 200+% increase in margin plus all the environmental benefits. BUT we've had our little green Anzac troll telling us the same for some time, plus all the other hippies on the grazing thread :D, so it has to be taken seriously.
-If I plant a forage crop again, it will probably be kale.
 

exmoor dave

Member
Location
exmoor, uk
A very interesting day at Barnside, set in the scenic Lammermuirs. This is the third time I've been at an event there and you always come away knowing more than you did when you arrived. Nice to have some 'facetime' with @Sheila Cooke and @ShooTa. And a deer farming lurker. You know who you are :D

Anyway, my learning points were:

-To get most benefit from these types of planned/rotational grazing systems, you want big mobs of commercial animals. The Walkers run 110 cows in one bulling group to this end and all 500 ewes are tupped in a big mob. If you're precious about pedigrees and genetics are important to you, you won't get quite as much out (but it will still be an improvement). Even better if you're happy to trade stock, as @Kiwi Pete does, which again could make it difficult to maintain the health status of any capital stock.
-The consumer will push us down the sustainable/regenerative, high welfare road, if we're not already heading that way ourselves.
-Tall grass/holistic planned grazing has great potential with cattle but I think it would be a brave shepherd that tried it with sheep alone. The 3LM presentation sounded almost too good to be true, 200+% increase in margin plus all the environmental benefits. BUT we've had our little green Anzac troll telling us the same for some time, plus all the other hippies on the grazing thread :D, so it has to be taken seriously.
-If I plant a forage crop again, it will probably be kale.


Out of interest, why kale over other crops?
(Sheep or cattle to graze it?)
 

Kiwi Pete

Member
Livestock Farmer
A very interesting day at Barnside, set in the scenic Lammermuirs. This is the third time I've been at an event there and you always come away knowing more than you did when you arrived. Nice to have some 'facetime' with @Sheila Cooke and @ShooTa. And a deer farming lurker. You know who you are :D

Anyway, my learning points were:

-To get most benefit from these types of planned/rotational grazing systems, you want big mobs of commercial animals. The Walkers run 110 cows in one bulling group to this end and all 500 ewes are tupped in a big mob. If you're precious about pedigrees and genetics are important to you, you won't get quite as much out (but it will still be an improvement). Even better if you're happy to trade stock, as @Kiwi Pete does, which again could make it difficult to maintain the health status of any capital stock.
-The consumer will push us down the sustainable/regenerative, high welfare road, if we're not already heading that way ourselves.
-Tall grass/holistic planned grazing has great potential with cattle but I think it would be a brave shepherd that tried it with sheep alone. The 3LM presentation sounded almost too good to be true, 200+% increase in margin plus all the environmental benefits. BUT we've had our little green Anzac troll telling us the same for some time, plus all the other hippies on the grazing thread :D, so it has to be taken seriously.
-If I plant a forage crop again, it will probably be kale.
Cheers, ears! ?

Most departures of the mind from within the box others placed it are extremely worthwhile.
As I attempted to explain on another thread, as a bare-legged schoolboy I was able to generate over $5500/cow margin in a year, grazing an old reserve by a riverbank full of brush and willow regen. and fostering on batches of calves.

Rattling your cage only gets you so far!

Glad you had a good day out (y)
 
A very interesting day at Barnside, set in the scenic Lammermuirs. This is the third time I've been at an event there and you always come away knowing more than you did when you arrived. Nice to have some 'facetime' with @Sheila Cooke and @ShooTa. And a deer farming lurker. You know who you are :D

Anyway, my learning points were:

-To get most benefit from these types of planned/rotational grazing systems, you want big mobs of commercial animals. The Walkers run 110 cows in one bulling group to this end and all 500 ewes are tupped in a big mob. If you're precious about pedigrees and genetics are important to you, you won't get quite as much out (but it will still be an improvement). Even better if you're happy to trade stock, as @Kiwi Pete does, which again could make it difficult to maintain the health status of any capital stock.
-The consumer will push us down the sustainable/regenerative, high welfare road, if we're not already heading that way ourselves.
-Tall grass/holistic planned grazing has great potential with cattle but I think it would be a brave shepherd that tried it with sheep alone. The 3LM presentation sounded almost too good to be true, 200+% increase in margin plus all the environmental benefits. BUT we've had our little green Anzac troll telling us the same for some time, plus all the other hippies on the grazing thread :D, so it has to be taken seriously.
-If I plant a forage crop again, it will probably be kale.
It was really fun to meet @Woolless, @ShooTa and our lurker, who grows deer, yesterday.

There are many people all over the world who manage only sheep holistically. One of the people we trained has herded thousands of sheep in France holistically. Here is one of his videos.

Fernhill Farm in Cheddar Gorge, near Bristol are also using Holistic Management for their thousands of sheep. The short video below shows images of their sheep, fencing and grass.

 
It was really fun to meet @Woolless, @ShooTa and our lurker, who grows deer, yesterday.

There are many people all over the world who manage only sheep holistically. One of the people we trained has herded thousands of sheep in France holistically. Here is one of his videos.

Fernhill Farm in Cheddar Gorge, near Bristol are also using Holistic Management for their thousands of sheep. The short video below shows images of their sheep, fencing and grass.

Thank you Sheila. I'll have a look at them when I get the chance (y)
 

onesiedale

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Derbys/Bucks.
A very interesting day at Barnside, set in the scenic Lammermuirs. This is the third time I've been at an event there and you always come away knowing more than you did when you arrived. Nice to have some 'facetime' with @Sheila Cooke and @ShooTa. And a deer farming lurker. You know who you are :D

Anyway, my learning points were:

-To get most benefit from these types of planned/rotational grazing systems, you want big mobs of commercial animals. The Walkers run 110 cows in one bulling group to this end and all 500 ewes are tupped in a big mob. If you're precious about pedigrees and genetics are important to you, you won't get quite as much out (but it will still be an improvement). Even better if you're happy to trade stock, as @Kiwi Pete does, which again could make it difficult to maintain the health status of any capital stock.
-The consumer will push us down the sustainable/regenerative, high welfare road, if we're not already heading that way ourselves.
-Tall grass/holistic planned grazing has great potential with cattle but I think it would be a brave shepherd that tried it with sheep alone. The 3LM presentation sounded almost too good to be true, 200+% increase in margin plus all the environmental benefits. BUT we've had our little green Anzac troll telling us the same for some time, plus all the other hippies on the grazing thread :D, so it has to be taken seriously.
-If I plant a forage crop again, it will probably be kale.
We've found that kale and bales probably works the best of the forage crops for our heifers. However this winter has prompted me to take a more serious look at deferred grass with bales on.
The stock were so much happier on it this winter (as was I moving the fences and water!) The ground seems to have come out of the winter much better. The key thing I need to do though is build a bigger cover ahead of the winter.
 

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