"Improving Our Lot" - Planned Holistic Grazing, for starters..

Henarar

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
or a fence line or 2 ? which i had that much keep atm ...even tho is carp old grass species......like from the road verges ..:X3::bag:😀
All sorts in there from stinging nettles to brambles and bracken and the odd bit of grass.
One thing there is though is plenty of dry humps for them to lay on and high hedges for them to get behind, it will be better than a dead flat field out in the open if it rains for days or we get snow
 

Bury the Trash

Member
Mixed Farmer
All sorts in there from stinging nettles to brambles and bracken and the odd bit of grass.
One thing there is though is plenty of dry humps for them to lay on and high hedges for them to get behind, it will be better than a dead flat field out in the open if it rains for days or we get snow
looks ideal sheepwalk.... .but no subdivide to save a bit of fickleness?
 

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
or a fence line or 2 ? which i had that much keep atm ...even tho is carp old grass species......like from the road verges ..:X3::bag:😀
but those crap road verges have a fair old mass if cut, here x1 yr now, so what would those crap grasses yield with a bit of management, you never see any ryegrass there. One thing that always surprises me, is if you make hay out of some of that old crap grass, it smells lovely, and cattle love it ! The opposite should be the case, perhaps suggesting not enough 'research' has been undertaken, in those old crap grasses. There must have been a 'decision' made somewhere to prioritise rye grass over other types. With the rising interest in herbal leys, drought resistant and long-life leys, will some of those discarded grasses make a come back, timothy, fesques and cocksfoot, have been 'improved', but not to the extent of ryegrasses.
 

holwellcourtfarm

Member
Livestock Farmer
One thing that always surprises me, is if you make hay out of some of that old crap grass, it smells lovely, and cattle love it !
Clearly something in it that the stock appreciate (y)

There must have been a 'decision' made somewhere to prioritise rye grass over other types.
I suspect that was more about patent rights than anything else. It's hard to persuade folk to pay good money for old species they've already got in their swards. That's partly why this year's new wonder variety is called rubbish in a few years time.
 

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
Clearly something in it that the stock appreciate (y)


I suspect that was more about patent rights than anything else. It's hard to persuade folk to pay good money for old species they've already got in their swards. That's partly why this year's new wonder variety is called rubbish in a few years time.
but will the new wonder old grasses, be rubbish in a few years time, i know it's pointless harping about what was years ago, but as a kid we made 1,000's of little bale hay, all on old pp, made well, smelt lovely, and cattle liked it, definitely wouldn't have been the cleanest of ground. When we moved more to pit silage, it wasn't so good, then wrapping did a better job, once turned to arable, not good at all, some doesn't even get planted now. Thinking, is there something in the 'drying' of those old grasses, that makes/alters them, to be more palatable to cattle ? With boris promising free trade, we need to find new old things to lower cop. All in all, just think we've lost the plot somewhere along the way, what are we missing ?
 

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
best thing to do with old pasture grass if its a bit over stood is make it to hay, this will "bring it back" and you can make some good hay out of what would have been second rate silage
quite agree, but why ? What is it about drying, that alters poor silage, to good hay ? Same stuff, just less water, but a huge difference to cattle, silk purse, sows ear job.
 

holwellcourtfarm

Member
Livestock Farmer
quite agree, but why ? What is it about drying, that alters poor silage, to good hay ? Same stuff, just less water, but a huge difference to cattle, silk purse, sows ear job.
And yet put nettles in clamp silage and cattle go mad for them (as long as they aren't too old when cut) :scratchhead:. Clearly pickling them changes their palatability.
 

Henarar

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
quite agree, but why ? What is it about drying, that alters poor silage, to good hay ? Same stuff, just less water, but a huge difference to cattle, silk purse, sows ear job.
Gets all the wet smelly stuff out the bottom of old grass that has been over stood as it dry's out, also buttercup and stuff like that will dry out and break up, drying it brings it back to life, if that makes any sense at all
 

Henarar

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
I also think that cattle should have some hay in the winter instead of all silage, we always have a round bale in the corner they can pick at, it may take a few days to go but they will very often pick at it even when there is better quality silage on offer.
I think they need something that's not pickled in there diet
 

awkward

Member
Location
kerry ireland
but will the new wonder old grasses, be rubbish in a few years time, i know it's pointless harping about what was years ago, but as a kid we made 1,000's of little bale hay, all on old pp, made well, smelt lovely, and cattle liked it, definitely wouldn't have been the cleanest of ground. When we moved more to pit silage, it wasn't so good, then wrapping did a better job, once turned to arable, not good at all, some doesn't even get planted now. Thinking, is there something in the 'drying' of those old grasses, that makes/alters them, to be more palatable to cattle ? With boris promising free trade, we need to find new old things to lower cop. All in all, just think we've lost the plot somewhere along the way, what are we missing ?
That nature and natural selection knows best,, in my thinking anyway
 

Bury the Trash

Member
Mixed Farmer
they are only in about 2 acres, the hedges are that far out over we can't fence the lot, it hasn't been used properly for 30 years
oh, looks a lot bigger park than that pictures can be a bit deceptive sometimes

trouble we got atm is the frost eating everything faster than the sheep and what they stand on is bruising after with frost they wont eat that then for a day or 2:rolleyes:
 

Henarar

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
oh, looks a lot bigger than that pictures can be a bit deceptive sometimes

trouble we got atm is the frost eating everything faster than the sheep and what they stand on is bruising after with frost they wont eat that then for a day or 2:rolleyes:
Not sure how big the whole patch is, maybe another acre or so we can't use, want a couple hours in there with the trimmer
 

Blaithin

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Alberta
Hahahahaha

Take this:

2020Precip (mm)HighLowAverage
January4.47.8-41-13.3
February19.37.1-25.9-8
March13.19.4-28.8-8.3
April6.221.8-23.20.5
May76.328-10.69
June167.828.7014.1
July78.629.7416
August35.133.5.415.8
September17.929-3.311.8
October18.723.2-19.81.8
November12.722.2-20.2-3.6
December19.58.7-21.1-6.3
Total Precip = 469.9 mm

Was quite a wet year here actually.
 
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Bury the Trash

Member
Mixed Farmer
but those crap road verges have a fair old mass if cut, here x1 yr now, so what would those crap grasses yield with a bit of management, you never see any ryegrass there. One thing that always surprises me, is if you make hay out of some of that old crap grass, it smells lovely, and cattle love it ! The opposite should be the case, perhaps suggesting not enough 'research' has been undertaken, in those old crap grasses. There must have been a 'decision' made somewhere to prioritise rye grass over other types. With the rising interest in herbal leys, drought resistant and long-life leys, will some of those discarded grasses make a come back, timothy, fesques and cocksfoot, have been 'improved', but not to the extent of ryegrasses.
Sheep can be a bit different , more selective than cattle.

The only time im keen on grazing that sort of stuff is mid term ish and at weaning. and i do and i have a field 2 like it down by the river thats used. that way. i wouldnt waste deisal baling it for sheep or putting it under plastic though as it might smell nice but actually they wont eat it ,they prefer clean straw, no doubt about it.


this time of year its useful as they will prefer it to conserved stuff as fresh stuff is always better to them.

i wouldnt want fields full of onion couch :sick: nor a somethe others , there should be a rank of preferred grasses for eating ir then see how it looks mine would have at number one for carpness ....crested dogs tail, caw is that rubbish they wont even crap on that stuff let alone eat it and when it runs to stem its like bledy wire...:eek:.
 

Blaithin

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Alberta
Yeah but tis a dry cold................
Sure it is.

Where's @Bury the Trash?

Guess how many barn owls live on the prairies vs how many will suck it up and live in the damp cold of the UK 😂 😂 😂

(Also currently sitting at 100% humidity here, for what that's worth. Mainly because it isn't -30. Humidity tends to cease to exist once it gets cold. All extreme cold is dry cold.)
 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

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    Votes: 3 1.7%
  • 100% I’ve had enough of farming!

    Votes: 4 2.3%

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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