The Disappearance of the All Round Farmer

[Chae1]

Speaking to a old chap in grassland society, he told me 25 years ago that a new idea came about called rotational grazing.

Any of the more experienced members on tff care to tell us why it didn't work then, but now it's going to save us a fortune?

True saying there's nothing new in morning.

 

[roscoe erf]

diet

 

[Bossfarmer]

Speaking to a old chap in grassland society, he told me 25 years ago that a new idea came about called rotational grazing.

Any of the more experienced members on tff care to tell us why it didn't work then, but now it's going to save us a fortune?

True saying there's nothing new in morning.

im interested to know this too and why everyones not done it the last 25 years

 

[unlacedgecko]

im interested to know this too and why everyones not done it the last 25 years

Rotational grazing takes investment in infrastructure and is extra work. It's not what father and grandfather did, so there is resistance to change.

Perhaps most importantly, direct payment of subsidies meant it hasn't had to work, as there is little commercial pressure on farms to succeed financially.

 

[wasted years]

There are a couple of brothers around here re-inventing the wheel with sheep grazing, their neighbours were telling me at the weekend that when they have groups around the farm to explain their wonder system they don't mention the lambs inside on hoppers.
A relation of mine went down the 'new zealand ' route 20 yrs ago with his cows, no parlour feeding, dry all cows off at Xmas.
Don't get me wrong he is an excellent farmer but now he has re-fitted the parlour feeders (cows go in better apparently!) and although he has a large spring peak of calvings they milk all year.

 

[An Gof]

no i have them rejected because the Nitrogens too low so my rejected stuff will be low in protein? whats the difference in protein content of barley at 1.5N and barley at 1.9N just out of interest?

Protein = 6.25 x N

Therefore in your example with an N difference of 0.4 the protein difference would be 2.5%

HTH

 

[unlacedgecko]

this is very impressive and actually hard to believe, what age/breed of cattle were turned onto this pasture?

I've no idea. Cattle aren't my thing. Listen to the Pasture Pod.

 

[Bossfarmer]

Protein = 6.25 x N

Therefore in your example with an N difference of 0.4 the protein difference would be 2.5%

HTH

interesting i never realised this, its high N barley we grow so the stuff thats rejected is under 1.8 N

 

[Bossfarmer]

The grain that was put in after grass has a N level over 2, almost worth keeping as feed for the younger stock to boost protein?

 

[digger64]

The grain that was put in after grass has a N level over 2, almost worth keeping as feed for the younger stock to boost protein?

Yes as long as its fat as well

 

[capfits]

Rotational grazing takes investment in infrastructure and is extra work. It's not what father and grandfather did, so there is resistance to change.

Perhaps most importantly, direct payment of subsidies meant it hasn't had to work, as there is little commercial pressure on farms to succeed financially.

Ahem it takes little investment if you have a pragmatic approach to and it does not take any extra work. Opening a gate extra work?come on.. Indeed with a touch if thought it can reduce work, alternate clean grazing sheep/cattle reduce worm pressure etc etc. But as ever it is what is best for your enterprise.

 

[unlacedgecko]

Ahem it takes little investment if you have a pragmatic approach to and it does not take any extra work. Opening a gate extra work?come on.. Indeed with a touch if thought it can reduce work, alternate clean grazing sheep/cattle reduce worm pressure etc etc. But as ever it is what is best for your enterprise.

I should have phrased that better, it is perceived as requiring investment and taking extra work.

I'm a huge fan of rotational grazing, but was attempting to explain why the UK take up of the practice is not as great as perhaps it might have been.

 

[ollie989898]

The reason is doesn't work is two fold:

1. Requires additional work and effort on the part of the farmer. Way more fun to buy and start up a brand new mixer wagon.

2. No one is going to come and help you do it. You get reps in all the time if you try to buy cow cake, no one is out there to make any money from telling you how to graze grass. Few agronomists even care about the stuff either.

 

[unlacedgecko]

2. No one is going to come and help you do it. You get reps in all the time if you try to buy cow cake, no one is out there to make any money from telling you how to graze grass. Few agronomists even care about the stuff either.

Not entirely true. There are plenty of groups and the like who run events promoting beef from grass.

http://www.qmscotland.co.uk/grazing

http://www.qmscotland.co.uk/events/borders-making-more-grazing-meeting

However, these people don't come to your door like feed reps. You have to go out and find them

 

[Kiwi Pete]

What is perun ?

Same as lofa but with a different name.

 

[Deereone]

What a great thread @DrWazzock I think a lot of us older farmers are jacks of all trades from necessity but have specialised in what works best for us with the land and environment we've acquired.

 

[DrWazzock]

What a great thread @DrWazzock I think a lot of us older farmers are jacks of all trades from necessity but have specialised in what works best for us with the land and environment we've acquired.

It's true to say that as things have got more complex then specialisation is more of a necessity. I can see the problem of trying to run a diverse small mixed farm and keep on top of every aspect. I struggle with that everyday! I don't think there is a right answer to the thread. I just put it up to provoke a bit of discussion.

My only slight fear is that people might close their minds to other things that might benefit their farms or soils because they don't "like" stock or whatever. To my mind, we have to do what's best for the farm, even if it doesn't suit our personal preferences or skill set.

I remember hearing of the time my grandfather who was a Lanarkshire dairy farmer moved down to England to some grade three land in Lincs. He was a proficient dairy farmer in his day and wanted to establish another herd in England. Uncle wouldn't hear of it as he liked tractors and arable, so they persisted with mostly arable on some fairly unsuitable land for many years doing a good job but never being fully rewarded for their efforts because the land just wasn't good wheat land.

It's taken us a generation to learn how to play to the strengths of the farm and make the most of its potential rather than try to force it to do the impossible. I have had to roll back the arable area and curb my enthusiasm for machinery in favour of more livestock. We have had to do what the farm wants rather than what we want and look at the farm without trying to push our own preferred sector of agriculture.

(I know this doesn't apply to specialist units like pigs and poultry that aren't so dependent on soil type amongst other things.)

 

[Kiwi Pete]

What a great thread @DrWazzock I think a lot of us older farmers are jacks of all trades from necessity but have specialised in what works best for us with the land and environment we've acquired.

Hmmm - I was the trainee of a couple of old boys who both filled a different niche in the same business (uncle's ineptitude with livestock still makes me want to )

That same style of farming would have a label these days, possibly several 'tags', is that where modern ag goes wrong?
Have many, stopped seeing the farm as a community, finding it easier to see it as a group of chemical reactions, than interactions?
Do our dislikes drive us as strongly as our likes?

I remember a quote that goes along the line of 'successful people round up all the things they don't like doing, and do them anyway'

 

[DRC]

We've done everything here, over the years, and I can turn my hand to everything from lambing to ploughing, to combining.
But, as I'm getting older, the sheep have gone, then the 180 heifer rearing, to be replaced by tack sheep, summer grazing and growing maize, with muck from the local pig farm.
No staff and My son working elsewhere, dictates the way we farm. When I was his age, I was doing the graft, for my dad, who wasn't age now!
My son is an all-rounder though, with dairy, sheep, beef , even pigs and arable , where he works.

 

[Red Fred]

I always prided myself with being able to do everything both with the animals, but also ploughing, drilling, spraying, etc. However I fear that many of these skills are becoming as outdated as steam engine drivers and scythemen.
At a recent dealer open evening, even the ploughs were connected with ISOBUS terminals and my new fertispreader appeared to be considered little more than a smallholder model compared to the ones the "professionals" were looking at.
As for getting a decent sample from a Massey 400 combine, I fear that skill won't enable me to get a job for many more years!