Welcome to our April newsletter 

Cattle 

The big decision to make for most beef farmers in the spring is when to let the cows out!

Go too early and the ground will be wet and there won’t be enough grass. Go too late and you’re feeding more silage/hay than you needed to and more straw is used – which generates more dung which has to be handled. All of this adds cost and as explained last month, adds to a farm’s carbon footprint.

We normally let the cows out around the first week of April but as March had been pretty dry, we opened the gate and watched them race out on the 20th of March. We didn’t have enough grass yet (100 cows get through about 2 acres of grass a day) but as the forecast was dry, I could take round bales of hay and grabs of silage out to them in the field. I rationed out the fresh grass behind an electric fence and this with the extra feed lasted 16 days by which time we had some good grass and we could start properly grazing.

This method of turning out but still feeding was a lot of work and took as long as looking after them inside but saved us a significant amount of straw. The main benefit was one that I’d completely overlooked, it worked out that it timed perfectly with the mass emergence of two dung beetle species that would have missed out on a lot of food had we delayed turnout. At the end of March each dung pat was alive with a mass of beetles. Some complete their life cycles but many became lunch for birds or supper for bats, they’re the unappreciated bottom of the food chain that feeds so much of the farm’s wildlife!

Now that we’re getting towards the end of April the grass is doing well but it’s getting dry and there’s no rain in the forecast…..

Birds on the farm (Swallow chick photo from 2021)

The first Swallow arrived back on the 6th of April. He spent several lonely cold wet days waiting for another to join him. He (males have long streamers on their tails) roosted in exactly the same spot as the first one who returned last year so I assume it’s the same bird – we’ve named him Nick after my naturalist friend who is always on hand to answer my ecology questions. Hard to imagine such a small bird has flown 16,000 miles since I last saw him, the least I can do is provide a farm bursting with insects and as many safe nesting options as possible. We, like most farms have converted or made well fitting doors for our old barns and outbuildings. This, combined with modern buildings rarely being suitable for Swallows, means good nest sites are harder to find. I’ll be going around our buildings trying to make sure we can welcome the Swallows into as many locations as possible. 

I’m pleased to announce that earlier this month I heard a new species for the farm bird list. I say heard because it’s very unlikely I’ll see the bird as it’s a little brown job that hides away in scrub and reeds. It’s also a schedule 1 listed bird along with things like Kingfisher and Barn Owl. This status means you mustn’t go near an active nest or young and given that it’s in suitable breeding habitat I’m assuming it could be. Disturbing a schedule 1 bird could land you with a £5000 fine or 6 months in jail – both of which would be very inconvenient so I’m staying well out of the way!

Fortunately, the notable feature of the Cetti’s Warbler is its incredible voice. It belts out its tirade of notes in a short blast with a volume and enthusiasm that’s practically unrivalled by anything else you might encounter. I can hear “him” from 2 fields away!

The Cetti’s Warbler becomes bird number 99 on the farm list, I wonder who’s going to claim the 100th spot.

In other bird news we’ve had Willow Warblers singing and a stunning Wheatear visit, both will be moving through but great to hear and see.

Evening bird & wildlife walk - Saturday 7th May 6.30pm

April and May are an amazing time to listen to bird song so we will be running a guided wildlife walk to make the most of it. We’ll be focusing on birds and guiding you through identifying some of the more common ones by song and call. So, if you struggle to tell a Wren from a Robin, or a Song Thrush from a Blackbird, this should be perfect. Over the last few years, I’ve gradually learnt most of our farm birds from sound and I have to admit it’s not easy but with a few pointers the satisfaction of being able to identify things without seeing them never gets dull, it feels like having a superpower!

This will be an evening walk as many of the birds put on a performance before roosting and a 5am start is a bit keen for many – myself included.

 We’ll meet at 6.30pm at Park Farm for a 6.45pm start on Saturday 7th May.

We are delighted to once again have top local naturalist Nick Adams to lead us. Nick is probably the national expert on farmland birds, so we’re all guaranteed to learn lots. Tickets are £12 each or £6 for under 16's and the group will be limited to 15 - please follow the link to book.         

Lindsay's Shepherds update

After my moan about the price I get paid for my sheep fleeces last month it was lovely to have so many people purchase some for the garden and crafts at last month's pop-up shop. Bev (Our wonderful shop helper) even used some instead of oasis on the Easter arrangement she did for her church!

The lambs are all growing incredibly well, thanks to the kind weather and continued grass growth. The photo below is of the first triplets born this year, who featured in the February newsletter. The ewe is rearing all 3 herself with no input from me and did the same last year. Luckily she has had two ewe lambs so these will be retained for future breeding and I'm hoping they will have inherited her maternal tendencies.

Pop-up shop - Saturday 30th April 10am - noon

Our next pop-up farm shop will be on the 30th April. Thank you to everyone who came to our last one. We’ll have fresh our 100% grass fed beef on the chill counter and loads more amazing local produce. 

You may also be interested that as well as all the normal cuts of beef, we also sell the bits you never normally see and most of these are fantastic value, packed with nutrition and very tasty. So, if you’ve been looking for some heart, kidney, liver, tongue, skirt or (my favourite) hangar steak pop on down and try something different or visit Andy Rumming's beef website

This month OFF the farm

I’m keeping up with my farm visits and at the end of March visited Matt and Laura Elliot of the Sandy Hill Mob. Matt and Laura are new entrant farmers who managed to secure a tenancy with the National Trust on the Sherborne Estate. They farm Hereford cattle in a very low input system around some stunning parkland with huge ancient trees. Neither of them came from a farming background but a joint desire to learn more about their food led them to farming.

The way they intended to farm with nature helped them secure the land and it sounds like if any more adjoining National Trust land comes available it may also go their way.

Most farmers have grown up with farming, and on farms so it’s always great to meet people who have had to learn everything from scratch and gain experience working with others. Interestingly people from a non-farming background often come up with different solutions to problems and often bring valuable skills from other areas to their farming.

Both Laura and Matt have off farm work as well and Matt always spares us a few days at Christmas to help with the turkeys.

Thankyou!

Thank you so much to those of you who take the time to email and let us know how much you have enjoyed our newsletter. Sorry if we don't get chance to reply to you, it's usually because I think Lindsay has replied and she thinks I've replied and then we forget! We really do appreciate it and are pleased that what we are doing/trying to do is recognised, as it isn't always easy!