Blogs

Firstly, I would like to start by acknowledging the fantastic job Christine Ryder has done writing this column for the past five years. She is truly a hard act to follow.

As spring rolls on, so does the dry weather. And, while this has been great for lambing, the flush of grass we usually get in the back half of May which allows us to turn the cattle out won’t be happening without a little wet weather; a statement I would not have imagined saying only a couple of months ago.

Dairy Farmer commentator Christopher Murley tells us about his Jersey herd in far flung Cornwall.

It is hard to remember a better climate for lambing. We have had six weeks of warm, dry days and, just as the last few hoggs lamb down, we had last week’s welcome rain to get the grass growing ahead of demand.

At the end of February, a Government Minister made the warm and friendly remark that Britain does not need its own farming industry.

It’s May 1 already. How this strange and troubled year is flying by, which is amazing given all the events and shows we had planned to visit are now just a passing thought as the dates get closer on the calendar. Very disappointing.

Why do we farm? Honestly, what’s in it for us? My sense is that only a minority of farmers farm because they chose to.

My goodness, even my relentless cheerfulness is struggling as wave after wave of bad news on Covid-19 is broadcast each hour.

Well, this is a funny one. We live in very strange times and now we are nearing the end of lambing time there is time to reflect.

We have now almost completed the spring work, with spring barley coming through the ground fairly evenly and its top dressing of fertiliser being applied at the end of last week.