Lambing has finally finished here for 2017 and it is now time to evaluate how the season has gone for this year.

Things have gone well for the most part, with the mature ewes going out to the fields with 1.8 lambs per ewe lambed.

The ewe lambs went well too, with roughly 1.4 lambs per ewe lambed going out to the fields. However, I had a slightly higher handling rate on these this year.

I can only assume that the mild winter had some part to play in this as a lot of lambs came larger than they normally do, despite having the same feeding regime as other years. One of these lambs came in at 7.3kg and the largest from the mature ewes was 9.4kg.

It is amazing to review figures from previous years and compare the results. With all these records, it is possible to assess the effect weather has on the performance of the crop of sheep.

As always, having hardworking staff that work well together is the key to having things running smoothly.

Grass is continuing to grow at pace and with a demand of 32kg DM/ha and growth of 46kg DM/ha, magic day has long since passed.

I have slowed down the second round of fertiliser application here to avoid having to take out too much ground for silage. As it stands, there are 40 acres closed up for silage and, with up to 90 bales of silage left over from this winter, I won’t need the same quantity as other years.

I will do my best to make what I need as high-quality silage, so as to reduce my need for concentrate meals in the run-up to lambing next year.

Over the last few years I have fallen behind in my plans for reseeding here on the farm and I will target reseeding some extra fields this year if grass growth continues to exceed demand. There is no need to produce grass that can’t be utilised.

The annual spring clean has begun around the yard now that all the stock are out grazing. First up will be the dismantling of all the individual pens and general tidying up around the yard.

Given that April is National Spring Clean month, we will also spend some time collecting discarded rubbish along the road that leads up to the farm. We are constantly amazed at how untidy some people are. Our hedges seem to be an easy dumping ground for people’s remains of their nights out.

I cannot understand why people cannot hold on to their rubbish until they reach a dustbin. We have a beautiful country here with scenery that rivals many places around the world and yet many people take no pride in this fantastic place and treat it like a rubbish tip.

Watching a recent programme on television, I was appalled to see the lengths people will go to conceal their rubbish to avoid paying, like hiding nappies in cereal boxes to then throw them in the recycling bins.

I wonder what the solution to this disgusting habit can be. Is there enough enforcement?