The calving period started on 16 March and, to date, we have 63 out of 72 cows calved. The remaining nine cows are very close to calving and I reckon that another two weeks should see all cows calved.

We lost three calves in total, one of which could have been saved through earlier intervention. The other two calves were born ahead of their scan date and dead on arrival.

As we operate a closed herd and have established a good market for selling replacement heifers, I decided against buying in calves to put to the cows that lost their calves.

While they are young cows, with one second-calving and two third-calving animals, I think it’s better to maintain the herd’s health status. Therefore, these three animals will be fattened now.

Calves on the ground

After losses, this leaves us with 60 cows and calves on the ground.

Cows are calving much closer to the start of the grazing season

Calving was delayed by two weeks compared with last year, which is why we still have a few cows left to calve down.

However, the later start to calving has worked well and it is something that will be repeated next year.

Cows are calving much closer to the start of the grazing season and given that weather conditions have been on our side this year, they are going out to grass within 24 hours of calving. This is a huge benefit in terms of reducing the workload, especially as I work off-farm during the day. Cows are on a grass-only diet, regardless of whether they are first-calved heifers or mature cows.

Lick buckets are used to supplement cows with minerals.

Options

We started to castrate a few of the male calves using rubber rings, shortly after birth, but have since stopped this.

The reason being is that we have a lot of heifers to choose from this year and we may decide to sell off some cows as outfits. Therefore, it may be more practical if the male calves are not castrated at sale time to attract more buyers.

Decisions to be made on breeding

Breeding will start in mid-June for the cows, as calving from mid-March onwards is definitely the way forward for our herd. Being able to slip cows out to grass at calving time is a big advantage when working off-farm.

This year, we are planning to put 60 cows to the bull, split over two groups of 30 animals. There are seven cows which will not be bred due to age and problems with udders.

Last summer, we did notice the bull was slow to cover cows at the tail end of the breeding period

We will need to source a stock bull, as our Hereford bull appears to have a few issues. Last summer, we did notice the bull was slow to cover cows at the tail end of the breeding period.

He is still on the farm, but monitoring his movement, I would be cautious about using him again for breeding.

So while the aim would be to replace this animal, we do have options for breeding that are worth exploring, rather than rushing into buying another bull.

Options

First off, we have two Angus stock bulls on-farm which could be used to cover cows. Secondly, there is the option of using more AI on cows.

We inseminated a small group of cows last year with the Limousin bull Lodge Hamlet, as a trial to see how introducing some continental genetics would work with our cows.

We have been keeping an eye out for a replacement stock bull and will continue to do so

With our herd consisting of Angus or Hereford cows, the Limousin was used to see if we could increase carcase weights from a grass-based finishing system.

The Limousin calves born this year are top quality and performing really well, so I would consider using more AI to get similar calves.

We have been keeping an eye out for a replacement stock bull and will continue to do so. The main thing is to get the right bull, as easy calving and good growth rates are important, as we finish cattle on-farm.

Breeding heifers

There are 43 yearling heifers on the farm and they averaged 357kg on 2 March, so they should comfortably make their target breeding weight of 400kg by June.

Heifers were allowed to go out to grass in late February, but had to be re-housed for a short period in March. They were turned back out to grass in late March and have remained at grass since.

Breeding will start for these animals in early June, with heifers being bred to AI. Last year, we used the Angus sire Mr Radar and he has proved to be easy calving, while delivering good-quality calves. Therefore, I am considering using this bull again.

Last year, one buyer bought 20 in-calf heifers off-farm and has come back to say that all 20 animals are now rearing calves, which gives us great satisfaction

We will try to breed as many of these heifers as possible, as we have established a good market for selling in-calf heifers in autumn.

Last year, one buyer bought 20 in-calf heifers off-farm and has come back to say that all 20 animals are now rearing calves, which gives us great satisfaction.

In-calf heifers are typically sold for £1,100 to £1,200, which adds considerable value to them compared with finishing any heifer that is surplus to our own requirement.

Carryover of silage

We will be carrying a good reserve of silage into next winter, with one unopened pit of grass from last year.

In addition, there are still 95 bales of silage harvested late last year, and they will be kept for dry cows next winter.

First-cut silage is likely to be harvested at the end of May. I walked the swards recently and it is starting to bulk out. There are 43 acres to harvest for silage. We grazed all silage ground with cattle this spring, before closing on 12 April.

As we gave up 18ha of rented grazing this year, the farm is highly stocked, so we’re unlikely to have a big grazing surplus for silage

Slurry was applied earlier this spring, with 2.5 bags/acre of 18-6-12 and one bag/acre of 38% nitrogen and sulphur spread when closing off ground. Silage will also be baled from the grazing block, once surplus grass starts to come, and these bales will be marked for growing cattle. As we gave up 18ha of rented grazing this year, the farm is highly stocked, so we’re unlikely to have a big grazing surplus for silage.

As such, we may close off a smaller area for a second cut to give us some additional grazing during the summer period.

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