We had been snatching a few hours grazing per day, with the store bulls meant to be going out to grass for the summer. I can never remember not having the cattle meant for grazing over the summer out by the first few days in April. But not only have we had to re-house everything, but there are sections of the grass fields that have received no slurry or fertiliser at all this year and have a hungry brown appearance. Even on the fertilised ground, growth is almost non-existent.

This same hungry, brown look has disappeared from the vast bulk of the cereal ground following its 10.10.20 plus sulphur dressing.

While we have ploughed for the beans, the absolute deadline is rapidly approaching and we are looking at the possible alternatives. One is spring oilseed rape and the other spring barley, or of course the land can simply be left idle and kept tidy – not an attractive option.

One of the crops that has really surprised me is the winter oilseed rape. The pigeon-grazed plants have made excellent recovery and the whole crop is in rapid stem extension but it too needs to be sprayed with a fungicide that also has some growth regulation effect.But it’s going to take a while for land to dry out. It is probably by chance that we have so much silage on hand so the forced re-housing of all the cattle has little consequence apart from somewhat reduced performance compared with cattle being out on what would normally be expected at this time of the year – high-performance spring grass.

Straw is also moving. Normally the wheaten straw from the preceding year is not touched until July at the earliest and sometimes we have two years’ harvests in big reeks. This week the contractors moved in to bring the 2017 bales to the mushroom composters. This tells its own story. We are continuing to sell cattle as they become fit and buy in young bulls as replacements but, despite the fodder and weather crises, there is no drop in the price of good weanlings.

Read more

'Farmers with surplus silage are being cleaned out'

Fodder situation at crisis point

Dempsey at Large – Family farming – resilience or exploitation?