We have huge amounts of volunteer oats plants to which we have applied Roundup. The intention is to spread out the remaining straw with a hay bob and disc the field as uniformly as possible to plough.
The relatively dry weather has come as a godsend but we need a few more days of it to be fully prepared on the crop side. The oaten straw has caused endless headaches as I mentioned a fortnight ago. We chopped some of it with an old precision-chop forage harvester but the volume and wetness of the material meant that one of the driving belts burned out and in some of the field, we are back to square one.
At the same time, we have huge amounts of volunteer oats plants to which we have applied Roundup. The intention is then to spread out the remaining straw with a hay bob and then disc the whole field as uniformly as possible to plough. The volume of volunteers after oats is on a totally different level to the almost spotless stubble after winter wheat. As I am only feeling my way in growing oats, it is clear that straw disposal and stubble cultivation will have to move further up my priority list.
We have now bought as many bull weanlings as we can comfortably handle. There is little doubt that bought-in 18-month to two-year-old bullocks will happily stay out foraging until Christmas at least as long as there is shelter and enough grass and they will deliver compensatory growth when they go out on good grass in the spring. Weanling bulls of seven to eight months of age are a different proposition and have to be treated very gently to get over the shock of weaning, being transported for the first time in their lives and adjusting to strange surroundings.
ADVERTISEMENT
Register for free to read this story and our free stories.
This content is available to digital subscribers and loyalty code users only. Sign in to your account, use the code or subscribe to get unlimited access.
However, if you would like to share the information in this article, you may use the headline, summary and link below:
Title: Home Farm: dry weather a godsend
We have huge amounts of volunteer oats plants to which we have applied Roundup. The intention is to spread out the remaining straw with a hay bob and disc the field as uniformly as possible to plough.
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
CODE ACCEPTED
You have full access to the site until next Wednesday at 9pm.
CODE NOT VALID
Please try again or contact support.
The relatively dry weather has come as a godsend but we need a few more days of it to be fully prepared on the crop side. The oaten straw has caused endless headaches as I mentioned a fortnight ago. We chopped some of it with an old precision-chop forage harvester but the volume and wetness of the material meant that one of the driving belts burned out and in some of the field, we are back to square one.
At the same time, we have huge amounts of volunteer oats plants to which we have applied Roundup. The intention is then to spread out the remaining straw with a hay bob and then disc the whole field as uniformly as possible to plough. The volume of volunteers after oats is on a totally different level to the almost spotless stubble after winter wheat. As I am only feeling my way in growing oats, it is clear that straw disposal and stubble cultivation will have to move further up my priority list.
We have now bought as many bull weanlings as we can comfortably handle. There is little doubt that bought-in 18-month to two-year-old bullocks will happily stay out foraging until Christmas at least as long as there is shelter and enough grass and they will deliver compensatory growth when they go out on good grass in the spring. Weanling bulls of seven to eight months of age are a different proposition and have to be treated very gently to get over the shock of weaning, being transported for the first time in their lives and adjusting to strange surroundings.
If you would like to speak to a member of our team, please call us on 01-4199525.
Link sent to your email address
We have sent an email to your address. Please click on the link in this email to reset your password. If you can't find it in your inbox, please check your spam folder. If you can't find the email, please call us on 01-4199525.
ENTER YOUR LOYALTY CODE:
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
SHARING OPTIONS