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Last week, we disked the vegetation that had Roundup applied in the fields earmarked for the beans. The conditions were so good that we ploughed and then tilled. It was hard to believe that there was dust behind the crumbler bars of the harrow. We then sowed. The recommended sowing rate is around 250kg/ha (16st/ac) of beans to the acre – this year, the thousand-bean weight was lower than usual, which would suggest a lower seeding rate.
The ground had about 500kg/ha (4cwt) of 0.10.20/acre and slurry last autumn, so that will be the end of the fertiliser treatment for that crop for the year
With no tillering or branching in the case of beans, I have a view – which may be wrong – that if the land is fertile enough, a high seeding rate is desirable for maximum yield so I stuck with the 16-stone sown with the normal one-pass system in excellent conditions. The ground had about 500kg/ha (4cwt) of 0.10.20/acre and slurry last autumn, so that will be the end of the fertiliser treatment for that crop for the year.
We took delivery of our first artic of bulk compound for the cereal ground. We will begin with the oilseed rape and work our way through the winter barley and wheat.
It is clear from the crops that so far at least, the lack of winter rain has had no bad effects.
They have greened up and in the oilseed rape, the crop where grazed by pigeons is visibly growing away from the damage with the stems clearly lengthening.
I can only put it down to relatively high soil temperatures and sunshine.
The difference in price between a good-quality weanling from a good suckler herd and the rest has never been wider
While everyone is enjoying the weather, especially in comparison to this time last year, some rain would be welcome in the immediate future.
Despite the good conditions, I still have not got the nerve to leave the young bulls out day and night so groups of them are let out each morning and are still willing to come in each evening as they know there will be feed in the passage of their slatted house.
The real dilemma is in relation to replacing. The difference in price between a good-quality weanling from a good suckler herd and the rest has never been wider, and my prejudice in favour of quality is borne out by the ICBF statistics and various trials by Teagasc and elsewhere that mediocre-bred animals have poor conversion efficiency and will not pay for the feeding.
So, with each load of beef that goes, we are replacing with a load of good-quality weanlings while keeping an eye on Brexit developments that could dramatically reduce the value of our stock.
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