Despite the dramatic improvement in ground conditions, it’s only this week that we have a significant number of cattle out day and night.

This week we have a TB test for all the cattle which, even though it’s only once a year, still involves a lot of work for the two days involved, at a busy time of the year.

With all the cattle going to the factory, it is remarkable how few marts are left in our area, compared with the number that were in operation during my childhood.

I have found the TB eradication system is something we can live with

It’s inevitable that we have the occasional carcase showing up with a lesion, which involves observing rules on movement being in date and test intervals being observed. That is the way the system works and unlike deer-infested areas in west Wicklow, in general, I have found the TB eradication system is something we can live with. But this effective obligation to go to the factory should be reciprocated by factory quotes fully matching the best mart quotes of the day.

Meanwhile, out on the land, the few days of less than intense cold has already worked wonders. The oilseed rape fields are coming into bloom and while not yet at the vivid uniform yellow, there is more than a hint of what is on the way.

As I mentioned last week, we were unwilling to go with any herbicides during the very cold conditions

To my great relief, the beans have begun to emerge, with the rows in the first-sown field fully visible. The main task now is to get growth regulator out on the winter wheat and to control the volunteer oats that have emerged after last year’s messy harvest.

As I mentioned last week, we were unwilling to go with any herbicides during the very cold conditions. There is one field where I suspect there is some resistance to wild oats treatments, so we will watch carefully how effective what we apply turns out.