Solar power, wet grass and crow problems

“Too much lush grass on an empty stomach,” I was told.

It may well have been the cause of the death of one of the new weanling bulls, but I was still disappointed at seeing the young Limousin dead. It has been an exceptional autumn, with exceptional growth. We dithered whether we should continue paddock grazing and move the fence daily or simply give each group the run of a field. The problem of course at this time of the year is that so much of the grass gets mucky and walked into the ground if cattle have a free run and it is both wasted and damaging to next year’s production. So we are sticking with the paddock grazing, but it’s a fine line between giving them enough and too much, especially when the grass is soft and lush.

While there have been a lot of reports of grass tetany, especially in sucklers, the weanling had none of the symptoms and the original diagnosis was probably accurate.

Another one in the same bunch was affected, but not as badly. We put him into a loose box with straw, hay and water and he is fine. We are being careful in gauging the amount we give them at any one time. But aside from the daily chore of cattle, we had a visit from another solar power company.

As I have mentioned before, we have a number of ESB lines crossing the land and at one corner is a smallish transformer station. I had down the years seen the presence of ESB poles and installation as a nuisance and as simply a reflection of where we farm, but there may be an upside. There has been a lot of publicity about solar farm options being sought and the potential for farm income as well as electricity generation to meet the national renewable obligations.

So far, I have listened to two companies and told my solicitor that I would sign nothing until I had submitted the documents to him and listened to his advice. So far, I have done nothing except listen attentively to what was likely to be on offer from either company. One has asked for a period of total exclusivity whereas the other wants to come and do a site survey. I have no problem with a site survey but I think I will probably delay doing anything until I see what the government White Paper, due out I gather in the next few weeks, says and also when I see some definite offers on the table.

Meanwhile, the crows are back in the cattle yard with a vengeance. I’ve had a few letters from farmers similarly affected.

With the banning of poison, the only effective way seems to be shooting, ideally from a hide, probably made with straw bales so that they are not quite sure whether it is occupied or not and with a banger in the hide that can go off when somebody with a gun is not actually there. I hope this solution works because it is becoming, I think, an increasing menace.