I farm: “Beef, sheep and tillage on about 200ac of leased land, as well as being a full-time tree surgeon.”

Cattle: “I finish about 100 cattle every year. I buy mainly Angus and a few Herefords at around two weeks old. They’re finished then on oats and silage. They mostly all go to the factory as two-year-olds. I have an automatic feeder that will feed 75 calves at a go. It’s a great job when you’re working off-farm.”

Tillage: “I sow about 40ac of oats every year. They’re easy to grow in the west of Ireland and they’re easier to dry. There’s great feeding in oats, they’re definitely underrated. This year was a good year, we got in with the combine around 17% or 18% and it yielded around 2t/ac. We have our own dryer and bring it down to about 15% moisture. We can get combining an awful lot quicker than you could with wheat or barley.”

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Sheep: “I have about 110 horny ewes and cross them with a Lanark ram. I finish them off grass and go to the factory with them. Lambing takes place around March-April time.”

Silage: “We are contractors at home here as well and do all our own silage. This year, I made two pits of silage and don’t bother with bales.”

Tree surgery: “I’m at the tree surgery for the last 10 or 12 years. This is the real busy season for it. I do a lot of private work. I could be clearing sites for new housing estates or roads. No two days are the same.”

Horse ploughing: “I always took part in ploughing competitions with the tractor but a couple of years ago I started taking part in the under-40 horse ploughing competition. I’ve won a good few county competitions and competed at the All-Ireland too. It’s a bit of craic and it’s something different. It’s nice to see the tradition kept going too.”