This week in photos: May hay while the sun shines

Brian Lonergan of Newcastle Agri bringing in organic red clover silage for Tomás O' Keeffe, Greenmount, Newcastle, Co Tipperary. Tomás bought the red clover from a neighbouring tillage farmer and he is mixing it in the pit with his own grass silage. \ Donal O' Leary

Tom, Emma, Micahel and Aaron McDonald on their calf to beef farm in Ballycowan, Co Offaly. \ Claire Nash

Eddie Barry stacking square bales of hay at Ballymackrory, Banogue, Co Limerick, with his dog 'Boss'. Eddie and his son David make around 5,000 square bales every year and, along with feeding it to cattle and horses, they also sell to neighbouring farmers. \ Odhran Ducie

Padraig Reilly scanning suckler cows on the farm of Eamon and Lesley Donohoe in Dromard, Co Longford. Pictured with Padraig are Eamon and local farmer Dominic Tierney who helped with the scanning. The Donohoes run a split autumn- and spring-calving herd with a mix of Charolais, Limousin, Hereford and Salers. The autumn is are fully AI, with a Fiston Charolais bull running with the spring-calving cows. All calves are reared to weanlings and sold in Carrigallen Mart. 

Aileen Gleeson helping her father Tom to harvest 80 acres of their own silage at Sharavogue, Co Offaly. Aileen was taking a break from her studies to help out as she is due to sit the Leaving Cert and hopes to study agricultural science in UCC. \ Odhran Ducie

Alan McDowell destoning land for carrots for Fresh Fields, in view of the Mourne Mountains, Co Down. \ Peter Niblock

Shane Jennings (Enniskeane) taking part in the Dunmanway tractor run on a Ford 5000. The run was in aid of MS Ireland (Multiple Sclerosis) West Cork Branch, The Friends of Dunmanway Hospital and St. Mary’s Church Dunmanway. Picture: David Patterson, Tractor Run – Cork

Florence Bourke from Castlemartyr, Co Cork, with her Holstein Friesian heifer Ashlyn after placing third in the dairy young stockperson class.\Shanon Kinahan

Dairy farmer Jimmy McCarthy escorts his herd of 70 cows back to the fields after milking in Newcestown, West Cork. \ Andy Gibson