Archived News

 26th October 2015

There are a lot of Fresian x cattle to be sorted and weighed at present, cleaning barns out and repairing and welding gates in readiness to bring the Friesian x cattle in for the winter. 

The Belted Galloways generally out-winter unless they are calving or access to fields becomes too difficult.  The Belties are gradually being sorted into groups according to whether they are in-calf and have a bull grazing with them, cows that will remain here as grazers but not running with a bull, the youngstock and a few cows that will be culled.

The calves born early this year have been suckling from their mothers until recently when they were weaned. 

The calves are now grazing independently on grass in Shere and their mothers who are confirmed as in-calf and due next February -March, are grazing at Gomshall with Ethelred the bull.

The last five calves to be weaned this year, are currently grazing with their dams at Netley and they will join the group in Shere that are a similar age.

Three Belted Galloway heifer calves were born earlier this month and another three are due in the coming weeks, although one cow looks as though she may have slipped her calf.

Autumn drilling is complete as is the maize silaging; with the chopped maize being pushed into the silage clamp, compressed and then sheeted over to exclude air.

We were pleased to be able to host a farm visit organised by the NFU, for a large group of Defra lawyers, who despite the wet and cold conditions stayed for six hours!

The visit was very informative and applicable to their own work looking at everything from arable fields and margins, grain storage, Friesian cattle reared to buyer specification compared with grass fed, slow grown Belted Galloway cattle. Discussions ranged from farm assurance to Hagberg falling number, Higher Level Stewardship to CAP.  The feed-back was great and there was already talk of a return visit.

The headlands and field corners create shelter and provide food for wildlife as temperatures begin to fall.  This slightly ragged looking comma butterfly was one of the last I saw this summer.

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