thurlstone jerseys news

So that was the summer of 2011, by choice I would take the same again next year so long as Winter fills up the water table, the dry years even in this dry part of the country are still the best. Irrigation has been used quite a lot this time but with just the maize to harvest now at the 10th of September. This looks like another 10 days away then silos should be full of good quality feed. The cows have milked well and look great this summer. With 70 cows calved in the last 24 days the winter diet is coming together nicely.

Some really attractive cows have calved in this group and we look forward to the classifiers visit later in the year. DJ May heifers look long lasting and second calf Comerica’s good functional cows with wide rumps and high wide rear udders. Zic and Impuls cows still impress me as do daughters of Whisky as they get older, young stock on the ground today are by Zuma, Zaga, Jante, and more by May.

The Seamaiden family have turned out another exceptional young cow, Big Show Seamaiden was Reserve Junior Champion at this years Great Yorkshire Show and has just calved its second looking really good, a very balanced young cow with dairy strength and a cracker of an udder!

The early Spring turn out that we had hoped for did not arrive as a large down pour in February left the main grazing block very waterlogged. We used the separated slurry from the tank for the first time this year and applied it to the grazing block 4 weeks before the cattle were planed to start grazing. The first day of grazing was 24th March and the cows spent 2 hours grazing, since then cattle grazing has increased and at this present time cattle are grazing all day. This slow introduction to the grass has meant we have seen very little drop in milk yield and the coming week will see cattle out all night and then returning for a buffer feed before milking.

Young stock has been turned out to their summer grazing which will mean all autumn calving heifers will be brought back to Manor Farm for calving from the end of August onwards. The autumn calved yearlings will be housed from the end of September for serving.

The crop side of the farm has seen a very dry March and April allowing us to spread separated solid on the maize and beet ground then working down to a seed bed for drilling. Plastic maize was drilled 23rd March and is up and pushing the plastic, beet was drilled 29th March and has also emerged and received its first two herbicides and top dressing of fertiliser. Conventional Maize was drilled 19th April and has emerged in some very dry conditions, the forage Rape for grazing was drilled the same day and has received a pass with the irrigater to get a good germination and this has germinated. Silage blocks of Italian rye have also been irrigated to keep them fresh and leafy allowing them to bulk up and silage will be taken in the next 2 weeks.