I always thought that Apple was a brand that was favoured by hippies, refusniks and other peripheral types when I was growing up and at college. Macs were frowned upon by the academic fraternity when I was at Ag college, first time round we used dos and other antequated software which was hard to grasp and put me off computers nearly for life.
When I did my MBA in 2001, windows was all the rage and again Macs were kind of frowned on and most people took the mickey of anyone who even thought about using one, let alone owned one! Part of my business strategy classes was looking at Apple Inc and the role mavericks and key individuals can have on a business. Steve Jobs has been key to the success of Apple, from being a small struggling business making niche Market computers, it is now recognised as probably the biggest global super brand.
Having been a dedicated windows man up until Monday, mocking my sister and mother about their 'indoctrination' into being Mac users, my patience with my windows running laptop finally snapped. Plagued with continuos error messages, Internet explorer suddenly shutting down for no apparent reason, the machine hanging and freezing mid way through writing something on here, I almost lost my rag and hurled it against the wall. Now I have a colleague who has been showing off his iPad, doing stuff with it which was quite amazing, mocking us other guys about how backward we were using windows etc. He gave some ofus a demo of just how fast his iPad(16gb version 1) was compared to our 2ghz laptops. It was taking him seconds to do things, us minutes to do the same things.......
So Monday afternoon I had a seminal moment, went down to the local Apple store in Exeter and saw one, the iPad mk2. Now I can see why people say it's a cult, guys in blue Apple t-shirts, immaculate, clean, simple store layout, incredibly customer focused, it just shouts out for you to go in and play with the stuff. Sweetshop mentality, it is almost impossible to resist. I have often been past this store, usually it is packed, barely room to see anything, let alone try it out, so I went in late, just 20 minutes before closing, only a few people there to see what it was all about, why were these fan dangled machines so popular. I had been looking since spring at the new smartphones, sussing out what they could do, etc. I like the Samsung Galaxy S2, it's big screen etc. I had SO nearly signed up for one, but then I saw out of the corner of my eye the recommended antivirus, my heart sank having already suffered 2 viruses this year through attachments on twitter. This young guy asked if I needed help and then swiftly, simply and completely blew me away with what the iPad2 could do. And FAST! It is hard to resist fact, deny it when you see it, everything I experienced was exceptional in customer satisfaction, so 20 mins later I walked out of there with an IPad2 and the biggest grin I have had for a while.
There are so many underlying metaphors in this blog about life, work, companies and quality. If other companies had similar corporate strategy, ethos, focus, service and focus on customer satisfaction, maybe shopping would be a happier experience. The striking thing about Apple is this, it's NOT CHEAP, you will bleed financially, wince as you suddenly find that all the goodies that go with it will make you bleed even more, not to mention all the apps out there and they don't do check-outs with tills etc, it's so fast and simple you don't have to time to blink! But as a customer said to me earlier this afternoon, if the quality of the product is so good, price is not the issue. He bought Red Circle grass seed.
So thanks for reading my first blog written from my iPad, I am still grinning from ear to ear.
Showing posts with label Nickerson Circle leys. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nickerson Circle leys. Show all posts
Wednesday, 17 August 2011
Tuesday, 24 May 2011
Grassland and Muck 2011
This is the first time I have been on the stand at this event and what an event it was, those of you who missed it really did miss a very good show, even if the weather on the first day was fickle.
Nickerson has been doing this show for a long time and as usual it didn't disappoint as Simon Broddle had spent a lot of time and energy making sure it had plenty for people to look at and discuss. No point in showing things in photo's if you can root around and actually see the practical benefits 'hands on' so to speak.
The one display that got most people talking and thinking was the 'Broadcast vs Drilled' circle. The mix was Blue Circle, a 10 year ley with a good spread of early, intermediates, and late perrenial ryegrasses and a mix of small, medium and large leafed white clovers. The plot was broadcast and drilled (half : half) at the standard 14kgs/ac rate, the drilled piece being drilled with an amenity drill on 2" row spacings. A conventional cereal type drill would have much wider rows and would have accentuated the problems even further.
Visually, the broadcast part looked shorter and there were far fewer heading plants, whilst the drilled part looked more impressive with taller heading varieties. However when you got up close and looked into both swards, the drilled part was much thinner, there was more weed species visible which were growing in the gaps between the drilled rows, the species of grass in these rows were virtually all tetraploid and hybrid species of ryegrass, the clovers were mostly long petiole large leafed, with little of the smaller white clovers surviving. Basically, the drilled lines had squeezed out all the diploid types, along with the medium and small clovers, completely altering the nature of the sward from a longterm ley to a medium term one more suited to cutting than grazing with sheep and cattle. The same thing happens when you plant grass seeds too deep! The broadcast part on the otherhand was thick, like a carpet, had all the species in the mix present and had produced 400kg/ha DryMatter (DM) more than the drilled part. Over a season this would equate to nearly a tonne of DM more for the broadcast part than the drilled portion. This difference is worth the cost of the seed, in the first year alone! Makes you think.....
Click on the pictures to see it in full size, they're not the clearest one I know, but it shows what I have been talking about above.
Nickerson has been doing this show for a long time and as usual it didn't disappoint as Simon Broddle had spent a lot of time and energy making sure it had plenty for people to look at and discuss. No point in showing things in photo's if you can root around and actually see the practical benefits 'hands on' so to speak.
The one display that got most people talking and thinking was the 'Broadcast vs Drilled' circle. The mix was Blue Circle, a 10 year ley with a good spread of early, intermediates, and late perrenial ryegrasses and a mix of small, medium and large leafed white clovers. The plot was broadcast and drilled (half : half) at the standard 14kgs/ac rate, the drilled piece being drilled with an amenity drill on 2" row spacings. A conventional cereal type drill would have much wider rows and would have accentuated the problems even further.
Visually, the broadcast part looked shorter and there were far fewer heading plants, whilst the drilled part looked more impressive with taller heading varieties. However when you got up close and looked into both swards, the drilled part was much thinner, there was more weed species visible which were growing in the gaps between the drilled rows, the species of grass in these rows were virtually all tetraploid and hybrid species of ryegrass, the clovers were mostly long petiole large leafed, with little of the smaller white clovers surviving. Basically, the drilled lines had squeezed out all the diploid types, along with the medium and small clovers, completely altering the nature of the sward from a longterm ley to a medium term one more suited to cutting than grazing with sheep and cattle. The same thing happens when you plant grass seeds too deep! The broadcast part on the otherhand was thick, like a carpet, had all the species in the mix present and had produced 400kg/ha DryMatter (DM) more than the drilled part. Over a season this would equate to nearly a tonne of DM more for the broadcast part than the drilled portion. This difference is worth the cost of the seed, in the first year alone! Makes you think.....
Click on the pictures to see it in full size, they're not the clearest one I know, but it shows what I have been talking about above.
The upshot of this stand display was one farmer cancelling his newly ordered grass drill which he confessed to buying earlier in the day as 'all the farmers and contractors around us are using these drills now and we thought they looked like there were doing a good job'. Having looked at this demonstration agast at the differences and losses, he cancelled the drill order......
The broadcast piece on the left, drilled to the right of the posts.
The show although suffering with a lack of grass through the drought, was very busy for us, the general consensus from people being it was well worth the effort to get to it. It was amusing to hear that even though there wasn't a lot of grass, they still managed to block the Krone BigX forager, the clip of which can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bb2FSgt1zOA&feature=feedu
Thursday, 21 April 2011
Grass and the seeds of success.
Nickerson Circle leys have been around now for 57 years, as a brand they have always been surnonomous with market leading quality, durability and high yield, something that is not easy to achieve all three with. I find it immensley satisfying to meet farmers who have got Nickerson leys that are still highly productive, even though they are 20 years old, or in some cases nearer 30 years old. Obviously they were put together right!
As a seeds specialist, it is pleasing to see recently established pastures like these below starting to deliver the promises made, I have yet to come across a pasture that hasn't done what it's stated to do. In all the years that Nickerson Circle leys have been going, there has only ever been two indiviuals that have done the mixture formulations, Simon Broddle is the current man and has been doing it for the past 15 years or so having progressed from the research side of grass breeding and mixture formulations. He is involved with all the midlands dairy discussion groups, part of the leading benchmarking farms and has had a healthy hand in one farmer winning the Dairy Gold Cup not just once, but twice! I don't think there is any other seedhouse in the UK that can stake such a claim. It is therefore reassuring to know that everytime a customer sows a bag of Circle grass seed, there is a lot of science that has gone into producing it. The fact that the mixtures are trialled on farms with recorded daily milk yields on grazed grass where the differences in palatability, energy, regrowth etc can produce differences over 2 litres of milk/cow/day means that only the best tested mixes end up in the bags.
Then there is the fact that Nickerson Circle leys are the only grass seeds that are treated with with Thiram and PGA (a P&K polymer seed film coating) both which combine to give a plant whose rootmass is double that of conventional grass seed at 6 weeks of age, the most critical stage in any grass ley establishment. This one of the reasons why these swards are so thick.
These photo's were taken on Monday this week, 18th April having been heavily grazed all winter by both beef and sheep, with the animals withdrawn at the end of February. Given the winter and start to the year we have had, this is pretty impressive regrowth! So anyone who is short of grass and looking for forage, this grass is for sale!
There is a link on the right sidebar of the page to the Circle Ley page showing the full range of mixes available.
As a seeds specialist, it is pleasing to see recently established pastures like these below starting to deliver the promises made, I have yet to come across a pasture that hasn't done what it's stated to do. In all the years that Nickerson Circle leys have been going, there has only ever been two indiviuals that have done the mixture formulations, Simon Broddle is the current man and has been doing it for the past 15 years or so having progressed from the research side of grass breeding and mixture formulations. He is involved with all the midlands dairy discussion groups, part of the leading benchmarking farms and has had a healthy hand in one farmer winning the Dairy Gold Cup not just once, but twice! I don't think there is any other seedhouse in the UK that can stake such a claim. It is therefore reassuring to know that everytime a customer sows a bag of Circle grass seed, there is a lot of science that has gone into producing it. The fact that the mixtures are trialled on farms with recorded daily milk yields on grazed grass where the differences in palatability, energy, regrowth etc can produce differences over 2 litres of milk/cow/day means that only the best tested mixes end up in the bags.
Then there is the fact that Nickerson Circle leys are the only grass seeds that are treated with with Thiram and PGA (a P&K polymer seed film coating) both which combine to give a plant whose rootmass is double that of conventional grass seed at 6 weeks of age, the most critical stage in any grass ley establishment. This one of the reasons why these swards are so thick.
Silver Circle, a really high yielding mid-term ley suitable for cutting and grazing.
Silver Circle with a rich clover base.
Pro-Plus, a short term, very high quality grass mix with both red and white clover.
Pro-Plus overlooking the Tamar near Plymouth.
There is a link on the right sidebar of the page to the Circle Ley page showing the full range of mixes available.
Monday, 7 February 2011
Weather outlook for 2011...????
Sometimes the past holds clues to the future, the weather patterns ebb and flow and generally do follow a cycle. Currently we are coming off the back of one of the coldest,harshest and driest winters for many a year. When I was farming in Zimbabwe, the El Nino/La Nina effect was fairly well known and we tried to plan accordingly where we were within the 5-7 year cycle. It is interesting note that warm wet southern hemisphere years correspond with hot dry northern hemisphere years during these cycles. So here are some stats from '75/'76 to jog the memory and for those that cannot remember, or weren't around then, bring you up to speed on what transpired.
1975/1976 (two-year drought):
1. The famous DROUGHT of 1975/76 was memorable for its severity over most of the British Isles, and also for its exceptional persistence. It produced the highest values for a drought index for south-east England in three hundred years. Not since 1749/50 had a period from one summer to the following spring been so dry in southern Britain. At Oxford, every month from May 1975 to August 1976 had below average rainfall with the sole exception of September 1975. It was the DRIEST 16-month period on record for England and Wales. The severity of the drought was highlighted by the acute hydrological impact of an exceptionally dry winter being sandwiched between two hot, dry summers. The drought was most severe in south-eastern England but was felt widely across England and Wales, and the most stringent water supply restrictions were experienced in South Wales, where water was cut off for up to 17 hours a day to domestic consumers. North-west England and much of western Scotland escaped the attentions of this notable drought and were more frequently subject to the passage of fronts associated with cyclonic systems displaced northwards by the high pressure over southern England.
1976 (January):
1. The GALE late on the 2nd (into the 3rd) in 1976 was one of the most severe to affect the British Isles in the twentieth century. Wittering (Cambridgeshire) in the east of England recorded a GUST of 91 knots at 2218 GMT on the 2nd and many stations across the NE of England, East Anglia and the Midlands experienced GUSTS in excess of 70 knots, with mean winds (hourly) 45 knots or more. Strong Gale or storm force was often reached with HURRICANE force 12 reported from some places in South Wales, southwest and northern England. Widespread damage and deaths (23 deaths noted at the time). A caravan site near Doncaster was destroyed. Some FLOODING on the North Sea coast: 4 feet (circa 1.2 m) of flood water in Mablethorpe and Sutton-on-Sea (Lincolnshire). DAMAGE was noted in almost every county of England, Wales & Northern Ireland. There were prolonged power cuts in widely separated areas. Railway services were badly affected in the Midlands because of the collapse of overhead power supplies. At Southend airport, a light aircraft was bodily lifted from the tarmac and thrown onto an adjacent railway line, where it burst into flames and blocked the railway services into London. [HS/23]
1976 (Spring):
1. Less than 50% of normal RAINFALL in the south-east of England during spring: contributing to the ensuing problems during the SUMMER DROUGHT.
1976 (June/July):
1. No previous HEAT WAVE in Britain, nor any since, has ever come close to the duration of the late June/early July 1976 HOT SPELL. From the 22nd June to 16th July, the temperature reached 80 degF daily. Even more remarkable, from 23rd June to 7th July, a period of 15 consecutive days, the temperature exceeded 32 degC somewhere or other in the country.
1976 (May75 - Apr76):
1. For England and Wales, the 12 month period May 1975 to April 1976 was the DRIEST 12 month period since the series began (?EWR) in 1727.
1976 (Summer):
1. It was easily the DRIEST, SUNNIEST and WARMEST summer (June/July/August) in the 20th century (at this date, but see 1995 - which is now regarded as the driest). Only a few places registered more than half their average summer rainfall. In the CET record, it was the WARMEST summer in that series.
2. It was the WARMEST summer in the Aberdeen area since at least 1864.
3. It was the DRIEST summer since 1868 in Glasgow.
4. Probably the HOTTEST summer for over three centuries. CET values were (with anomalies rel. to 1961-90 averages): Jun:17.0(+2.8), Jul:18.7(+2.6), Aug: 17.6(+1.8). In particular, for the period mid-June to mid-July, 1976, this was one (of two, the other being in 1826), WARMEST 30-day periods in the CET series, with a value of 19.7degC.
1976 (September+October):
1. For England and Wales as a whole (EWR), it was the WETTEST such spell in the entire record ... back to 1727. The combined EWP value for September & October=305mm. (Since 1727, the rainfall of September 1976 is 10th wettest in the series.) [ The wettest September + October totals since 1727 were during 1903 (310mm), 1841 (295mm) and 1960 (290mm), therefore the total for 1976 (September+ October) at 305mm is close to a record. ]
1976 (Autumn):
1. A notably VERY WET autumn for all areas ( except for north and west Scotland.) In some parts of northern England, and the extreme south, 200% of average rainfall was recorded. [ Coming after the notably dry spring/summer of course ] Information taken from here: http://alturl.com/x7kf9
Now let's look at the current situation, courtesy of Bryce Anderson from DTN/The Progressive Farmer website, the link to which is on the right hand side bar of my page.
The development of that northern high pressure block is still to be determined; however, La Nina is definitely around and, in fact has reached some historic levels. The Australia Bureau of Meteorology announced recently that its records of the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI)--the barometric pressure component of El Nino/La Nina which tracks the comparison between Tahiti and Darwin--had an average value of +21.1 between August and December 2010. That average is the second-highest Aug-Dec value on record--second only to the La Nina of 1917-18, which had a value of +24.4. But--more to the point in terms of crop concerns--the current La Nina moved past the La Nina of 1975-76, which had a reading from August through December of +18.8.
Now, here's where it gets interesting if you're looking for comparisons. I checked with our contributing analyst Joel Karlin of Western Milling for some corn yields for 1976--and found out--as I thought--that '76 was a real have and have-not year in the Corn Belt.
Here are the numbers. The U.S. national yield declined by 4.2 percent. And in some selected states, Joel sent these yield figures: Eastern Corn Belt states were above trendline for the year, with Illinois +2.1 pct; Indiana +10.4 pct; Ohio +7.6 pct; and Kentucky +23.3 pct.
But, the Western Corn Belt had a much different story: Iowa's yield was down by 11.4 pct; Nebraska down 10.6 pct; and Missouri down 22.3 pct. I don't have yield information for other states west of the Mississippi, but after talking with producers in Sioux Falls about the 1976 season I have no doubt that such declines in yield were similar or even greater.
Now, 1976 was an entire generation ago, and corn production is far, far more advanced. This account is also a look at just one of many parts in the production scenario. Still--the strength of this La Nina bolsters ideas that its influence will be around through at least the first half of the 2011 season--and we will not discount its presence as we approach the end of winter.
So where does that leave us here in the south west? Well, I am not counting my chickens, however my advice is get all land prep done earlier, consolidate moisture in seedbeds and plant early, don't wait for a calender date. Don't ladel nitrogen on, as this will encourage rank vegetative growth which will exaccerbate moisture stress, conserve every blade of grass you can if a livestock farmer and hope like hell we have rain at critical growth stages to see crops through.
Positive Weather Solutions are currently saying it will be a drier, earlier spring too so lets pray that September and October don't produce swamp conditions and make establishing next years(2012) crop hard work. Here is their current outlook. Take note, given they got last year pretty much right, as well as forecast a very cold winter last year and the year before..... http://alturl.com/cwmce
1975/1976 (two-year drought):
1. The famous DROUGHT of 1975/76 was memorable for its severity over most of the British Isles, and also for its exceptional persistence. It produced the highest values for a drought index for south-east England in three hundred years. Not since 1749/50 had a period from one summer to the following spring been so dry in southern Britain. At Oxford, every month from May 1975 to August 1976 had below average rainfall with the sole exception of September 1975. It was the DRIEST 16-month period on record for England and Wales. The severity of the drought was highlighted by the acute hydrological impact of an exceptionally dry winter being sandwiched between two hot, dry summers. The drought was most severe in south-eastern England but was felt widely across England and Wales, and the most stringent water supply restrictions were experienced in South Wales, where water was cut off for up to 17 hours a day to domestic consumers. North-west England and much of western Scotland escaped the attentions of this notable drought and were more frequently subject to the passage of fronts associated with cyclonic systems displaced northwards by the high pressure over southern England.
1976 (January):
1. The GALE late on the 2nd (into the 3rd) in 1976 was one of the most severe to affect the British Isles in the twentieth century. Wittering (Cambridgeshire) in the east of England recorded a GUST of 91 knots at 2218 GMT on the 2nd and many stations across the NE of England, East Anglia and the Midlands experienced GUSTS in excess of 70 knots, with mean winds (hourly) 45 knots or more. Strong Gale or storm force was often reached with HURRICANE force 12 reported from some places in South Wales, southwest and northern England. Widespread damage and deaths (23 deaths noted at the time). A caravan site near Doncaster was destroyed. Some FLOODING on the North Sea coast: 4 feet (circa 1.2 m) of flood water in Mablethorpe and Sutton-on-Sea (Lincolnshire). DAMAGE was noted in almost every county of England, Wales & Northern Ireland. There were prolonged power cuts in widely separated areas. Railway services were badly affected in the Midlands because of the collapse of overhead power supplies. At Southend airport, a light aircraft was bodily lifted from the tarmac and thrown onto an adjacent railway line, where it burst into flames and blocked the railway services into London. [HS/23]
1976 (Spring):
1. Less than 50% of normal RAINFALL in the south-east of England during spring: contributing to the ensuing problems during the SUMMER DROUGHT.
1976 (June/July):
1. No previous HEAT WAVE in Britain, nor any since, has ever come close to the duration of the late June/early July 1976 HOT SPELL. From the 22nd June to 16th July, the temperature reached 80 degF daily. Even more remarkable, from 23rd June to 7th July, a period of 15 consecutive days, the temperature exceeded 32 degC somewhere or other in the country.
1976 (May75 - Apr76):
1. For England and Wales, the 12 month period May 1975 to April 1976 was the DRIEST 12 month period since the series began (?EWR) in 1727.
1976 (Summer):
1. It was easily the DRIEST, SUNNIEST and WARMEST summer (June/July/August) in the 20th century (at this date, but see 1995 - which is now regarded as the driest). Only a few places registered more than half their average summer rainfall. In the CET record, it was the WARMEST summer in that series.
2. It was the WARMEST summer in the Aberdeen area since at least 1864.
3. It was the DRIEST summer since 1868 in Glasgow.
4. Probably the HOTTEST summer for over three centuries. CET values were (with anomalies rel. to 1961-90 averages): Jun:17.0(+2.8), Jul:18.7(+2.6), Aug: 17.6(+1.8). In particular, for the period mid-June to mid-July, 1976, this was one (of two, the other being in 1826), WARMEST 30-day periods in the CET series, with a value of 19.7degC.
1976 (September+October):
1. For England and Wales as a whole (EWR), it was the WETTEST such spell in the entire record ... back to 1727. The combined EWP value for September & October=305mm. (Since 1727, the rainfall of September 1976 is 10th wettest in the series.) [ The wettest September + October totals since 1727 were during 1903 (310mm), 1841 (295mm) and 1960 (290mm), therefore the total for 1976 (September+ October) at 305mm is close to a record. ]
1976 (Autumn):
1. A notably VERY WET autumn for all areas ( except for north and west Scotland.) In some parts of northern England, and the extreme south, 200% of average rainfall was recorded. [ Coming after the notably dry spring/summer of course ] Information taken from here: http://alturl.com/x7kf9
Now let's look at the current situation, courtesy of Bryce Anderson from DTN/The Progressive Farmer website, the link to which is on the right hand side bar of my page.
The development of that northern high pressure block is still to be determined; however, La Nina is definitely around and, in fact has reached some historic levels. The Australia Bureau of Meteorology announced recently that its records of the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI)--the barometric pressure component of El Nino/La Nina which tracks the comparison between Tahiti and Darwin--had an average value of +21.1 between August and December 2010. That average is the second-highest Aug-Dec value on record--second only to the La Nina of 1917-18, which had a value of +24.4. But--more to the point in terms of crop concerns--the current La Nina moved past the La Nina of 1975-76, which had a reading from August through December of +18.8.
Now, here's where it gets interesting if you're looking for comparisons. I checked with our contributing analyst Joel Karlin of Western Milling for some corn yields for 1976--and found out--as I thought--that '76 was a real have and have-not year in the Corn Belt.
Here are the numbers. The U.S. national yield declined by 4.2 percent. And in some selected states, Joel sent these yield figures: Eastern Corn Belt states were above trendline for the year, with Illinois +2.1 pct; Indiana +10.4 pct; Ohio +7.6 pct; and Kentucky +23.3 pct.
But, the Western Corn Belt had a much different story: Iowa's yield was down by 11.4 pct; Nebraska down 10.6 pct; and Missouri down 22.3 pct. I don't have yield information for other states west of the Mississippi, but after talking with producers in Sioux Falls about the 1976 season I have no doubt that such declines in yield were similar or even greater.
Now, 1976 was an entire generation ago, and corn production is far, far more advanced. This account is also a look at just one of many parts in the production scenario. Still--the strength of this La Nina bolsters ideas that its influence will be around through at least the first half of the 2011 season--and we will not discount its presence as we approach the end of winter.
So where does that leave us here in the south west? Well, I am not counting my chickens, however my advice is get all land prep done earlier, consolidate moisture in seedbeds and plant early, don't wait for a calender date. Don't ladel nitrogen on, as this will encourage rank vegetative growth which will exaccerbate moisture stress, conserve every blade of grass you can if a livestock farmer and hope like hell we have rain at critical growth stages to see crops through.
Positive Weather Solutions are currently saying it will be a drier, earlier spring too so lets pray that September and October don't produce swamp conditions and make establishing next years(2012) crop hard work. Here is their current outlook. Take note, given they got last year pretty much right, as well as forecast a very cold winter last year and the year before..... http://alturl.com/cwmce
Monday, 31 January 2011
Frost heave in new grass leys 2011
Monday, 27 September 2010
Beethoven maize at Bude - video guide
Here's some footage of a standing crop of Beethoven forage maize near Bude, been the pick of all the crops in the area again this year as previous posts show. I shot this short clip today so you can gain some perspective of just how big this crop is, given I am 6ft6" tall!
This the first attempt to forage the crop, the crop isn't quite ready yet, we estimated it was at 30%DM, but the Smartlab kit on the forager reckoned it was only just over 26%, so we wait a week or so to let it increase to 30% DM. Machine said the crop was yielding 26ton/ac and this is the shortest part of the field!
This the first attempt to forage the crop, the crop isn't quite ready yet, we estimated it was at 30%DM, but the Smartlab kit on the forager reckoned it was only just over 26%, so we wait a week or so to let it increase to 30% DM. Machine said the crop was yielding 26ton/ac and this is the shortest part of the field!
Monday, 2 August 2010
Probably the best way to mow.......
Nickerson Pro-circle being mown by the ultimate mower, 50 ac/hour, giving a very even and uniform product going in to the clamp, with a 50ft cut limiting compaction too. Very impressive piece of kit.
20 minutes to mow this field from start to finish....!!
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