Our Welsh farm

[sfella]

Seasons greetings from a wet and windswept farm! Luckily no damage only one smallish tree down so all good!

Assumed PH'rs would appreciate tye early Christmas present 😀

Deal agreed Christmas eve and collection in January when hopefully we have some good hard frosts so the ground firms up to allow some hedge cutting.

• only the implement not the Ford, nice as it was no need for another 😅

[Turn7]

Does the hedge cutter have solenoid type controls or big hydraulic levers ?

Big difference in both useability and operator skill
Required…

[sfella]

Cable controls, runs off the pto so not working the tractors hydraulics. It's pretty basic, forward and reverse of the head, three levers for movement and a pump. Feel as an older model it will be serviceable and repairable without specialist tools etc

[monkfish1]

sfella said:

Seasons greetings from a wet and windswept farm! Luckily no damage only one smallish tree down so all good!

Assumed PH'rs would appreciate tye early Christmas present ??

Deal agreed Christmas eve and collection in January when hopefully we have some good hard frosts so the ground firms up to allow some hedge cutting.

• only the implement not the Ford, nice as it was no need for another ??

Some colder weather and less rain would be welcome. Its like swamp out there!

[dlks151]

Waiting to get the hedgerows done at the moment also, but impossible to get onto the grass. Getting the field drains sorted out is becoming more of a priority.

[sfella]

Quick update, we've been busy and will soon lambing so sleepless nights ahead, shortly after that a couple of foals due so lots to come.

In the meantime we've sadly been sidetracked by the Welsh government plans for farming to the point farmers are out protesting. We were out in Aberystwyth yesterday with a tractor as were hundreds more. Anyone that's seen Harry's farm videos may have seen part of it.

There are lots of issues but mainly it revolves around TB being out of control as in Wales badgers can't be culled like England.

NVZ' which is all about Nitrogen and will massively affect farmers using slurry

And biggest of all is that to claim any farm subsidy farmers will have to give up 20% of their land. 10% for tree planting and 10% for habitat.

This has caused uproar in the farming community, ourselves included as the guy in charge is mad and sadly the two new candidates don't seem much better.

English farmers get a different deal but they are being paid to plant grass instead of food as our food security isn't protected in anyway, we are as an island now relying on European grain rather than growing more.

If you see a convoy of tractors out they aren't just out for a laugh but fighting for their farms.

Edited by sfella on Friday 23 February 08:05

[Evanivitch]

sfella said:

And biggest of all is that to claim any farm subsidy farmers will have to give up 20% of their land. 10% for tree planting and 10% for habitat.

Is there a farm in Wales with no trees on it?

[sfella]

Haha nope, plenty of trees but lots of farms don't have enough for 10%coverage and certainly not enough for 10% extra as habit.

Ironically the Welsh government commissioned a study into the carbon capture of trees vs managed grassland, the grassland absorbed more carbon as its there 12 months not just in leaf for 6 months but the gov still want trees to capture carbon to meet net zero.....

The gov reports also state 5500 jobs will be lost and a few hundred million lost from farming income

• Feel important to add we do qualify for the new scheme trees wise and cold easily get to the habitat number but won't be signing up unless the scheme changes. Cannot benefit from and in turn support a scheme that doesn't work for farmers or secure food production. It's into the thousands a year to not have coming into the farm but no one knows how much or little as they won't commit to a figure.

Edited by sfella on Friday 23 February 08:43

[Sford]

I feel for anyone in the farming world at the moment. After watching the Harry's farm video and then seeing the difficulties that Clarkson raises (yes he is a bit of a fool and it's scripted but he does bring to light the financial issues that farming faces) I have nothing but support for farmers. There is too much reliance on importing and too little focus on making sure that what we have here can continue producing, encouraging it to be used for solar farms or to be used as to meet some scheme through the growth of flowers.

[Siko]

Absolute insanity. Best of luck with your protest. Like going into Policing I have no idea why anyone would work as a farmer in this country given the lack of respect/attention from the government, but I am very grateful that they do for both.

[Evanivitch]

sfella said:

Haha nope, plenty of trees but lots of farms don't have enough for 10%coverage and certainly not enough for 10% extra as habit.

The average coverage was already 6-8% across Welsh farms. I do think it needs to be managed over a longer period but the whole post-Brexit reform is already late and poorly managed. Woodland and habitat all give farmers chance to diversify their business models.

Grass land can be a better carbon sink, but not when it's grazed or farmed down to the bone. You need the thatch to build just like fallen leaves are part of the soil carbon content around trees.

There's a real risk that zero graze becomes increasingly common in Wales as it has better margins on dairy and our land is often too wet for livestock in winter. Modern machinery can cover so much land efficiently and access increasingly high gradients.

[ferret50]

French farmers are revolting as well.....







Idea for your surplus slurry?

That was the N10 southbound from Poitiers about four weeks back, passed several others as well.

[21st Century Man]

sfella said:

Ironically the Welsh government commissioned a study into the carbon capture of trees vs managed grassland, the grassland absorbed more carbon as its there 12 months not just in leaf for 6 months but the gov still want trees to capture carbon to meet net zero.....

Carbon which is released again when the plants die and decay or are burned (if the trees are used for fire wood). It's too short term, it's no good counting the carbon capture now towards the target if you're not going to factor its release back in, in the years or decades to come. Carbon that was captured hundreds of millions of years ago that is being reintroduced now in the form of using fossil fuels is supposed to be the problem. This short term accountancy is delusional.

[covmutley]

Sford said:

I feel for anyone in the farming world at the moment. After watching the Harry's farm video and then seeing the difficulties that Clarkson raises (yes he is a bit of a fool and it's scripted but he does bring to light the financial issues that farming faces) I have nothing but support for farmers. There is too much reliance on importing and too little focus on making sure that what we have here can continue producing, encouraging it to be used for solar farms or to be used as to meet some scheme through the growth of flowers.

Im not disagreeing with the sentiment toward farmers getting a raw deal, but importing food is a red herring. We are self-sufficient in many things like grains. We can grow many more turnips if you want to survive on turnip soup. But modern consumers want strawberries in winter, avocados, and other produce that simply wont grow in this country at the times people want it.

There is also plenty enough land to accommodate desperately needed solar farms. The stupidity there is that welsh govt refuse planning permission for temporary solar farms on better quality land, but will pay to lose 20% to trees and plants. Non-sensical.

But the other issue is that farming does need to continue to modernise. That might look like vertical farming in warehouses, so we can return poor land that will flood a lot more in the future to trees and wildlife.

Edited by covmutley on Friday 23 February 12:41

Edited by covmutley on Friday 23 February 12:43

[Evanivitch]

21st Century Man said:

Carbon which is released again when the plants die and decay or are burned (if the trees are used for fire wood). It's too short term, it's no good counting the carbon capture now towards the target if you're not going to factor its release back in, in the years or decades to come. Carbon that was captured hundreds of millions of years ago that is being reintroduced now in the form of using fossil fuels is supposed to be the problem. This short term accountancy is delusional.

It's why we need to be using that wood in buildings and products. Which hopefully a more diverse planting scheme allows us to do because we're not just harvesting low quality wood for pulp and composite products.

[theplayingmantis]

Sford said:

I feel for anyone in the farming world at the moment. After watching the Harry's farm video and then seeing the difficulties that Clarkson raises (yes he is a bit of a fool and it's scripted but he does bring to light the financial issues that farming faces) I have nothing but support for farmers. There is too much reliance on importing and too little focus on making sure that what we have here can continue producing, encouraging it to be used for solar farms or to be used as to meet some scheme through the growth of flowers.

I appreciate in wales it different but harry and clarkson are no barometer.

Relatively large acreage farms in the Cotswold's do not need subsidies to be profitable and successful. Certain areas of farming will and do, and its area dependent of course, but subsidizing hobby farmers or a way of life as its always been done like that, is not the way forward. (this isn't aimed at OP btw just a general comment on clarkson and metcalfes moans).

Food security likewise shouldn't mean subsidized farming in most cases either. Plenty have got on with it and made a go of things since the changes and those who won't/can't should get out.

[theplayingmantis]

covmutley said:

Im not disagreeing with the sentiment toward farmers getting a raw deal, but importing food is a red herring. We are self-sufficient in many things like grains. We can grow many more turnips if you want to survive on turnip soup. But modern consumers want strawberries in winter, avocados, and other produce that simply wont grow in this country at the times people want it.

There is also plenty enough land to accommodate desperately needed solar farms. The stupidity there is that welsh govt refuse planning permission for temporary solar farms on better quality land, but will pay to lose 20% to trees and plants. Non-sensical.

But the other issue is that farming does need to continue to modernise. That might look like vertical farming in warehouses, so we can return poor land that will flood a lot more in the future to trees and wildlife.

Edited by covmutley on Friday 23 February 12:41

Edited by covmutley on Friday 23 February 12:43

some sense here.

[theplayingmantis]

OP, you kindly shared the cost of all this to you, can i ask what you did prior to this career wise to be able to afford this venture, well at least the capital costs.

[Tom8]

21st Century Man said:

sfella said:

Ironically the Welsh government commissioned a study into the carbon capture of trees vs managed grassland, the grassland absorbed more carbon as its there 12 months not just in leaf for 6 months but the gov still want trees to capture carbon to meet net zero.....

Carbon which is released again when the plants die and decay or are burned (if the trees are used for fire wood). It's too short term, it's no good counting the carbon capture now towards the target if you're not going to factor its release back in, in the years or decades to come. Carbon that was captured hundreds of millions of years ago that is being reintroduced now in the form of using fossil fuels is supposed to be the problem. This short term accountancy is delusional.

It is retarded as trees also kill the soil below. How many trees can you eat in a day?

[ATG]

Welsh govt farming policy is properly inept. The problems they're trying to address do need addressing, but the way they're going about it is dumb. If you can't take the farmers with you, ffs.

Water courses are broadly fked with pollution. That needs to be sorted. But. Natural Resources Wales don't have the resources (!) to monitor rivers properly and identify which divs are allowing their slurry to wash into rivers and fine them to fook. So you get a blanket restriction instead.

We need more trees and "natural" habitat. But rather than say 10% of your land, or no subsidies at all, how about saying "there's money on the table if you choose to plant trees and create habits"? If the money on offer is better than the yield on the land (which isn't much of a challenge for upland grazing, for example), people are going to opt in. And the food security argument is mostly balls, as welsh lamb is mostly exported.

There's absolutely no point trying to have an environmentally sustainable policy for farming if you haven't got a commercially sustainable policy too, and you haven't got farmers to buy into either.

Edited by ATG on Saturday 24th February 13:34