26 February 2021
Grass yield at a Powys upland farm has significantly increased since steps were taken to improve soil health after a Farming Connect Nutrient Management Plan (NMP) highlighted deficiencies.
Fourth generation farmer, Alun Davis, runs a closed flock of 1,000 Welsh Hill Speckled Face ewes at Gelli Gethin, a 400-acre holding near Llanfair Caereinion.
The flock, three quarters of which is tupped to a Bluefaced Leicester to produce Welsh Mules, is run entirely on grass, either grazed or conserved as silage to feed in the winter.
With the farm rising from 800 feet to 1,350 feet, conditions can be challenging.
The whole farm was reseeded in the early 1980s but production was falling and Alun suspected that a shortfall in soil nutrients could be a reason.
With support from the Farming Connect Advisory Service, a NMP was undertaken. Soil sampling confirmed a low pH and a phosphate deficiency too.
That was in 2017 and since then Alun has applied 100 tonnes of lime every year and intends to continue with this policy.
“We have seen improvements in silage yield. We are growing a lot more grass so we are getting more from the land,’’ he said.
“It was definitely worth doing the Nutrient Management Plan, we have saved money by not applying nutrients where they are not needed and increasing production in fields where we have.’’
It means more feed for his March-lambing flock. This season the flock scanned at 180%. All tup lambs will be sold to Randall Parker Foods – in previous years they have achieved mostly R grades.
Alun produces his own ewe lamb replacements and sells the mule ewe lambs direct from the farm or at society sales.
He has recently retested the soil, a service fully funded through Farming Connect, and is awaiting the results.
“We had funding to sample 20 plots which provides a really good overview of the whole farm soil status,’’ says Alun.
As well as having a plan in place for his soils, he is addressing the issue of anthelmintic resistance.
Although faecal egg counts (FECs) have shown very low worm burdens, Alun says this service available through Farming Connect will help him better target any treatments that are needed.
“It gives us a good picture of when to go in with treatments, and if they are working.’’
All of the actions he is taking are being taken with a view to ensuring that he is protecting natural resources for future generations to make a living from the land.
Alun and his partner, Lexie, have a three-year-old son, Harri. “If Harri chooses to farm, I would like to think that I have done everything I can to make sure that the land and the resources we have available will allow him to continue to produce food in a sustainable way,’’ he says.
Farming Connect, which is delivered by Menter a Busnes and Lantra, has received funding through the Welsh Government Rural Communities - Rural Development Programme 2014-2020, which is funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the Welsh Government.