Day 54..
Plant Science:- in todays lesson we learnt about respiration and the compensation point of different factors affecting photosynthesis! In green plants both photosynthesis and respiration occur. In relatively bright light photosynthesis is the dominant process (meaning that the plant produces more food than it uses during respiration). At night, or in the absence of light, photosynthesis practically stops, and respiration is the dominant process and the plant consumes food (for growth and other metabolic processes). The compensation point is the stage at which the plant does no longer utilise o2 and co2.
Crop Productions:- here we looked at what plants need to grow and what helps them to grow - for example fertilisers. Organic manures include pig slurry, cattle slurry, broiler litter, layer manure, 'old' cattle FYM and 'fresh' cattle FYM (Farm Yard Manure). Using fertilisers helps to target specific areas for example Nitrogen - good for leaf and stem (better photosynthesis), Phosphorus - targets the flower and fruit (for a better yield) and Potassium - is great for roots (establishment and growth).
Grassland Management:- today we continued looking at the storage of conserved grass - clamps verses bales. In groups we researched the pros and cons between the two methods and discussed further according to our findings.
Friday, 28 February 2014
Thursday, 27 February 2014
Thursday February 27, 2014
Day 53..
Dual wheels - that's what we fitted to the big Massey Ferguson tractor this morning! A dual wheel is an "extra" wheel, which has the same height as the original wheel but not necessarily the same width. One of the benefits of Dual Wheels is the reduction of ground pressure and improvement of the soil structure, especially on soft surfaces, as the surface that touches the ground is twice as large. Thus, increasing traction and reducing compaction.
We started off by driving the tractor on to wooden blocks (the side that the dual wheels were being fitted too) then to fit there is no need to rotate the dual for alignment with the tractor wheel because the tractor was already fitted with eyenuts (these replacing the original nuts) so we fitted a hook end to the eye nut and an over-centre clamp to the dual wheel power rail, securing the tension with two metal tubes that fitted over the clamp handle for better torque. Once the clamps were correctly tensioned, we locked them in position with 'R clips' for additional security. The tractor was then driven around the yard turning the steering wheel severely in both directions before re-checking the clamp positioning. A couple of the clamps were not entirely in-line - which means extra pressure would be placed on the system and could cause the clamp or a nut to break, therefore, we undid the clamp and repositioned to ensure these were on squarely. Once completed, we used the air compressor to make sure all the tyres were the same pressure (measured in psi - pounds per square inch) where in this case they all needed to be 14psi. Using the compressor gage we either inflated or deflated the tyres accordingly. Incorrect tyre pressures mean tractors can waste 20-40% of engine power through tyre slip and rolling resistance!!
Animal lecture afternoon.. this was started with a dvd - a guide to lambing. Lambing is divided into several phases. In the first phase, the cervix dilates and the birth canal is prepared for delivery. This phase lasts for approximately 12 to 24 hours. At the end of this phase, a clear-whitish discharge will appear. The presence of the mucous discharge means that lambing has begun. In the next phase, uterine contractions will increase. As labour progresses, the ewe will spend more time lying down on her side with her head turned in the air. Eventually, a large "bubble" or water bag will appear, break, and expel the water. At this time, the tip of the nose and front feet of the lamb can be felt. The lamb is expelled. As ewes often have multiple births, the same sequence of the rupture of the water bag and expulsion of the lamb will be repeated for the delivery of each lamb. Ewes will vary in the time taken to complete lambing. The last stage of lambing includes the expulsion of the afterbirth or placenta. The placenta is usually expelled 30 to 60 minutes after the delivery of the last lamb. If the placenta is not expelled after 24 hours, there may be a problem. The ewe will eat the placenta because her instincts tell her to hide evidence of lambing to protect her offspring from predators. The placenta should be discarded to prevent the spread of disease and scavenging by dogs.
We finished off the lesson discussing endoparasites - a parasite, such as a tapeworm, that lives within another organism.
Dual wheels - that's what we fitted to the big Massey Ferguson tractor this morning! A dual wheel is an "extra" wheel, which has the same height as the original wheel but not necessarily the same width. One of the benefits of Dual Wheels is the reduction of ground pressure and improvement of the soil structure, especially on soft surfaces, as the surface that touches the ground is twice as large. Thus, increasing traction and reducing compaction.
We started off by driving the tractor on to wooden blocks (the side that the dual wheels were being fitted too) then to fit there is no need to rotate the dual for alignment with the tractor wheel because the tractor was already fitted with eyenuts (these replacing the original nuts) so we fitted a hook end to the eye nut and an over-centre clamp to the dual wheel power rail, securing the tension with two metal tubes that fitted over the clamp handle for better torque. Once the clamps were correctly tensioned, we locked them in position with 'R clips' for additional security. The tractor was then driven around the yard turning the steering wheel severely in both directions before re-checking the clamp positioning. A couple of the clamps were not entirely in-line - which means extra pressure would be placed on the system and could cause the clamp or a nut to break, therefore, we undid the clamp and repositioned to ensure these were on squarely. Once completed, we used the air compressor to make sure all the tyres were the same pressure (measured in psi - pounds per square inch) where in this case they all needed to be 14psi. Using the compressor gage we either inflated or deflated the tyres accordingly. Incorrect tyre pressures mean tractors can waste 20-40% of engine power through tyre slip and rolling resistance!!
Animal lecture afternoon.. this was started with a dvd - a guide to lambing. Lambing is divided into several phases. In the first phase, the cervix dilates and the birth canal is prepared for delivery. This phase lasts for approximately 12 to 24 hours. At the end of this phase, a clear-whitish discharge will appear. The presence of the mucous discharge means that lambing has begun. In the next phase, uterine contractions will increase. As labour progresses, the ewe will spend more time lying down on her side with her head turned in the air. Eventually, a large "bubble" or water bag will appear, break, and expel the water. At this time, the tip of the nose and front feet of the lamb can be felt. The lamb is expelled. As ewes often have multiple births, the same sequence of the rupture of the water bag and expulsion of the lamb will be repeated for the delivery of each lamb. Ewes will vary in the time taken to complete lambing. The last stage of lambing includes the expulsion of the afterbirth or placenta. The placenta is usually expelled 30 to 60 minutes after the delivery of the last lamb. If the placenta is not expelled after 24 hours, there may be a problem. The ewe will eat the placenta because her instincts tell her to hide evidence of lambing to protect her offspring from predators. The placenta should be discarded to prevent the spread of disease and scavenging by dogs.
We finished off the lesson discussing endoparasites - a parasite, such as a tapeworm, that lives within another organism.
Wednesday, 26 February 2014
Wednesday February 26, 2014
Day 52..
A machinery morning, or should I say a mash up of a morning! First we reviewed the risk assessment taken at Broadberry's farm workshop and discussed the hazards in further detail - it is easy to get hazards and risks mixed up so we looked in to the actual hazard and the risk a hazard can cause and consequently the correct precautions and procedures that should be taken when making a risk assessment.
Next we had another LAMMA presentation - this time sprayers and sprayer technology. There are three types of spraying a farmer can carry out; mounted, trailed and self-propelled - where there is no need for a tractor as the sprayer operates from its own engine. The nozzle on a sprayer is quite important - providing precision spraying that is designed to distribute the liquid over a desired surface, increase the amount of liquid distribution and create an impact on a solid surface.
Finally we were split in to groups and given a topic and a tablet and required to research the topic for a presentation to the rest of the class. Our topic was the safe operation of telescopic handlers in agriculture. The most significant factors include controlling the risk, hazards, training and competence and safety. Operating a telescopic handler requires a lot of concentration, to avoid overturning and electrocution - being aware of surroundings and power cables is a must. As is never carrying a weight that is beyond the capacity of the machine - as you will lose the centre of gravity and be liable to tipping over!
This afternoon we had our lambing induction as lambing starts at college next week. We looked at the record keeping - logging which ewe has what lamb/s, at what time and weight, and if there were any lambing difficulties. There is a separate medical log for recording any administration of vaccines and / or injections. In the wash room - it is important for people to stay clean as well as any equipment used, various equipment, such as thermometers, is stored along with supplementary colostrum and other equipment that may be required.
We then went to check on the ewes already in the straw lambing yard where one was suffering from a prolapse from the vaginal area.. A pinky / red mass hanging out of the ewes vagina. Dom set about dealing with this promptly, as although the ewe shouldn't have been in too much pain, she was starting to strain and was in need of going to the loo. With warm water, that ideally has a splash of antiseptic in it, dom cleaned off the projecting structure. Then using plenty of lubricant (J-lube, etc.), he gently forced the prolapse back into the animal. After the prolapse is put back in the animal, some type of device or surgical approach should be used to keep it in place. In many vaginal prolapse cases, a plastic paddle-shaped device is used. The prolapse loop or paddle Is placed horizontally in the vagina, and the curved end of the loop or paddle fits against the anterior (forward) end of the vagina or against the cervix. The loop or paddle can remain in place during and after the birthing process. The loop or paddle is held in place by using two wisps of wool and ties - tying the loop in place with the wool itself.
We finished off by catching a dragging the really poopy bottomed ewes!
A machinery morning, or should I say a mash up of a morning! First we reviewed the risk assessment taken at Broadberry's farm workshop and discussed the hazards in further detail - it is easy to get hazards and risks mixed up so we looked in to the actual hazard and the risk a hazard can cause and consequently the correct precautions and procedures that should be taken when making a risk assessment.
Next we had another LAMMA presentation - this time sprayers and sprayer technology. There are three types of spraying a farmer can carry out; mounted, trailed and self-propelled - where there is no need for a tractor as the sprayer operates from its own engine. The nozzle on a sprayer is quite important - providing precision spraying that is designed to distribute the liquid over a desired surface, increase the amount of liquid distribution and create an impact on a solid surface.
Finally we were split in to groups and given a topic and a tablet and required to research the topic for a presentation to the rest of the class. Our topic was the safe operation of telescopic handlers in agriculture. The most significant factors include controlling the risk, hazards, training and competence and safety. Operating a telescopic handler requires a lot of concentration, to avoid overturning and electrocution - being aware of surroundings and power cables is a must. As is never carrying a weight that is beyond the capacity of the machine - as you will lose the centre of gravity and be liable to tipping over!
This afternoon we had our lambing induction as lambing starts at college next week. We looked at the record keeping - logging which ewe has what lamb/s, at what time and weight, and if there were any lambing difficulties. There is a separate medical log for recording any administration of vaccines and / or injections. In the wash room - it is important for people to stay clean as well as any equipment used, various equipment, such as thermometers, is stored along with supplementary colostrum and other equipment that may be required.
We then went to check on the ewes already in the straw lambing yard where one was suffering from a prolapse from the vaginal area.. A pinky / red mass hanging out of the ewes vagina. Dom set about dealing with this promptly, as although the ewe shouldn't have been in too much pain, she was starting to strain and was in need of going to the loo. With warm water, that ideally has a splash of antiseptic in it, dom cleaned off the projecting structure. Then using plenty of lubricant (J-lube, etc.), he gently forced the prolapse back into the animal. After the prolapse is put back in the animal, some type of device or surgical approach should be used to keep it in place. In many vaginal prolapse cases, a plastic paddle-shaped device is used. The prolapse loop or paddle Is placed horizontally in the vagina, and the curved end of the loop or paddle fits against the anterior (forward) end of the vagina or against the cervix. The loop or paddle can remain in place during and after the birthing process. The loop or paddle is held in place by using two wisps of wool and ties - tying the loop in place with the wool itself.
We finished off by catching a dragging the really poopy bottomed ewes!
Monday, 24 February 2014
Monday February 24, 2014
Farm Duties..
Today was mine and Phoebe's scheduled day of farm duties so we arrived at Home Farm and started by helping Neil and Simon herd two Lincoln Red heifers in to the cattle crush so they could receive an injection (not sure what for - but they had not long given birth to some really cute calves!). We fed the next batch of Lincoln Red mums in the next barn with a concentrate feed and Neil went off to feed the cows at Durdham.
Our main task today was to prep the old parlour collecting yard ready for the lambing pens. There are two straw lambing yards constructed just outside the building and this is where the ewes will start to give birth before being brought in to the lambing pens with their lambs. Of the first lambing batch around 55 of the sheep are already in one of the straw yards - these are the triplet and twin lambers, so that they can begin their creep feeding regime. However, this may have to be rationed slightly to ensure that the lambs do not grow too big and cause problems at birth. The ewes will then be given an increased feed when the lambs are born to ensure she can produce enough milk and feed them.
Preparation including sweeping, tidying, fetching, carrying, relocating, binning, moving, cleaning, stacking etc etc basically the building and surrounding area is used as a store during the rest of the year and therefore needed to be made back in to a lambing shed!
After lunch we bedded down the Lincoln Red cows at Home Farm, new hessian bales were brought in and we moved the cows along the pens while we split the bales up leaving big slabs for the cows to rough up when they were let back in.
We then carried on in the lambing shed and started to fix the pens - but there were a few gates and pins missing - so we went off to the workshop to make some new pins! Neil cut up some lengths of metal and we used a bending machine to make the handle parts which was groovy and the ends were filed off so there were no sharp edges. Hey presto! these fitted perfectly and we put as many pens up as gates would allow before finishing for the day!
Today was mine and Phoebe's scheduled day of farm duties so we arrived at Home Farm and started by helping Neil and Simon herd two Lincoln Red heifers in to the cattle crush so they could receive an injection (not sure what for - but they had not long given birth to some really cute calves!). We fed the next batch of Lincoln Red mums in the next barn with a concentrate feed and Neil went off to feed the cows at Durdham.
Our main task today was to prep the old parlour collecting yard ready for the lambing pens. There are two straw lambing yards constructed just outside the building and this is where the ewes will start to give birth before being brought in to the lambing pens with their lambs. Of the first lambing batch around 55 of the sheep are already in one of the straw yards - these are the triplet and twin lambers, so that they can begin their creep feeding regime. However, this may have to be rationed slightly to ensure that the lambs do not grow too big and cause problems at birth. The ewes will then be given an increased feed when the lambs are born to ensure she can produce enough milk and feed them.
Preparation including sweeping, tidying, fetching, carrying, relocating, binning, moving, cleaning, stacking etc etc basically the building and surrounding area is used as a store during the rest of the year and therefore needed to be made back in to a lambing shed!
After lunch we bedded down the Lincoln Red cows at Home Farm, new hessian bales were brought in and we moved the cows along the pens while we split the bales up leaving big slabs for the cows to rough up when they were let back in.
We then carried on in the lambing shed and started to fix the pens - but there were a few gates and pins missing - so we went off to the workshop to make some new pins! Neil cut up some lengths of metal and we used a bending machine to make the handle parts which was groovy and the ends were filed off so there were no sharp edges. Hey presto! these fitted perfectly and we put as many pens up as gates would allow before finishing for the day!
Friday, 14 February 2014
Friday February 14, 2014
Day 51..
Another intense two hours of Plant Science and Agricultural Crop production! We started off by looking more in depth at photosynthesis, which is this: plants make their own food by photosynthesis. Carbon dioxide and water react together on the presence of light and chlorophyll to make glucose and oxygen. The glucose is converted into starch, fats and oils for storage. It is used to make cellulose for cell walls and proteins for growth and repair. It is also used by the plant to release energy by respiration! (Yes, that is from the lecturers notes! I'm not that clever). To investigate soils in more depth we were divided into groups and with a list of recommended websites had to research why soil is important for crop rotations, soils and icm (integrated crop management). We displayed our results on the whiteboard and tried to discuss our findings in more detail as they were revealed.
Crop rotations
Rest - micro organisms, compaction
Nutrient uptake
Yield - fertiliser
Structure
Pest / disease build up
Nitrogen fixing - peas, beans, clover
ICM
Cross compliance - buffer strips, LERAPS (Local Environment Risk Assessment for Pesticides), boundary schemes etc
Water courses - soil texture, run-off, leaching
Soils
Crop establishment
Production
Composition - sand, silt, clay
Texture and structure
Ads clay = water holding capacity (whc), nutrient rich
Dis ads clay = hard to work! whether hot or cold conditions
Ads sand = workable
Dis ads sand = non nitrogen fixing
Another intense two hours of Plant Science and Agricultural Crop production! We started off by looking more in depth at photosynthesis, which is this: plants make their own food by photosynthesis. Carbon dioxide and water react together on the presence of light and chlorophyll to make glucose and oxygen. The glucose is converted into starch, fats and oils for storage. It is used to make cellulose for cell walls and proteins for growth and repair. It is also used by the plant to release energy by respiration! (Yes, that is from the lecturers notes! I'm not that clever). To investigate soils in more depth we were divided into groups and with a list of recommended websites had to research why soil is important for crop rotations, soils and icm (integrated crop management). We displayed our results on the whiteboard and tried to discuss our findings in more detail as they were revealed.
Crop rotations
Rest - micro organisms, compaction
Nutrient uptake
Yield - fertiliser
Structure
Pest / disease build up
Nitrogen fixing - peas, beans, clover
ICM
Cross compliance - buffer strips, LERAPS (Local Environment Risk Assessment for Pesticides), boundary schemes etc
Water courses - soil texture, run-off, leaching
Soils
Crop establishment
Production
Composition - sand, silt, clay
Texture and structure
Ads clay = water holding capacity (whc), nutrient rich
Dis ads clay = hard to work! whether hot or cold conditions
Ads sand = workable
Dis ads sand = non nitrogen fixing
Thursday, 13 February 2014
Thursday February 13, 2014
Day 50..
Machinery operations - in the workshop this morning we had to change the tyres of the Massy 3050. The width of the tractor tyres can be altered to suit the job - for example ploughing in furrow work and planting potatoes in row work. On this tractor there are two ways to alter the front wheel width - by moving the front axle - sliding it in or out depending on whether you need to shorten or lengthen the width, or by taking off the wheel and turning it the other way round and replacing it again - this will move the rim to either the inside or the outside to give a shorter or wider width. Always follow the guidelines in the machinery handbook and measure from a central point between both tyres for a measurement before and after. The back wheels on this tractor were swapped over, as they could not be turned round - these back wheels are the driven wheels therefor it cannot be turned round as the tread would then be going in the wrong direction. We followed workshop safety throughout, and used the right tools for the right job such as axle stands, 4 tonne jack, ratchet and socket set, blocks of wood at all four wheels and a torque wrench to ensure that the front and rear wheel nuts were tightened to exactly the manufacturers recommendations.
This afternoon we started off by watching a dvd about lambing survival - as lambing time is imminent. 4 million lambs die each year so good shepherd husbandry is essential. The main losses are caused by still births, hypothermia and infectious diseases. Successful lambing starts by ensuring the ewe is fit and healthy and fed well in the 4 to 6 weeks leading up to lambing, with concentrated feed steadily increased as this will ensure that the placenta reaches the optimum size at 90 days. A lambs normal temperature should be between 39 and 40 Degrees Celsius, it is at the point of below 37 degrees that action must be taken to ensure the lamb survives its first few hours / days. We then looked at the signs of calving in a dairy cow. Calving can take place at any time of the year and the cow will start showing signs of calving 1 - 2 weeks before by 'bagging up' (udder development), then a few days before she is due, the cows pelvic ligaments will start to relax - for an easier calving and the vulva will swell up to six times its normal size ready for birthing. A normal calving presentation should be two feet first with the nose just behind the feet in a 'driving' position - anything other than this should be investigated as the cow made need manual input to correct the position before she can give birth.
Machinery operations - in the workshop this morning we had to change the tyres of the Massy 3050. The width of the tractor tyres can be altered to suit the job - for example ploughing in furrow work and planting potatoes in row work. On this tractor there are two ways to alter the front wheel width - by moving the front axle - sliding it in or out depending on whether you need to shorten or lengthen the width, or by taking off the wheel and turning it the other way round and replacing it again - this will move the rim to either the inside or the outside to give a shorter or wider width. Always follow the guidelines in the machinery handbook and measure from a central point between both tyres for a measurement before and after. The back wheels on this tractor were swapped over, as they could not be turned round - these back wheels are the driven wheels therefor it cannot be turned round as the tread would then be going in the wrong direction. We followed workshop safety throughout, and used the right tools for the right job such as axle stands, 4 tonne jack, ratchet and socket set, blocks of wood at all four wheels and a torque wrench to ensure that the front and rear wheel nuts were tightened to exactly the manufacturers recommendations.
This afternoon we started off by watching a dvd about lambing survival - as lambing time is imminent. 4 million lambs die each year so good shepherd husbandry is essential. The main losses are caused by still births, hypothermia and infectious diseases. Successful lambing starts by ensuring the ewe is fit and healthy and fed well in the 4 to 6 weeks leading up to lambing, with concentrated feed steadily increased as this will ensure that the placenta reaches the optimum size at 90 days. A lambs normal temperature should be between 39 and 40 Degrees Celsius, it is at the point of below 37 degrees that action must be taken to ensure the lamb survives its first few hours / days. We then looked at the signs of calving in a dairy cow. Calving can take place at any time of the year and the cow will start showing signs of calving 1 - 2 weeks before by 'bagging up' (udder development), then a few days before she is due, the cows pelvic ligaments will start to relax - for an easier calving and the vulva will swell up to six times its normal size ready for birthing. A normal calving presentation should be two feet first with the nose just behind the feet in a 'driving' position - anything other than this should be investigated as the cow made need manual input to correct the position before she can give birth.
Wednesday, 12 February 2014
Wednesday February 12, 2014
Day 49..
We had a surprise trip today to the farm yard of H Broadberry & Son where we met Dean Broadberry (the son part) who talked us through his farming operation. The company is an agricultural contractors, farmers of 950 acres and contract grain drying and storage facility. There was some pretty decent kit around the farm, but dean explained how he is no longer following the traditional ploughing and seedbed preparation methods, he now successfully utilises a min till program - minimum tillage. Consequently, there was not much machinery, but what was there was all singing all dancing - take the sprayer for example, £176,000 worth of self propelled, gps guided, self censoring, 30 metre boomed machinery!!! After a very detailed and interesting talk we were taken to the farm workshop so that we could carry out a risk assessment in a real life situation. This was a working farm, and the workshop reflected this - full of tools, work benches, parts, gadgets and essential gear, such as the oar compressor unit! We conducted our risk assessments, which have been handed in to be marked as part of our agricultural learning.
This afternoon it was our task to vaccinate the first set of lambing ewes with heptavac P - a subcutaneous injection (administered into the fatty layer f tissue under the skin). Ewes are vaccinated during pregnancy to help reduce the threat of clostridial diseases such as lamb dysentery, pulpy kidney, tetanus, and pasteurellosis in their lambs provided the lambs receive sufficient immune colostrum during the first 1-2 days of life. We set up the race and handling system and herded the sheep into a holding pen before each having a go at injecting the sheep. As the sheep are really woolly at the moment, it was hard to pinch a good bit of neck skin and inject into the bottom of this, however, a good it is to learn how to feel where the needle should go as the more sheep you have to inject the quicker you need to be at this task. Most f the ewes looked really well, with nice fat tummies, so hopefully they will go on to produce a good number of healthy lambs. Once the lambing sheds are prepared these ewes will be brought in out of the awful winters rain and wind for a nicer lambing environment.
We had a surprise trip today to the farm yard of H Broadberry & Son where we met Dean Broadberry (the son part) who talked us through his farming operation. The company is an agricultural contractors, farmers of 950 acres and contract grain drying and storage facility. There was some pretty decent kit around the farm, but dean explained how he is no longer following the traditional ploughing and seedbed preparation methods, he now successfully utilises a min till program - minimum tillage. Consequently, there was not much machinery, but what was there was all singing all dancing - take the sprayer for example, £176,000 worth of self propelled, gps guided, self censoring, 30 metre boomed machinery!!! After a very detailed and interesting talk we were taken to the farm workshop so that we could carry out a risk assessment in a real life situation. This was a working farm, and the workshop reflected this - full of tools, work benches, parts, gadgets and essential gear, such as the oar compressor unit! We conducted our risk assessments, which have been handed in to be marked as part of our agricultural learning.
This afternoon it was our task to vaccinate the first set of lambing ewes with heptavac P - a subcutaneous injection (administered into the fatty layer f tissue under the skin). Ewes are vaccinated during pregnancy to help reduce the threat of clostridial diseases such as lamb dysentery, pulpy kidney, tetanus, and pasteurellosis in their lambs provided the lambs receive sufficient immune colostrum during the first 1-2 days of life. We set up the race and handling system and herded the sheep into a holding pen before each having a go at injecting the sheep. As the sheep are really woolly at the moment, it was hard to pinch a good bit of neck skin and inject into the bottom of this, however, a good it is to learn how to feel where the needle should go as the more sheep you have to inject the quicker you need to be at this task. Most f the ewes looked really well, with nice fat tummies, so hopefully they will go on to produce a good number of healthy lambs. Once the lambing sheds are prepared these ewes will be brought in out of the awful winters rain and wind for a nicer lambing environment.
Friday, 7 February 2014
Friday February 7, 2014
Day 48..
Plant Science
New teacher new lesson! And it was full on and action packed! We started off with the structure of plants, drawing and labelling the different parts, before looking at the plant cell in more detail. There are a lot of long words to learn when labelling these two sections! We then looked at the structures and functions of cells, quite hard to take it all in in a first go (and seeing as I haven't recently studied this at school). Specialist cells include the Stolen, Rhizomes and Storage Organs and in groups we investigated these further.
Agricultural Crop Production
Same new teacher as above and new lesson! Again, quite an action packed presentation! Zadocks cereal growth stages is the most common used growth stage key for cereals (Feekes being an alternative scale) and determines from a range between 0 and 99 the growing stages from germination to ripening. We also discussed pesticides and in groups were given a specific type of spray that needed researching. In my group we looked at fungicides and from the Syngenta website (a chemical company specialising in agriculture) determined that Amistar was a popular product to protect against yellow rust, brown rust and ear disorders in wheat!
Grassland Management
Today Jill delivered a lecture investigating the conservation of grass and in particular grass silage. We started the lesson with a scenario based task where at an open day on our farm we would talk city dwellers through the conservation processes, why and how it takes place where in simple terms silage is pickled grass! You should be aiming for 2 to 3 grass silage cuts with the first cut in early May - making the most of the fresh, young, lush, nutrient rich, surplus grass. The lactic acid fermentation occurs under anaerobic conditions (no air) to reduce the pH level of the grass. There are four stages:
1. Aerobic Stage - air is present for a few days
2. Fermentation stage - no air (anaerobic)
3. Stable stage - can be reached in 2-3 days with additives
4. Storage stage - when acidic conditions limit microbial activity
Stored grass silage is most common in a clamp, wrapped in big bales or in AgBags, ready to be fed to dairy cows, beef cattle and sheep during the winter months.
Plant Science
New teacher new lesson! And it was full on and action packed! We started off with the structure of plants, drawing and labelling the different parts, before looking at the plant cell in more detail. There are a lot of long words to learn when labelling these two sections! We then looked at the structures and functions of cells, quite hard to take it all in in a first go (and seeing as I haven't recently studied this at school). Specialist cells include the Stolen, Rhizomes and Storage Organs and in groups we investigated these further.
Agricultural Crop Production
Same new teacher as above and new lesson! Again, quite an action packed presentation! Zadocks cereal growth stages is the most common used growth stage key for cereals (Feekes being an alternative scale) and determines from a range between 0 and 99 the growing stages from germination to ripening. We also discussed pesticides and in groups were given a specific type of spray that needed researching. In my group we looked at fungicides and from the Syngenta website (a chemical company specialising in agriculture) determined that Amistar was a popular product to protect against yellow rust, brown rust and ear disorders in wheat!
Grassland Management
Today Jill delivered a lecture investigating the conservation of grass and in particular grass silage. We started the lesson with a scenario based task where at an open day on our farm we would talk city dwellers through the conservation processes, why and how it takes place where in simple terms silage is pickled grass! You should be aiming for 2 to 3 grass silage cuts with the first cut in early May - making the most of the fresh, young, lush, nutrient rich, surplus grass. The lactic acid fermentation occurs under anaerobic conditions (no air) to reduce the pH level of the grass. There are four stages:
1. Aerobic Stage - air is present for a few days
2. Fermentation stage - no air (anaerobic)
3. Stable stage - can be reached in 2-3 days with additives
4. Storage stage - when acidic conditions limit microbial activity
Stored grass silage is most common in a clamp, wrapped in big bales or in AgBags, ready to be fed to dairy cows, beef cattle and sheep during the winter months.
Thursday, 6 February 2014
Thursday February 6, 2014
Day forty seven..
This morning Steve, from B&B Tractors, returned to give us a live demonstration of the Trimble on-board GPS systems. The Trimble GPS system provides positioning solutions enabling agricultural users to be more productive by revolutionising their work processes in the field. Trimble uses GPS, lasers, optical, and inertial technologies, as well as wireless communications and application specific software to provide complete solutions that link positioning to productivity. (<-that's the techy bit) So Steve talked us through the welcome screens and icons on the home page and settings that can be edited for the task in hand. We were then let loose around the yard at Home Farm in a 'field' scenario. In tractor mode, we first selected the headland icon along with the plot A to B program. As we started off in the tractor, the screen plotted where we were going and was recording our journey. We selected A as we set off and when we approached the opposite side we plotted the B range - as this would allow the system to work out the guide lines within the field. Upon return to the start of the headland the system is ready to plot the course for the tractor to take. As the tractor is turned and reaches the closest line the steering wheel icon becomes active - once activated the steering is taken over by the trimble system - which is very weird! It uses sensors (either built in to the tractor or bolted on - for a cost of £17,000) to control where the tractor is going. This leaves you to control the speed and watch the screen and monitor and adjust the equipment on the back of the tractor accordingly. It is a very modern way to farm, and one that is growing in popularity as farmers strive to get the maximum yield for the least output!
This afternoon we started off by looking at lambing time; health and safety, the signs of lambing and the shepherds lambing bag! When a ewe is ready to give birth there are some tell tail signs that you should be looking out for in order to keep an eye on the ewe and make sure the birth is successful - you would not want to intervene with the lambing process unless absolutely necessary, where there is a problem in the birth process and the life of the lamb and ewe is at risk. Signs of lambing include restlessness, moon gazing (head tilts towards the sky), water bag (placenta) emerges from the vulva and separation from others. Upon signs that she is about to lamb, a ewe can be left for approximately half an hour before you investigate that all is well, but if she is a gimmer (a young ewe, usually its first lambing) then this should be left for up to an hour while she finds her feet.
We then moved on to Dairy Production in the UK.. and started off by learning what the terminology means! For females; At birth are called Heifer calves, Female heifers over one year old are maiden heifers (unmated) and in-calf heifers (if pregnant), a barren cow (one that is no longer breeding) is barren or farrow and a dry cow (stopped milking for current lactation) is a dry cow or yeld. And for males; at birth are bull calves or a bullock if it has been castrated - bullocks can also be referred to as steers or stirks, store cattle - those to be fattened off later, veal - those reared for slaughter at a young age and bull beef - is beef from an entire male. A year in the life of a dairy cow means that it has to produce a calf as the milk is a by-product of this process. The cow lactates (to secrete or produce milk for 10 months of the year. Most cows are artificially inseminated (AI) as this gives farmers cheaper access to top quality bulls! Cows can calf all year round, however there is a premium paid for milk in the summer now to encourage an even supply (a cow is 'dry' for two months before giving birth). Interestingly! - for when we are told that milk is bad for us - Full fat milk has a butter fat content of around 3.6%, semi-skimmed at 2% and skimmed at 1% so there is much less in milk than many other products on the market (low fat cheeses and yoghurts for example) and there isn't actually much of a drop between full fat and skimmed! however - those drinking semi or skimmed suggest that they cant go back to full fat because it tastes too chewy!
This morning Steve, from B&B Tractors, returned to give us a live demonstration of the Trimble on-board GPS systems. The Trimble GPS system provides positioning solutions enabling agricultural users to be more productive by revolutionising their work processes in the field. Trimble uses GPS, lasers, optical, and inertial technologies, as well as wireless communications and application specific software to provide complete solutions that link positioning to productivity. (<-that's the techy bit) So Steve talked us through the welcome screens and icons on the home page and settings that can be edited for the task in hand. We were then let loose around the yard at Home Farm in a 'field' scenario. In tractor mode, we first selected the headland icon along with the plot A to B program. As we started off in the tractor, the screen plotted where we were going and was recording our journey. We selected A as we set off and when we approached the opposite side we plotted the B range - as this would allow the system to work out the guide lines within the field. Upon return to the start of the headland the system is ready to plot the course for the tractor to take. As the tractor is turned and reaches the closest line the steering wheel icon becomes active - once activated the steering is taken over by the trimble system - which is very weird! It uses sensors (either built in to the tractor or bolted on - for a cost of £17,000) to control where the tractor is going. This leaves you to control the speed and watch the screen and monitor and adjust the equipment on the back of the tractor accordingly. It is a very modern way to farm, and one that is growing in popularity as farmers strive to get the maximum yield for the least output!
This afternoon we started off by looking at lambing time; health and safety, the signs of lambing and the shepherds lambing bag! When a ewe is ready to give birth there are some tell tail signs that you should be looking out for in order to keep an eye on the ewe and make sure the birth is successful - you would not want to intervene with the lambing process unless absolutely necessary, where there is a problem in the birth process and the life of the lamb and ewe is at risk. Signs of lambing include restlessness, moon gazing (head tilts towards the sky), water bag (placenta) emerges from the vulva and separation from others. Upon signs that she is about to lamb, a ewe can be left for approximately half an hour before you investigate that all is well, but if she is a gimmer (a young ewe, usually its first lambing) then this should be left for up to an hour while she finds her feet.
We then moved on to Dairy Production in the UK.. and started off by learning what the terminology means! For females; At birth are called Heifer calves, Female heifers over one year old are maiden heifers (unmated) and in-calf heifers (if pregnant), a barren cow (one that is no longer breeding) is barren or farrow and a dry cow (stopped milking for current lactation) is a dry cow or yeld. And for males; at birth are bull calves or a bullock if it has been castrated - bullocks can also be referred to as steers or stirks, store cattle - those to be fattened off later, veal - those reared for slaughter at a young age and bull beef - is beef from an entire male. A year in the life of a dairy cow means that it has to produce a calf as the milk is a by-product of this process. The cow lactates (to secrete or produce milk for 10 months of the year. Most cows are artificially inseminated (AI) as this gives farmers cheaper access to top quality bulls! Cows can calf all year round, however there is a premium paid for milk in the summer now to encourage an even supply (a cow is 'dry' for two months before giving birth). Interestingly! - for when we are told that milk is bad for us - Full fat milk has a butter fat content of around 3.6%, semi-skimmed at 2% and skimmed at 1% so there is much less in milk than many other products on the market (low fat cheeses and yoghurts for example) and there isn't actually much of a drop between full fat and skimmed! however - those drinking semi or skimmed suggest that they cant go back to full fat because it tastes too chewy!
Wednesday, 5 February 2014
Wednesday February 5, 2014
Day 46..
Theory morning - today we started off in the library as our timetable has reverted back to machinery all morning but the machinery teacher was unaware of this! However we then proceeded with another Lamma presentation - the group were discussing cultivators and drilling and showed us many different types of machinery used for preparing land for farming purposes - the most popular machinery being either a harrow or a plough. In the second half of the lesson we were visited by a gentleman from B&B Tractors, a local agricultural machinery specialist, to discuss in detail the trimble gps systems that they sell. The college has just purchased a trimble gps system and we were given a tutorial of how these devices work. Trimble gps systems utilise RTK - real time kinematic and require a base station to be erected for the three way signal to work correctly. Utilising RTK means that the system should work to within 0.02 meters of the required destination (a car sat nav system is usually to within 1 meter of destination!).
Practical afternoon - we started off this afternoon watching dom remove the supernumerary teats off the two new born Lincoln red calves. Supernumerary teats are any teats in excess of the normal four teats found on a cow’s udder. Supernumerary teats are most often removed when a calf is dehorned (early in life) because they can predispose the cow to mastitis, interfere with milking and are considered unsightly. This was carried out by simply cutting them off with a pair of round ended scissors and then spraying the area with terramycin spray - to stop any infection. Following a delay in proceedings we then learnt about the movement records for sheep - as 10 gimmers had just been sold today. We were given the information about the sale and could use this to fill in a replica movement record. There are four copies - 1 to keep, and the rest to be sent with the animals. The remaining copies then get sent to the right authorities (one retained by the new keeper - unless sent to slaughter). We then looked into a feeding task for a number of cows being fed silage and needed to work out if we had enough feed! Basic maths revision but a good exercise!
Theory morning - today we started off in the library as our timetable has reverted back to machinery all morning but the machinery teacher was unaware of this! However we then proceeded with another Lamma presentation - the group were discussing cultivators and drilling and showed us many different types of machinery used for preparing land for farming purposes - the most popular machinery being either a harrow or a plough. In the second half of the lesson we were visited by a gentleman from B&B Tractors, a local agricultural machinery specialist, to discuss in detail the trimble gps systems that they sell. The college has just purchased a trimble gps system and we were given a tutorial of how these devices work. Trimble gps systems utilise RTK - real time kinematic and require a base station to be erected for the three way signal to work correctly. Utilising RTK means that the system should work to within 0.02 meters of the required destination (a car sat nav system is usually to within 1 meter of destination!).
Practical afternoon - we started off this afternoon watching dom remove the supernumerary teats off the two new born Lincoln red calves. Supernumerary teats are any teats in excess of the normal four teats found on a cow’s udder. Supernumerary teats are most often removed when a calf is dehorned (early in life) because they can predispose the cow to mastitis, interfere with milking and are considered unsightly. This was carried out by simply cutting them off with a pair of round ended scissors and then spraying the area with terramycin spray - to stop any infection. Following a delay in proceedings we then learnt about the movement records for sheep - as 10 gimmers had just been sold today. We were given the information about the sale and could use this to fill in a replica movement record. There are four copies - 1 to keep, and the rest to be sent with the animals. The remaining copies then get sent to the right authorities (one retained by the new keeper - unless sent to slaughter). We then looked into a feeding task for a number of cows being fed silage and needed to work out if we had enough feed! Basic maths revision but a good exercise!
Saturday, 1 February 2014
Friday January 31, 2014
Day 45..
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