Thursday March 13, 2014

Day 59..

Machinery & Workshop Practical - not many in the group today, but we started off by fixing two broken tines on the 'cultipress' cultivator - A trailed machine that combines several elements to complete three actions in one pass - cultivating, levelling and consolidating the seedbed to leave a weatherproof finish that is often ready for drilling with no further cultivation. Usually more suitable for use on heavy ground. We replaced two broken front tines with new ones before farmer Neil went off to middle meadow. We followed him down to the field and each had a go at a pass up and down the field. The idea is that the top soil is being broken down just enough to get the seedbed prepared for the drilling off spring beans in the next few days. The field had recently been sprayed with round up on account of the weed black grass, which stripes the crop of vital nutrients and spreads rapidly.
Back at the yard we hitched up the passenger trailer and went off to look at weir close, another field where the cultipress worked yesterday - to compare the difference between the fields. This field was much more cloddy - bigger particles left on the surface, and had not broken down as well as middle meadow. This means that there is less soil particles for the seed to attach to when drilled and can have an effect on yield. This can be cultivated again, but will depend on your tillage method. 

Livestock Husbandry Theory - we began our lesson looking into calf rearing in a dairy herd.. Once a calf is born it is essential to check the vital signs; that it's airways are clear (a prod with a stick of straw up the calfs nose can assist with this) and that it receives the first drink of colostrum off mum - for energy, laxatives, protein and antibodies. A calf is born germ free but is born into a germ filled environment so the antibodies are essential along with dipping the navel in iodine. Raising a dairy calf means that it should be taken away from mum as soon six hours after birth! Although this sounds harsh, this is the best way to remove any bond forming between cow and calf for two reasons 1. So that the cow can return to the parlour for milking without fretting for her new born and 2. So that the calf can be taught to fed from a bucket. A cows milk cannot go in to the milk tank for 4/5 days after being milked so this will be diverted into containers and used to feed the calf for the first few days but it is important to offer roughage and solid food from 1 week to stimulate rumen development - the better the rumen works the better the calf will eat and the quicker it will grow!
This lesson finished with a visit from someone in the further education department to discuss the course, positives and negatives from the agricultural program, lecturers, facilities etc etc! Not sure this was the best use of my lesson time!!