Farm Update - July 2016
James Florey
Beef Availability
We have beef available for delivery throughout the UK on Friday 12th August. Visit our shop section here and choose from our delicious selection of cuts. Either choose from our set beef boxes or alternatively make up your own pick 'n mix box. For those wishing to pick up orders from the farm house these can be collected from Tuesday 9th August.
Cattle
The cattle continue to graze the fields in and around Northmoor with many now being moved on to fresh pasture. Once the cattle have been moved to a new field the old grass field is cut with a topper. This cuts off any old dead grass and encourages fresh nutritious grass to start regrowing ready for the cattle to move back there later in the year. Find out more about the benefits of grass fed beef here.
Hay Making
The recent spell of hot, sunny weather we've had, has enabled us to get our hay making done. We've made 2000 small bales of hay from the grass in the river meadows along the banks of the Thames. Back breaking work having to stack them all by hand in such hot weather! In addition to the small bales we also make about 70 large bales. We supply a number of local stables with bales of hay and also use some to feed to our cattle. The cows are usually fed some hay in the weeks running up to calving as they can have a tendency to get a bit fat if they are just fed on grass silage which is quite rich. If the cows get too fat at this time it can lead to calving difficulties.
Arable
Combines have started rolling up and down the country, however we are still a couple of weeks away as all the crops we grow are planted in the Spring meaning they're later to harvest. Our Spring Barley is now starting to turn a rich, golden colour which is a sign that harvest time isn't far away. We are about to give the combine a good check over and clean out the grain stores ready for storing the grain once its harvested. The Barley will be the first crop to be harvested, followed by the wheat and finally the beans, which won't be cut until September.
Environmental Stewardship
As part of our environmental stewardship agreement there are an number of things we have to do to manage the different environmental practices we have in place on the farm. This past month we have cut half of each of our pollen and nectar plots. Even though they were still in flower, cutting half of each one now will encourage regrowth and flowering later on in the year when the remaining uncut half will have finished flowering. This provides an a diverse habitat for many different bees and butterflies for a greater period of time, as well as looking beautiful in full flower!
Countryfile Live
Countryfile Live is being held at Blenheim Palace from the 4th - 7th August. The event aims to showcase the best of the British Countryside and we're delighted to say that we'll be there in the Adams Farm Livestock Area with one of our beautiful cattle! Along with a number of other farmers we will be on hand to answer any questions you have on farming and where your food comes from. Do come along and see us on what promises to be be a great family day out!