If you graze it tight

in a sward you need to graze them tight in the late autumn or early spring. If you cannot get out and graze the sward tight, it will have a negative effect on the clover content in the subsequent year.

White clover generally won’t stay in the sward as long as perennial ryegrass it typically dies out after about five years. So you will have to re-seed more ground each year or over sow white clover into paddocks that have been mowed or grazed tight.

We sowed extra clover last year in two paddocks that were re-seeded both were grazed well last autumn and again this spring, so when we get into May we should see how well they have established.

The other paddock was only sprayed off on April 16.

We let ewe lambs into this paddock after four days to graze it off and they have done a good job, making it easier for the contractor to sow with his one-pass powerharrow and seeder.

Fencing is keeping us busy now, especially where repairs were left over from last year. We have a group of dry hoggets who do not like staying where I want them to graze off after ewe and lambs. It amazes me how they are able to find a weak part in the fence, then they are gone, and always into a good field of grass.

But another few days with the post-driver, then watch out ladies, I will be back in control!

We have started to dose lambs for Nematodirus. I have just one lot done so far. This group had a few dirty lambs and after we carried out a test by dosing a few in the field, the lambs we dosed dried up so we decided to dose all the lambs in that group.

We vaccinated these lambs with Heptivac P the same day. They will get their second injection in four weeks’ time.

All went through the foot-bath. There were not many lame ones, possibly due to the dry ground conditions and short grass.

John Large farms at Gortnahoe, Co. Tipperary