Calendar farming is not workable but some farmers need to rethink their slurry spreading

Agreat idea on paper doesn’t always translate into a great idea in practice — and ‘calendar farming’ is one of those ideas.

It has been a bone of contention between farmers and the Department of Agriculture for over a decade.

And as sure as the snowdrops emerge in January, farmers and their representatives will be up in arms over when they can

and when they can’t — spread slurry.

This year was no different, with many farmers highlighting the ideal conditions in early January for slurry spreading, but the calendar said ‘no’

another example of the civil servants up in Dublin setting ridiculous and unworkable rules, in farmers’ minds.

So with the position unchanged again this year, the slurry season opened for the majority of the country the week before last, which unfortunately coincided with the wettest week of the year to date.

Many farmers took the decision to hold off for a dry spell. But many didn’t.

Many farmers believe that as soon as the spreading season opens and land is somewhat trafficable, they have carte blanche to spread.

They’re wrong: the practice of getting slurry out before the rain falls is also against the regulations. Regardless of the regulations, spreading slurry on waterlogged land should not happen. It’s a complete waste of valuable nutrients that could be used to offset the purchase of chemical fertilisers later in the year.

It also poses a significant threat to water quality.

However, rather than scrapping calendar farming, the solution lies in the answer to this question: why are so many farmers under so much pressure to get slurry spread?

If farmers and their representatives are to hold the line that the problem is not too many cows, then we’re going to have to put the spotlight on storage capacity.

Many people feel slurry storage hasn’t been given enough consideration on expanding farms in recent years.

And there is no getting away from the fact that sinking or erecting tanks is a costly business.

However, the maintenance of good water quality is vital to the public relations battle being raged over the future of agriculture at present.

Agriculture practices that impact it negatively should not and will not have public support.

As it stands too many farmers are betting their future on a dry January.