Bonfire and fireworks event goes with a bang

Fawkes’ fundraiser night we planned at the farm, which fortunately turned out to be a bit of a success.

Thanks to our many fellow parent helpers, the bonfire and fireworks went off without a hitch and the Snack Shed did a roaring trade with hot dogs using pork sausages from pigs just a field away, sausage pinwheels (thank you, mum), an array of delicious home baking, hot drinks and juice.

Nick found it most amusing to hear me say: “I’m off down to the farm” in the nights running up to the bonfire, as I attempted to convert the cowshed into a temporary cafe with square bales for seats and covered tables borrowed from the local hall for a makeshift servery.

It seemed quite charming on the night to have the cows looking over the bales at everyone as they ordered mulled wine and a hot dog, but they weren’t overly happy when the first rockets were lit. Fortunately everybody was outside at this point and luckily the herd quickly calmed down. Nick thinks one cow spooked the rest which set them off.

We were very lucky with the weather too – a perfect crisp night with no rain or wind, most unusual around here. It was a leap of faith but happily the school and local community came out in force (120-plus we think) to support the event, raising over £500 for the school.

Nick, of course, was delighted with the success of the event but was also relieved to focus solely on farm work again last week. He has been working hard with his feed nutritionist to get the cows’ winter ration right.

It’s interesting because I can now tell when the protein levels are down in the milk before Nick mentions it because of my daily coffee habit. I have one of these milk warming/frothing machines and when the protein is high, the milk produces an amazing barista-quality foam; when it is moderate it will produce a bubbly sort of froth; when the protein is low, the milk doesn’t froth at all.

Just now, no froth so Nick has changed their silage and is adding more water to the diet to prevent “sorting” (when the cows, particularly the Jerseys, sort through the ration to find the cake – cattle cake, that is) so that every mouthful is balanced and uniform.

Strange as it sounds, when there is too much protein in the herd’s diet, their stomachs get upset so there is less protein in the milk. The pasteurised milk still tastes the same, it just doesn’t act the same when heated. Consequently, albeit temporarily, we cannot supply my brother’s coffee shop, Milk Bar, with our milk (thank goodness he’s family.)

Nick is also keen to add more cows to the herd to maximise the efficiency of the robots. Currently there are only 90 milking cows whereas each robot can comfortably handle up to 60 cows. Nick’s preference is for more Ayrshires, which are thriving in the Rootfield herd and is a breed renowned for the high quality of its milk.

In other farm news, the cows are back inside for the winter and Nick has started a Scottish Enterprise Rural Leadership Programme. The SAC suggested Nick apply for a place back in September and he was chosen for one of the 15 places in the Highland region.

In the words of Scottish Enterprise: “This unique and challenging programme . . . is aimed at business managers and employees from rural businesses who have a desire to develop their leadership skills and grow their business.”

With the dairy herd and the processing and production arm here at Rootfield, the young stock at Essich and the farming interests he shares with dad, Dereck, at Daviot, Nick has an ever increasing workload (yet a decreasing workforce) that he needs to manage as efficiently and effectively as possible for the future health of his business and – I would argue, himself.

He is hopeful that the Rural Leadership Programme will furnish him with more skills and provide him with access to a network of support, resources and contacts in the wider rural community. So far Nick has attended two events – the first a workshop, the second a one-to-one mentoring session – and is really enjoying the process so far.

Meanwhile in the production and processing kitchen, Rosie and the team are starting to make icecream cakes for the coming festive season, our Christmas pudding alternative. And next month will see the return of some favourite seasonal flavours such as mince pie, stollen and gingerbread ice-creams as well as a couple of new ones including cranberry and clementine sorbet and white chocolate and honeycomb ice-cream.

On the home front, the girls both have their birthdays around this time of year so I’ve had a busy week of buying gifts, balloons and various party paraphernalia (and will be mid-party as you read this), so unfortunately I didn’t manage to accompany Nick to AgriScot earlier this week.

Although to be honest, if I had been that close to Edinburgh (and Ikea) I’m not sure I’d have made it to the annual agricultural show even if I had accompanied him.

NEXT MONTH: Christmas is coming

“Manage as efficiently and effectively as possible”

■ Rootfield Farm is on the Black Isle, 10 miles north of Inverness, where Jo lives with husband Nick, a fourthgeneration dairy farmer, their daughters Daisy and Mollie, and 150 cows

Nick is keen to add more cows to the herd