Good things come to those who wait. . .

Whilst most farms are frantically cutting their first silage crop up and down the length and breadth of Britain, here at Eversfield we work with nature to provide the very best silage crop, in order to give our livestock the very best winter feed. How do we do this? It’s simple. . .  we leave it to nature, and then we wait. Non organic farms will spray and fertilise fields to stimulate grass growth and minimise weeds and wildflowers.  At Eversfield, our silage is 100% organically grown without the use of chemicals, this allows nature’s wildflowers and grasses to grow and proliferate unhindered, giving a rich and nutritionally balanced silage crop. Many farms will cut silage in May and June, before the seed heads develop on the grasses. They do this to minimise the fibre content of the grass thus aiding digestion.  However, at Eversfield, we know that our beef cows benefit from an increased fibre content – WHY?  With a higher percentage of fibre in the grass, the cow’s digestive system takes longer to digest the grass so it sits in the stomach for longer. Whilst it’s sitting there, it gives the cattle’s digestive system more time to extract nutrients from the silage. This means our cows get the maximum nutrition from the silage.

Our Farm Manager Malcolm Light keeps an eye on the silage fields at this time of year to carefully assess the growth of the grasses, wildflowers, clover and other nutritional plants which grow in our organic pastures. Only when the time is right will Malcolm call in the contractors to begin cutting.  Each meadow enjoys different growing conditions – drainage and moisture levels, differing soil variations, sunlight, exposure to winds and so by assessing each meadow individually, Malcolm can plan to cut the silage when he feels the meadow is ready. Our silage fields are therefore cut at different times to suit the conditions. During the silage cutting, the silage is rolled into bales and stored where it matures through the summer in time for winter feeding.

Good for our cows and good for wildlife. . .

There’s another happy benefit of our approach to making silage.  Whilst most farms cut silage in May or June before the grasses and flowers have flowered and seeded, our Eversfield Organic meadows are allowed to proliferate with wild flowers providing a spring habitat for insects, birds, bees and butterflies creating a vital food source to support the bio diversity of wildlife around the farm.

So whilst others may be rushing to cut their silage crops, we wait until July – better for our cows and better for nature!