As I sit here writing, I’ve just heard on the radio that this is the third day we’ve hit record temperatures approaching 37°C. I have been asked many times over the last week or so as to how these extreme temperatures affect the cows. Well, I think it’s fair to say that they don’t like the extreme heat any more than we do and therefore we have to take, as always, whatever measures we can to look after them.
The number one concern for the cows, perhaps very similar to us humans, is that they have enough water to drink. In these extreme temperatures one cow can drink up to 250 litres per day. That’s a quarter a tonne of water/head. We have 250 cows, so that’s 62 tonnes of water a day or 62500 litres every 24 hours! We already have an ongoing water supply problem on the farm as the Portsmouth Water mains system is ageing and was not designed to deliver the amount of water needed to the number of houses and businesses that now exist in their area. Consequently Portsmouth Water have, over time, reduced the pressure on the mains network to cope and of course the pressure drops further in hot weather as we all use more.
Consequently, we have spent tens of thousands of pounds over the last few years to bring in in a new second water main to the dairy (coming from a Colworth direction) and installing more and much larger water troughs. The latter being necessary because,
with the lower water pressure, the cows drink the toughs dry faster than the mains can fill them back up.
The next requirement is shade; not all of our fields have adequate shade in the form of trees and high hedges, particularly when they’re altogether. 250 cows take up a lot of space and requires a lot of shade, so we give them access 24/7 to the cow sheds enabling them to wander back whenever they want and chill out. On the most extreme heat days the whole herd is kept indoors and grass (silage) is brought to them.
One of the worst things I’ve ever seen as a result of hot weather was on Salisbury plain a number of years ago. There is absolutely no shade on Salisbury Plain and several of the predominantly white cows were seriously sunburned. A sunburnt cow is something you never want to see and we have thankfully never seen here.
Finally, with the extreme heat the herd produces less milk. Not ideal but if I was a cow I think I would do the same!
That’s the cows but spare a thought for the people at Reeds Farm too. Although the arable staff can spend much of their time in their nice air conditioned tractors the same isn’t an option for the dairy team. Milking times in particular can be extremely hot and sweaty as the body heat from the cows takes the air temperature up many notches.
Whether all of this is driven by Climate Change or a change in climate, I remain mindful of my late Father’s wisdom and many years of experience when he would pontificate as to how lucky we were to be farming in Britain because we didn’t have to endure the true extremes of many other countries. As he would put it: ‘if it’s raining too much we know the sun will always come out and if we’re in a drought we know it will eventually rain’. As Gloria Gaynor said so eloquently ‘We will survive!’
Meanwhile, harvest is underway at Woodhorn and Madame Green (with Sam driving his air conditioned combine) and another year’s cropping cycle comes to an end. We have winter oats (for Organic oat milk), spring barley (for Organic beer and feed for our cows) and winter wheat (for Organic bread) all of which are ripening fast in the sunny, hot weather. No doubt many of you will be watching our maize shoot up in front of your eyes! Maize is originally a Mediterranean crop and loves the heat and sun.
On a personal note, it is wonderful news to hear that the Hague family want to rebuild our beloved Gribble Inn. I remember, as a very young boy, going with my Mum to what was then a much, much smaller house, taking meals to an elderly Miss Gribble (Mrs Hussey by then).
Surely no greater change than this then much loved home becoming a thriving pub could have been envisaged by anyone back then. Change is coming again and I very much hope that the whole community will rally round and do everything possible to
support the project over the coming months.
John Pitts