Blog Post

Successfully Grazing Through Seasonal Transitions

Sheila Cooke • 26 May 2023

Webinar with Clive Bright, farmer in County Sligo, Ireland

Monday, the 29th of May 2023, 8:00 PM

About Our Speaker

Farmer and graphic artist, Clive Bright of Rare Ruminaire, will share insights related to Spring and Autumn grazing. He farms a suckler beef herd in County Sligo, Ireland, of 35 to 50 animals.

Clive did rotational grazing for about 7 years prior to starting Holistic Management training in November 2020. Clive told me recently, "To be honest, I was sceptical that Holistic Planned Grazing would give better results than rotational grazing." Much to his surprise, the land improved rapidly.

The farm had a thick blanket of grass everywhere at the end of the growing season. We were able to finish animals on the stockpile, and cut our wintering costs in half.

– Clive Bright, County Sligo, Ireland, June 2022

Find out more about Clive in the press:

This Co. Sligo farmer practices planned holistic grazing -- but what is it?
Clive Bright's Farm, an interview with RTE Radio 1

Webinar Topic

Spring and Autumn grazing present special challenges to the livestock farmer.

Challenges such as:

Weather conditions are highly variable in the transition from Winter to Spring, and from Summer to Autumn.
Warm days in early Spring can trick you into thinking the growing season has started, when it really has not.
Animals want out of their sheds in Spring and it is tempting to put them in the fields when the first grass growth appears.
Balancing the stocking rate with grass production is harder when seasons are transitioning.

Clive will address the challenges of growing pasture with "heart" at the turning points of the year. He believes it is helpful to shed the thinking of modern traditions and heed ecological cycles echoed in older folklore. Clive will demonstrate that "timing is everything" to address the challenges at the turning points of the year.

Watch the Recording

< Older Post

Newer Post >