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Farming in the North Pennine Dales By Clive Dalton A tale Eric Wilson told me that he never got down on paper was his regular experience of having to part a Dales farmer from his “brass” (money). Eric used to relate how he would be summonsed up the Dale by a farmer who had called … Read more
THE ‘GREAT DAFT LADDIES’ WAAL By Donald CleggThere is a little cottage standin’ on a windy Highland brae,The bonniest Butt and Ben inventeed, definitely, Aa wad say.Way, way up a hillside in an Aberdeenshor glen,It belangs to school-day friends, that stay theor noo and then. It hes a country garden, tended both by Tom and … Read more
When wintor skies deep frost forebodes,Or snows come snell an’ bittor;Way up an’ doon the North Tyne roadsGans Willie wi’ hes grittor. Worth ivv’ry penny o’ yor rates,Wor Willie is nee quittor;Of erl the lads amang hes matesYe winna find a fittor. Hes wagon load o’ grit an’ selt,Yince seen, ye’ll no forgit hor;For when … Read more
Check your drains One good thing about winter is that you can see how all the drains work on your property and especially their shortcomings. If there are drainage problems then a proper plan is essential to fix them when the weather dries up enough to get machinery on to the job if needed. Drains are … Read more
Farming in the North Pennine DalesBy Eric Wilson My next encounter with a bull was in Baldersdale, one of those smaller offshoot valleys that branched off Teesdale but didn’t go anywhere except to a few isolated farms. The farms were more a way of life than a means of making a fortune, most of the … Read more
by Clive Dalton Malcolm Tait was born a “Geordie” on the outskirts of Newcastle upon Tyne, and after leaving school was able to claim “Northumbrian” status through his early work experience on farms at Rothbury and Stocksfield. He graduated in agriculture from Kings College, Newcastle, (then the University of Durham), followed by a PhD on … Read more
Just two things kills a yowe, Ah’m towld,An’t’s no see vary wrang,-She’s eethor gittin some bit cowld,Or else she’s lain ower lang. For if she’s ta’en in’ int’ hor heid,(An’ whee’s ti stand an’ blame hor?)That’s time she laid hor doon an’ deidThor’s nowt’ll stop the flamor! Thore’s sic a yin ahint yon tree,What’s gittenn … Read more
Farming in New Zealand is bristling with the 3 main kinds of people in the world: The future of farming depends on the number 1 types entering the industry with drive and ambition. A CV or resume is the first tool you need to be one of them. What is a CV? It’s simply a … Read more
Making moving images – Video and DVDBy D.C Dalton and G. R. Moss The power of moving imagesMoving pictures are much more powerful than still pictures and the written word in getting a message across. Everyone knows that, and it’s especially true in farming where so many things we do are concerned with ‘action’. In … Read more
–> By Dr Clive Dalton Importance of the birth site Dr Ron Kilgour at Ruakura did some extremely useful research to help Sheeplan breeders improve the accuracy of lambing information. Along with Dr Bob Welch and an Australian colleague, he was the first to publish work on the importance of the birth site in lambing … Read more
It’s a rare feed budget that balances first time, and if it does, you should always go back and check to see if all the inputs were correct and decimal places didn’t get moved to right or left. Be more suspicious of surpluses than deficits as if they are not real and you get all … Read more
By Dr Clive Dalton The Shorthorn was a mainstay of British farming for hundreds of years and far outnumbered all other types. Its origins are obscure, although there were large red and white cattle with short horns (as opposed to Longhorn cattle) called Teeswaters in England in the early 18th Century near Darlington in county … Read more
Northumberland, history, culture, dialect, Robert Allen, humour By Clive Dalton Robert and his wife Angela moved into Redesmouth farm, near Bellingham around 1950. After Robert had done his military service he gained farm experience near Prendwick before taking over at Redesmouth farm, which his father Colonel Allen from Haydon Bridge owned and had rented out … Read more
By Dr Clive Dalton Summary of urgent priorities Priority 1 Give the PrimaryITO total responsibility to oversee all New Zealand primary industry training and education (below University level), and to provide basic information for all entering the primary industries. If there was overseas interest, then they could handle that too. Priority 2 Provide the PrimaryITO with … Read more
Daft Laddies. Farming Tales of North Tyne and Rede 50 years on. By Clive Dalton and Donald Clegg An extract from the book – Daft Laddies. Farming Tales of North Tyne and Rede 50 years on (2003) By Clive Dalton & Donald Clegg. If you would like a copy, contact donaldclegg@btopenworld.com One of the first … Read more
Thirty years ago New Zealand sheep breeders were desperately trying to get more lambs out of their mainly Romney flocks, as the national lambing (docking) percentage stuck on 90%. The problem was low litter size measured by the number of lambs born for each ewe lambing (LB/EL). Farmers were well pleased if every ewe had a … Read more
By Dr Clive Dalton History A crook, staff or stick has been a shepherd’s multi-purpose tool-of-trade since man first herded sheep. It has even become a religious symbol for high-ranking clergy to show their responsibility for their flocks. A stick has many uses. It’s a support for walking over rough terrain as in New Zealand … Read more
Sheep, farming, husbandry, disease, animal health, worms, internal parasites, references, further readingBy Dr Clive Dalton Le Jambre, L.F. et. al. (2005).Proceedings of the 20th International conference of the world association for the advancement of veterinary parasitology, 16-20 October, 2005, Christchurch New Zealand. Abstract L98. Page 177. McEwan, J (1994).Breeders’ manual. WormFEC. Breeding sheep resistant to … Read more
D C Dalton and R Dawick Reasons for concern 1. There could be a rapid increase in M. bovis when Bulk Milk Testing (BMT) of dairy herds resumes in November 2018, and which could then require drastic action by MPI and the livestock industry. 2. MPI and the industry need a protocol for WHEN and not IF … Read more
Northumberland, farming, husbandry, history, humour, dialect, Daft Laddies, 1950s By Dr Clive Dalton One of the big disadvantages of being a Daft Laddie on an inbye farm up the Tyne or Rede valley in the 1950s was that inevitably your antics and sartainly your predicaments would be on public view from the road and especially … Read more