Blogs

Amy Wilkinson works on her family’s tenanted farm in Lancashire. Working mainly with her dad, Amy farms 285ha of arable crops and 550 beef cross cattle which are all reared through to finishing. You can follow her on Instagram @amygingewilkinson

Mentioning the lack of rain in my last column had the same effect as getting the barbecue out: the rain arrived duly arrived, but unfortunately in rather a deluge.

The Government was right to make provision for a temporary and limited derogation for the use of the neonicotinoid seed treatment Cruiser SB on sugar beet for the 2021 season, although the colder conditions of recent months mean it will not be required this year.

If I were to go by this year’s weather, April showers would become a myth and be replaced with wet and windy May, or something slightly more catchy.

The Welsh Government has formed a new cabinet after the recent election and I found some of the appointments interesting and slightly concerning, especially around the portfolios that affect this industry.

Finally, the rain has come. We’ve had over a 100mm in a fortnight and the fertiliser we spread last month has kicked in and the grass has responded.

At last, the countryside around us in Aberdeenshire is starting to turn green, with the odd splash of yellow but still lots of brown.

Farmers capture carbon for a living. We must be part of the solution to climate change. What’s more, as well as saving the planet, we might be able to earn a few quid in the process. But a frenzy of opportunistic corporate ’greenwashing’ is putting all that at risk.

By way of an update from last month, calf jackets are now off but almost went back on again when May seemed to get mixed up with March. The main herd is also out, but only just.