Author Archives: Lorna

Are Cows just Numbers or Do We Name Them?

8th October 2018 by Lorna
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Becky

Are Cows Just Numbers?

Every Irish bovine has a number that is individual to them. It’s called a tag number and they have to wear a bright yellow tag in each ear. Each bovine is also issued with a passport which contains details such as their sire (father), dam (mother), date of birth, breed and sex. The passport must accompany them if they are being sold or sent to the factory. Before such documentation became compulsory, many farmers gave their cows [...]

Do Old Cures Really Work?

10th September 2018 by Lorna
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2017-11-03 14.47.16-1

There had been a lot of commentary about the Presidential hopeful, Joan Freeman, announcing that a visit to Knock cured her of eczema when she was 16. Most people, judging by the plethora of comments, seem to think she is barking mad and yes, I’d be sceptical too yet I wondered as I tried something similar myself once.

People still go on religious pilgrimages and people still try herbal, religious or pagan cures in an attempt to cure them of [...]

There’s still Drought in the South East

23rd August 2018 by Lorna
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Cows being supplemented with soya hulls August 2018

We’re still in a drought situation. Okay, it’s nothing like New South Wales in Australia where the situation is incredibly dire and the earth is brown. However, this is Ireland, the Emerald Isle, where rain is usually never far away and we’re accustomed to rain either spilling, pouring, lashing or spitting at us. The fields have greened up but we’re in a ‘green drought’ whereby the grass just isn’t growing enough to meet demand.

There has been plenty of rain in [...]

Event: Recognising Women’s Involvement in Farming

6th August 2018 by Lorna
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Sally Shortall, researching women's involvement on farms

It’s not just in the farming industry where women are making their presence felt with perhaps more determination than ever before, although when I think back to the ‘Votes for Women’ campaign, I don’t think we’ll ever reach their heights. In very recent years though, there has been a tangible change. Between sport (the Irish hockey team were silver medallists in the World Cup today), the MeToo movement, women now playing villain characters in films, it seems women aren’t content [...]

Farming: From the Frying Pan to the Fire this year

21st July 2018 by Lorna
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Dark clouds but no rain. The silver lining is the number of beautiful evenings we are getting at the moment but at the back of our minds is the knowledge that once the weather breaks, it might not stop raining for months. A feast or a famine this year!

From the Frying Pan into the Fire

April 2018 was a tough month. Every week, we hoped that the rain would stop and each week, the weather forecasters dashed our hopes as fields remained waterlogged, grass grew slowly and livestock stayed indoors eating the last of the winter fodder. Many farmers, mostly those on drier land and accustomed to having their livestock out in February and March, ran out of fodder and had to purchase more.

The cows were indoors for months [...]