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Free range GRAZING

Four years into working with a LELY ASTRONAUT to milk his 100 cow herd, Sydney McMullen has ordered a second unit.

Time is important

Farming at Dungannon in Northern Ireland on only 108 acres - of which 104 acres is grass - Sydney McMullen is a farmer who goes quietly about his business whilst achieving remarkable success. Milking 84 cows through his single A2 ASTRONAUT and averaging 9,000 litres from his Holstein Friesian herd, Sydney is very happy with his lot.

That said, Sydney still thinks he can do better; so his aim is to increase his milking herd to between 90 and 100 cows and introduce a second ASTRONAUT to help him achieve good results. Building work will commence in early autumn (2007) to add a second A2 ASTRONAUT some 30 metres from the first unit, by altering a cubicle house to accommodate positioning within existing buildings.

The LELY DISCOVERY is another consideration for the future as slat scraping is a time-consuming job and one that Sydney is quite prepared to give up. With only Sydney running the farm by himself, time is always of the essence.

Good stockmanship and keeping a close eye on everything is Sydney's key to dairying success. Cows graze during the spring and summer months with a GRAZEWAY unit directing cows to the paddocks. Only when grass is very thick is an electric fence used. A gravel hardcore lane had to be constructed early on in the changeover to freedom milking as the cows were rutting up the fields and wasting grass. The herd is kept in at night and fed grass silage mixed through a diet feeder with a blend of nutrients added. Summer grazing starts with cows out in the fields from 6 am.

Sydney comments that "once the cows see movement through the GRAZEWAY box in the morning, they all start moving through the ASTRONAUT. No cow likes to be left behind !" He has never had trouble with the cows not returning for milking during the 4 years of ASTRONAUT operation. A calving pen close to the A2 robot allows heifers to watch the milking process and Sydney believes this greatly helps fresh heifers to adapt to the milking system - and he can keep an eye on things. In preference, cows are AI'd, although a Black Angus bull runs with the herd as a sweeper bull to ensure fertility and calving patterns are maintained.

By having milking taken care by LELY, Sydney is able to concentrate on silage making, taking up to 3 cuts during the season with all of the silage being cut and carted to a clamp. Slurry is now being handled through a separator to allow better storage and use of the existing system, as reduction in fertiliser costs is the next trial for 2008 evaluation.

For a one man farm, milking to its maximum whilst demonstrating superb fit and healthy cows, Sydney certainly has a great deal to be quietly proud of.