John O'Connell
| Farmer | John O'Connell |
|---|---|
| Location | Ballinamore, Co. Leitrim |
| Farm Description | 34 ha of grassland in 2 divisions. Mid-season lambing sheep enterprise and beef enterprise which is currently changing from a suckler cow system towards contract rearing dairy heifers. |
| Teagasc Advisor | Tom Coll |
Documents
- Growing my farm: the challenges and progress to date - presentation (PDF)
- Sheep Conferences 2020 (PDF)
- John O'Connell Farm Walk Booklet 2017 (PDF)
Farm Plan
A detailed farm plan was drawn up for the farm and reviewed annually. A summary of details of the plan are laid out below:
Breeding policy
- Increasing ewe flock to 200 ewes plus replacements
- Breed ewe lambs
- Use prolific sires to increase production
- Develop a maternal/terminal reciprocal cross
- Target output of >1.6 lambs weaned/ewe joined from ewe flock
Grassland
- Address soil fertility issues
- Improve grazing infrastructure – permanent and temporary divisions
- Reseeding policy
- Grass measuring and budgeting – using Pasturebase
Flock Management
- Increase stocking rate
- Address winter housing issues
- Improve handling facilities
- Improve silage quality
- Target nutritional management
- Defined winter management plan
Health
- Implement flock health plan