Pat Collins

Pat farms alongside his father Matt in Castlemartyr, Co. Cork, running a dairy calf to beef enterprise as well as tillage on the farm.

180 calves were purchased in 2020.

Calves are rotating every 24-36hrs during the first grazing season through a well laid out paddock system and central roadway.

They start the second grazing season in February and are housed from July for 16mth and 18-20mth bull beef.  Carcass weights of 330-350 kg are achieved.

The majority of ingredients for the finishing period are grown on the farm (grass silage, barley, beans and straw).

The farm has excellent soil fertility something which a tillage background helps with.

All the farm has been reseeded in the past 3-4 years.

Pat has put a big emphasis on clover to reduce fertiliser costs with nearly all paddocks having good white clover content in the sward.

Some silage ground also has been sown with red clover.

In 2020, Pat’s farm grew over 15 T DM/ha.