Farm Walk and Talk

AgriAware Farm Walk and Talk is a series of videos taken on the Teagasc Kildalton College Campus. The videos are a range of key practices and concepts of Irish agriculture. The aim is to deliver key insights into how a farm operates.

The videos are will act as an invaluable resource to Leaving Certificate Agricultural Science students and teachers.They have been developed in line with the current Leaving Cert Agricultural Science project topic -'Supporting conservation of the environment through Irish agricultural practices'

The videos will give students who do not live on farms an opportunity to gain a real insight into Irish agriculture and will also showcase the many positive environmental practises Irish farmers are implementing every day on their farms. Accompanying notes are available to Agricultural Science Teachers from AgriAware

• Machinery Farm Safety

  Farming is a very enjoyable career but it is also one of the most dangerous. The lives of too many of the farming community are lost each year. Vehicles contribute to 20% of farming fatalities. Stuart Goodwin, Kildalton College talks about farm machinery and farm safety.

• Farm Livestock Safety

  Livestock are responsible for over 40% of farm accidents. Whether you work alone or as part of a team on a farm, safety when dealing with livestock is of utmost importance. Here Jamie Cahill, Kildalton College deals has valuable advice regarding safety with livestock.

• Improving Soil Fertility

  Good productive soils are the foundation for any farming system. A primary objective for farmers is to maintain good soil fertility. Eva Hayes and Brian Clancy of Kildalton College outline the necessity for good soil fertility and give information on how this can be achieved.

• Silage Quality and Preservation

  Higher animal performances and farm savings will occur when following best practice advice when making silage. Aidan Nugent and Martin Woods of Kildalton College go through the making of silage. They give details on it's feed value and outline quality tests that can be undertaken.

• Sustainable Grassland Management

  Good grassland management is vital for sustainable agriculture. Grass measuring and good nitrogen use are essential to managing grass. The sustainable use of slurry is also very important. Patrick Heffernan and Declan Byrne of Kildalton College discuss grassland management.

• Grassland Reseeding

  Reseeding is when you turn up fresh soil or break the surface of the field and renew the grass. Main reasons for grassland reseeding are weather damage, strain from drought/flooding, excessive machinery operations or livestock damage. Gerard Griffin, Kildalton College gives more information.

• Equine Digestion and Nutrition

  An active horse is a healthy horse. Horses are trickle feeders, they must be fed little and often and with a high % of roughage. Crea English, an equine lecturer in Kildalton College talks about equine nutrition and the equine digestive system.

• Beef Production Systems

  Find out from John O'Connor and Jamie Cahill about the two beef systems in Kildalton College. The systems are suckler to beef producing bull beef,steer beef and heifer beef and dairy calf to beef producing beef using bull calves from the dairy herd.

• Crop Production - Winter Barley

  The soil type where the current crop of winter barley is growing is ideal as it is well drained and fertile with good water retention in a dry spell Claire Bambrick, tillage lecturer at the college gives information on the current crop.

• Dairy Breeding

  Dairy breeding at Kildalton College has a focus on increasing the EBI (Economic Breeding Index) of the college dairy herd. Here fAgriAware dairy lecturer Martin Raftice explains the advantages of improving EBI both for environmental and economic reasons

• Sheep Production

  A sustainable sheep enterprise requires planning, skill and hard work. Kildalton College lecturer Joe Day gives information on the college flock, detailing what is required to have a successful mid-season lambing flock

• Antimicrobial Resistance

  Antimicrobials are drugs used to treat infections in humans & animals. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when micro-organisms that cause infections adapt & prevent an antimicrobial from working against it. Zerlina Pratt, from Kildalton College has more information