Introduction We are farming near Cappoquin,Waterford 800 feet above sea level I am married to Amy and we have 1 child Invested €116,500 on farm since I started in 1998, this doesn’t include a land loan which I am also funding from the farm

Expanded from 52 cows in 2007 to 92 cows in Rainfall in 2012 was 1233mm Why? To provide a more sustainable business.

CowsDevelopment Slurry storage Housing Land Purchase Reseeding Reseeding Paddocks/Roadways Drainage Reseeding Paddocks Drainage Reseeding Paddocks/Roadways Drainage Fencing Milking facilities

CowsDevelopment Slurry storage Housing Land Purchase Reseeding Reseeding Paddocks/Roadways Drainage Reseeding Paddocks Drainage Reseeding Paddocks/Roadways Drainage Fencing Milking facilities €116,500 Invested Excl. Land

Leased Farm(1) x ha (x miles) Humps and Hollows Dairy Milking Area(36.57Ha) 42ha if humps included Farmyard

Details of My Farm 41.84ha available incl. humps& hollows

Soil Fertility Status P Status K Status Average ph 5.73

Stock Numbers & Stocking Rate Stocking Rate Cow No.0-1yrs (Heifers) 1-2yrs (Heifers)

Grass Production Grew 9 T Dm /Ha in 2012 Grew 11.5T Dm/Ha in Tonnes DM/ha(79%) utilised in Kgs Concentrate fed/cow

Grass Growth Rates 2012 Insert the graph

Milk Solids Production (kgs Milk solids produced)

Herd Fertility % Heifers NIC7.5% No. weeks breeding10 % Cows NIC2.5% No. Weeks breeding10 Start Date Calving10-Feb28-Jan Days when 50% herd calved1112 No. Cows calved by 20 th March6290 Herd EBI124140

Reseeding Roadways Good Fencing between paddocks & roadways Phased Development worked well Things we got right √

Things we got wrong No where for maiden/breeding heifers to go Things we got wrong X

Lessons learned along the way 1.As you increase cow number- young stock numbers increase, pressure on yard facilities 2. Heifers really under stress this year = high SCC 3.As young stock increase so too does grass demand 4.Plan expenditure for the priority areas 5.Reaching targets a challenge i.e. heifer weights 6.More bulk buying e.g. meal for calves

Lessons learned along the way 7. Feb and Mar -driest months of the year on my farm over 10 yr period 8. Not having enough milk produced in Feb & Mar means it will be Apr before there is a milk cheque 9. No Poaching 10.Walk and measure farm 1-2 times /wk 11. Close with adequate grass cover (700kg DM/ha) 12.Expanding means there is more demand on silage & grass

Lessons learned along the way 13. Expanding means there is more demand on silage & grass 14.Choosing good EBI bulls will lead to a better cow for the system 15.Be flexible in a bad weather year 16.Measure your winter feed stocks early 17.Calf rearing = same time as it takes to milk = too long! 18.Need to be super organised with a 1 MAN OPERATION

In Summary Phase 1  Getting the grass growing/drainage/roadways Phase 2  Growing the herd Phase 3  Now! Slurry Storage cubicles/milk tank