Welsh mountain unit - very low inputs + smaller efficient sucklers

Llerneuaddau Farm fact file

10 pedigree Beef Shorthorn cows

24 cow suckler herd comprising

70 % Beef Shorthorn x Highland

10% Shorthorn Simmental x Highland

20% Highland

440 Welsh Mountain ewes

600ha 1,000’ to 2,180’; 90% semi-natural rough grazing, 5% ‘good field grazing’

Evans Jones

All in all, 2020 has been a good year and much better than one might have hoped for earlier in the year, cattle and sheep have done well and sheep especially have sold better than we might have hoped for. The winter was mild and the spring was as good as it gets so cows and ewes had a very good start, for once the weather suited the high hills of the Plynlimon mountains.

Spring calving commercial suckler cows all calve to our homebred Beef Shorthorn bull, Plynlimon Kenneth. In 2020, the herd achieved 100% calves reared, and crop was weaned at an average 220 days to achieve an overall average 1.1kg DLG

Here at Llerneuadau we believe in smaller cows are more efficient – at least on our terrain. An 800kg cow can be rearing a calf that is 43% her body weight at weaning whilst a smaller 650kg cow, requiring far less maintenance, is easily weaning a calf that’s 50% her body weight.

Overall, the calves averaged 265kg and cows averaged 559kg which gives 48% cow efficiency. Our best calf was 330kg from a dam weighing 564kg, that’s 59%, not many can do that on mountain pasture and to be fair the dam does have a bit of Simmental blood, however she received no different treatment or feed to the others.

In terms of costs, overall, I would say £160 per cow and calf. The cows out winter on deferred grazing and 2kg - 3kg of sugar beet nuts from mid-December to mid-May, and we do offer silage after calving, the average usage would be one round bale per cow, and the calves have access to a creep feeder from mid-September to weaning. Cows have access to Crystalyx blocks all year round.

On the income side, we seem to have no trouble selling at around £2/kg liveweight, and we do receive an acreage based mixed grazing stewardship cow payment which works out around £180/cow.

Beef Shorthorn cross Highland calves pre weaning

Autumn sales include 18-month Beef Shorthorn x Highland bulling heifers averaging £1,000 at 450kg, whilst spring 2020 sales of 13-month-old Simmental Beef Shorthorn x Highland heifers averaged £850. Steers went as yearlings in April around the 400kg mark, price averaged out at £1.86p/kg, not nearly as good as last year but the buyer will have done well and he comes back every year!          

Now to the pedigree Beef Shorthorns. These are expensive to keep at around £300 per head for winter, probably more this year with straw so expensive, and due to a very wet October they had to come in early, however autumn calving means we aim to sell as yearlings so one winter only.

We calve the purebreds in September and wean in April. In 2020, we had so many ewes with twins there was no grass for the weaned calves so with the exception of one bull calf we left them on the cows and turned them to hill, which rises to over 2000’, and weaned in July. I was really surprised how well they did, calves weaned at 350kg average and what surprised me even more was that the cows maintained condition with weights at weaning nearly identical to turn out.

This season we are bulling our yearling heifers; they range from 440kg to 480kg so I can safely say they have done just as well as if weaned to grass paddocks in May. Yearling steers left the farm in November early to our regular buyer, 14 month olds averaged £950 and 11-month-olds averaged £810. The best, a 13-month-old weighed in at 483kg, and overall the crop’s average DLG looks like 1.2kg which I think is pretty good for a high hill farm. They have had a bit of feed this autumn, however I am firmly convinced feed gives a better return than fertiliser on our type of land.        

We have been farming these cattle since 2005 and I can say the number that have required assistance at calving can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

Cows on a hill

High health and the use of Crystalyx blocks probably accounts for the fact that barrens are rare as hen’s teeth. We started with 24 Highland cows, very few went off not having reared 10 or more calves and then mainly for rheumatic reasons. 

Finally, nothing can be achieved without a good stockman and shepherd, so thank you to Rheinallt Jones who does all the hard work, as did his father before him.

Christopher Evans

Beef Shorthorn cross Highland calves