By the Barn Blog

Although grown mostly for human consumption further east, we used peas as a protein food for our livestock and the resulting straw was much loved by goats in particular.

And for no one else, the 'animal lovers', wildlife trusts and animal rights activists, to care about them, just the vector that transmits the disease- the badger, is equally heart breaking!

Low dose antibiotics are commonly used in other parts of the world to increase growth rates and minimise production costs and the fear is it enhances resistance to antibiotics in humans.

Derbyshire is known as an ‘Edge’ county; we are very much at the frontline of the fight against TB.

As we do use footpaths more( yes, us too, as we like to get out and about if we can) it’s worth just mentioning the Country code, because some farmers have not been so lucky.

Any immunity the lambs had passed down to them by their mothers milk is probably wearing off now they are a little bit older and some may be vaccinated against various disease and also a close eye kept on the parasitic worm situation.

Livestock manure helps soil health and fertility, without which inorganic fertiliser would have to be imported in greater quantities.

Sheep also have their place in the cycle, by eating grass the biogenic carbon is transformed into amino acids of the wool fibre- so grandma was doing her bit for the environment by using a natural carbon storing product- aka wool- for her cardigan!

So first- in the UK, agriculture produces less greenhouse gas emissions than transport or residential - 10% as opposed to 27% and 15% respectively

We are able to leave cutting ours until as late as possible so that birds etc can make use of the berries but other farmers are not so lucky, as roadside hedges need to be regularly trimmed for safety and arable fields need their hedges trimming before the seed is sown, but we are all very heavily regulated as to when/how they can be done.