About the Holding
Fergal is an organic farmer. On the farm, they have beef, sheep tillage, and turkeys. They have around 20 suckler cows and they bring all the followers to finish organically. They have approximately 200 ewes and sell all the lambs organically. The farm grows approximately 50 tonnes of organic oats for Flahavanns. Fergal also sells its organic wool to Yarns and Vibes, the only company selling 100% Irish organic yarn.
Fergal is part of the Bee Pollinators and they have one of the rarest bees in the country on their farm. They make hay and red clover silage for our cattle and sheep in the winter and bed them with our own oaten straw. They also do 300 organic turkeys for Christmas which 70% are sold from the farm. They have some laying hens and chickens.
A Social Farming Day
In the spring
The farm will be busy with ewe’s having their baby lambs and cows having their baby calves. There will be lots of little jobs than in feeding ewes and their baby lambs in their individual pens. The ewes in the spring are out by day and in by night to protect them from the fox. The hay and silage has to be forked up to the cows every day. We would observe the preparation of the fields for organic oats.
Late Spring – Early Summer
We go herding all the ewes and lambs, cows, and calves to their next paddock for fresh grass after grazing and to do small repairs on fences between paddocks. One of the busiest and most fun days on the farm is the sheering day! We put up bee boxes for the pollinators.
Mid-Summer – Mid Autumn
We would be picking lambs out for sale. Dosing lambs and running them through a footbath for their sore feet. We would be tidying up the farm, and painting gates and fences.
End of Autumn and Winter
Cattle will be back in the sheds so it will be back to forking silage and straw. Chopping sticks.
There will be lots of time for chatting, drinking tea, and enjoying each other’s company! If it’s a wet day we’ll be able to do something in the workshop or play cards or darts.
Local Interests
Fergal is on a number of committees and is involved in a few organisations.
- On the Board of Management in the ICSA (Irish Cattle and Sheep Association) and also the commodity chairperson of the Organics in the ICSA.
- The secretary of the Kildare Ploughing Association.
- On the Board of Management of the IOA (Irish Organics Association)
- The leader in the local Scouts.
- A team leader of the Ballymount Church Team.
- There are many scenic locations close by including Dolmens