Welcome to the second episode of In Conversation With… hosted this month by Senior Sheep and Beef Consultant Kirsten Williams. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode Kirsten is joined by Poppy Frater (Senior Consultant, SAC Consulting) and Kerr Adams (Research Scientist, The James Hutton Institute). They discuss grass and water management and look at how to build resilience into a system. Also, the wet winter, late spring and how to manage grass growth and maximise productivity. To round off the discussion, our panel look ahead to the summer months, trends and how to plan for possible drought problems.  

Episode Timestamps  

00.00 Introduction  

01.29 Making best use of pasture 

02.35 Three leaf rule 

04.19 Grass target heights – hitting the sweet spot 

05.45 Value of rest 

10.30 Effect of a changing climate on water availability  

11:55 Climatic water balance projections 

15.23 Water footprint 

18.52 Strategies to increase water holding capacity  

21.59 Sheep are the solution! 

22.15 Building resilience into the system 

25.45 Learning from others 

28.18 Software to help manage supply and demand. Scenario planning. 

32.42 Forage crops 

33.16 Cashflow 

34.35 Change one little thing 

38.50 Key message for managing grass supplies 

39.34 Key message for managing water supplies  

41.17 Kirsten's take home message  

FAS Resources 

www.fas.scot/publication/resilient-technology-options-for-water-management-on-farm/  

www.fas.scot/article/water-scarcity-and-rising-temperatures/  

www.fas.scot/publication/feast-or-famine-water-on-your-farm-water-scarcity-video/  

Other Resources  

www.hutton.ac.uk  

www.crew.ac.uk/  

www.sruc.ac.uk/business-services/sac-consulting/agricultural-production/grassland-management/grazeup/ 

www.farmingandwaterscotland.org  

www.rsabi.org.uk 

For more information, visit www.FAS.scot 

Twitter: @FASScot 

Facebook: @FASScot 

National Advice Hub 

Phone: 0300 323 0161 

Email: [email protected]