Here at Glendale Engineering, we are proud to be able to say that we have over 35 years’ experience designing and manufactur ing Agricultural Buildings & Equipment.
• Special offers available on Cattle & Sheep Hurdles, Gates & Water Troughs •
Suppliers of:
Suppliers of:
-Cattle Handling & Feeding Equipment
• Cattle Handling & Feeding Equipment
-Sheep Handling & Feeding Equipment
-Sheep Portarace
• Sheep Handling & Feeding Equipment
- ATV Trailers
• Sheep Portarace
- Agricultural Buildings
• ATV Trailers
-Electronic Cattle & Sheep Weigh Systems
• Agricultural Buildings
- Large quantity of box section and pipe, Phone for special offers
GREGOIRE BESSON 6 FURROW on land / in furrow, Auto reset, Hydraulic vari width, Hydraulic depth wheel £42,500+VAT
NEW NC FORK MOUNTED YARD BRUSHES 2.5m & 3m EX STOCK
NEW TEAGLE 8500 STRAW/SILAGE BEDDER FEEDERS EX STOCK
MERLO TF42.7CS Cab & Boom suspension, LED work Lights, Full Spec EX DEMO
MURRAY 4CUBIC GRAIN BUCKET c/w Q Fit Brackets and Bolt on Wear Plate
SKY X40+ ECONOV FERTILISER SPREADER weight cells
STOCKS FAN JETS PRO65 EX STOCK
STOCKS TURBO JET 8-10 I-CON SEEDERS
SUMO 3M TRIO EX DEMO
SUMO 3M TRAILER TRIO EX DEMO
SUMO 3M DTS EX DEMO
SUMO LDS 3M
TEAGLE DUAL 280 & 300 FLAIL TOPPERS
NEW SUMO FRONT WEIGHTS 1000kg, 1500kg, 2000kg EX STOCK
SPECIALS
Self Drive Plant Hire
Call 01835 824555 to book your next hire
FREE LABOUR
We also buy any used plant BMR Benefits
• Fleet of 250+ Diggers, Dumpers & Rollers • Diggers & Dumpers ranging from 1-10 ton • 80, 120 & 135 Rollers available • Competitive hire rates • No account, no problem
• 4m, 7m, 9m, 12.5m & 14m Telehandlers available
Let your robotic mower mow for you
Sunseeker Robotic Mowers
RTK GPS - Wireless boundaries
All Wheel Drive | Multiple Mowing Zones
MODEL VARIATIONS
X5 2000m2, Max Slope 60% £1699 inc vat In Stock & available
X7 3000m2, Max Slope 70% £2299 inc vat In Stock & available
X7+ 6000m2, Max Slope 70% £2699 inc vat In Stock & available
X9 12000m2, Max Slope 90% £4599 inc vat
Stock arriving July - Pre order now to secure
X9+ 24000m2, Max Slope 90% £5899 inc vat
Stock arriving July - Pre order now to secure
DISTRIBUTERS OF QUALITY CLEANING EQUIPMENT FOR ALL COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS:ALL TYPES OF PRESSURE WASHERS AND FLOORCARE EQUIPMENT INCLUDING SCRUBBER DRYERS, SWEEPERS AND VACUUMS
ALL MAKES SERVICED AND REPAIRED REFURBISHED HOT PRESSURE WASHERS ALWAYS IN STOCK
• Solar panel inspection and cleaning - thermal fault detection + bio-cleaning
• Glasshouse & polytunnel shading and cleaning – safer, faster, water-efficient “INNOVATION IN THE AIR – SUSTAINABILITY ON THE GROUND, ONE FIELD AT A TIME”
SERVING FARMS, ESTATES, HORTICULTURISTS AND SOLAR OPERATORS ACROSS SCOTLAND AND NORTHERN ENGLAND
• No MAPP numbers at present but coming very soon
Based In Scottish Borders, Melrose
LAND DRAINAGE
LAND DRAINAGE
RIVERBANK PROTECTION/REPAIRS
RIVERBANK PROTECTION/REPAIRS
TRACK RESTORATION WORKS
TRACK RESTORATION WORKS
RIDING ARENAS
WORKS RIDING ARENAS
RIDING ARENAS
DRAIN JETTING/CCTV
DRAIN JETTING/CCTV
FABRICATION/ENGINEERING WORKS
FABRICATION/ENGINEERING WORKS
DRAIN JETTING/CCTV FABRICATION/ENGINEERING WORKS
SNOW CLEARING SERVICES
SNOW CLEARING SERVICES
SNOW CLEARING SERVICES
PLANT HIRE
PLANT HIRE
PLANT HIRE
360° / 180° TRACKED/ WHEELED EXCAVATORS
360° / 180° TRACKED/ WHEELED EXCAVATORS
360° / 180° TRACKED/ WHEELED EXCAVATORS
D61PXI (GPS) DOZER
D61PXI (GPS) DOZER
D61PXI (GPS) DOZER
REAR TIPPING DUMP TRUCKS
REAR TIPPING DUMP TRUCKS
REAR TIPPING DUMP TRUCKS
TRACTORS & DUMP TRAILERS
TRACTORS & DUMP TRAILERS
TRACTORS & DUMP TRAILERS
CRUSHER, GRADER & COMPACTION EQUIPMENT FOR ROAD RESTORATION WORK
CRUSHER, GRADER & COMPACTION EQUIPMENT FOR ROAD RESTORATION WORK
CRUSHER, GRADER & COMPACTION EQUIPMENT FOR ROAD RESTORATION WORK
CONTRACT WORKS
• Public & private water mains spring supplies
• Septic tanks / pumping stations
• Treatment works
• Deep excavations
• Earthworks / groundworks
• Thrust boring / utility works
• Land drainage / inter-drain trenchless plough
• Riverbank protection/repairs
• Track restoration works
• Riding arenas
• Drain jetting / cctv
• Mole ploughing
• Fabrication / engineering works
• Snow clearing services
• Crusher, grader & compaction equipment
• Cement stabilisation for road restoration works
• Forestry Formation Works
PLANT
HIRE
• 360° / 180° tracked / wheeled excavators
• D61PXI (gps) dozer
• Rear tipping dump trucks
• Tractors & dump trailers
STORES
We have a wide range of stock including:
• Safety Boots & Clothing
• Tools and Accessories
• Chrome North West Cleaning Products
• Drainage Coils, Twinwall, MDPE & Soil Pipe
• Exol Oil, Grease, Brake Fluid Ect
• Viking Johnston Fittings
• Philmac Water Fittings
• Consumables (Sprays, Paints, Nuts & Bolts Ect)
Scottish Borders Council Approved Contractor
Scottish Water Approved Contractor
SGN Approved Contractor
HYDRAULIC HOSE SERVICE
We also offer a hydraulic hose repair service. We hold a wide range of hose & fittings in stock from 1/4” to 1 1/4” to 2” 4 Wire.
THANKS DONALD
Fuel efficiency is not one of my strong points, so thanks to the tangerine in the White House I am laid up. Despite only ever drinking the pink dyed stuff I have been told that I am uneconomical at current prices and will need to think of other methods of propulsion. So far I have considered wind, but with all the trees round here my sails would get snagged at the first venture out. An electric motor – no one makes one big and compact enough for my requirements and think of all the batteries I would need.
Then someone came up with the idea of a mobile Anaerobic Digestion plant and I could be propelled by the gas either as flatulence or as a fuel source for a new internal combustion engine. The problem is all those ideas need considerable amounts of capital expenditure, and the tight fisted so and so’s that provide the funds for such changes keep their hands firmly in their pockets when my name comes up.
They are very happy for me to rush round the countryside keeping the country supplied with organic eggs and happily send out invoices charging for the pleasure of the services I provide but are never prepared to reinvest in my future.
So Donald if you can negotiate a settlement with the Ayatollahs you are happy with, see if you can improve my lot as it is your fault I am in the situation I find myself in.
GRANT - Tool Chests, 3 sizes, 6, 9 & 13 Drawers, H/D Braked Castors From £950 + vat
SGS Gases Welding & Cutting Gases in 10L, 20L & 30L Bottles. Pay 1 deposit (no rent)
The Old Smiddy, Graden, Kelso, TD5 8BS
Telephone : 01573430338
Email : info@walkergroundworks.com
The Old Smiddy, Graden, Kelso, TD5 8BS
Telephone : 01573 430338
Email : info@walkergroundworks.com
Walker Groundworks are a long-serving company, established in 1996, covering a working area including but not restricted to the Scottish Borders, Northumberland and the Lothians.
Our highly skilled and dedicated team are here to help with any of the following works:
• Earthworks/Site Preparation/Roads
• Crushing
Walker Groundworks are a long-serving company, established in 1996, covering a working area including but not restricted to the Scottish Borders, Northumberland and the Lothians.
• Groundworks/Plotworks
• Deep Drainage
• Field Drainage & Ditching
• River Works
• Concrete Flooring for Agricultural/Industrial Shed (Laid with highly accurate Laser Screed, with finish to meet clients' requirements)
• All Timber work undertaken – including Harvesting, Hand Cutting, Thinnings & Clear Fell
• Haulage including Heavy Plant Movement, Timber Haulage & Hiab Hire
Our highly skilled and dedicated team are here to help with any of the following works:
• In house Welding Engineer/Steel Fabricator
• Earthworks/Site preparation/Roads
• Crushing
• In house setting out engineer/surveyor
• Groundworks/Plotworks
• Deep Drainage
• Field Drainage and Ditching
• River Works
• Concrete Flooring for Agricultural/Industrial Shed (Laid with highly accurate Laser Screed, with finish to meet clients’ requirements)
• All Timber work undertaken – including Harvesting, Hand Cutting, Thinnings and Clear Fell
• Haulage including Heavy Plant Movement, Timber Haulage and Hiab Hire
• In house Welding Engineer/Steel Fabricator
New Services Available:
• AdBlue and ERG Solutions
• HGV Tractor and Vehicle Tuning
• Brake Roller Testing
• Preventative Maintenance Inspection
• Full Servicing Facilities
For more information on new & used farm
contact: Kelso office 01573 470393 I Craig Robertson 07801 835201
David Fortune 07801 835205 I David Hamilton 07866 799085
Billy Reid 07736 928072
See more at www.scotagri.com
John Deere 6130R, 2020, choice
John Deere 6250R,2021
Kramer KT276 Telehandler ex-demo
Kramer KT3610 Telehandler ex-demo
Kramer KT3610 Telehandler ex-demo
Kramer KT407 Telehandler ex-demo
Kramer KT559 Telehandler ex-demo
Kramer KT356 Telehandler, 2022
Kramer KT356 Telehandler, 2022 Ha
Spec Includes;
3.6t lift capacity
10m lift height
1250 Hours
1250 Hours
Kramer Headstock
460/70R24 Bibload tyres
40KPH
Pick Up Hitch
LED work lights MACHINE OF THE MONTH
Boom Suspension
Autolube greasing
Reversible fan
Trailer brakes
600/70 R30 Tyres
Reverse camera
Air Conditioning
Air Conditioning
CULTIVATION
Kuhn HR4004D Power Harrow
Kuhn HR3004D Power Harrow
Kuhn HR6004DR Power Harrow
Kuhn VM 153 6F Plough 6 Furrow Ha
DalBo Maxi-Roll 8.3m
GRASSLAND/BALERS
John Deere 324A MoCo
John Deere V451M Round Baler
John Deere V451R Round Baler
John Deere 830 MoCo
Kuhn BPR280 PRO flail topper
Kverneland S-DRILL SEED Drill
Kverneland p/harrow/drill Combi S-Drill Pro2 CROP CARE
Agrispread Bale Feeder
Kverneland p/harrow/drill Combi S-Drill Pro2
CROP CARE
John Deere R732i Trailed Sprayer Ha
John Deere R732i Trailed Sprayer
John Deere R4140i SP Sprayer 2021
John Deere R4140i SP Sprayer 2021
Kuhn 50.1W Fert spreader
Kuhn 50.1W Fert spreader
Kuhn 40.1 Fert spreader
Allman front tank 600 Litre capacity
Kuhn 40.1 Fert spreader
Allman front tank 600 Litre capacity
KRM M2W Fert spreader
KRM M2W Fert spreader
Kverneland Exacta CL Fert Spreader
MISCELLANEOUS
Kverneland Exacta CL Fert Spreader
MISCELLANEOUS
Kuhn 3570M Primor Bedder/Feeder
Kuhn 3570M Primor Bedder/Feeder
Kuhn 3570M Primor Bedder/Feeder
Kuhn 5570M Bedder/Feeder
Kuhn 3570M Primor Bedder/Feeder
Kuhn 5570 Bedder
Kuhn 5570M Bedder/Feeder
Kuhn 5570 Bedder
Kuhn Euromix 1070 Mixer/Wagon
Kuhn Euromix 1070 Mixer/Wagon
Kuhn Euromix 1460 Mixer/Wagon
Kuhn Euromix 1460 Mixer/Wagon
Pack Weight Block 1300Kg
Pack Weight Block 1300Kg
Wafer Weights
Wafer Weights
5M Grain Pusher
Premier 5M Grain Pusher
Terex 860 Digger
Watson 12ft end tow grass roller
Terex 860 Digger
TRAILERS
Watson 12ft end tow grass roller
FARM TRAILERS
GX15FT, 28ft long
King twin axle low loader trailer
Stewart GX15FT, 28ft long
King twin axle low loader trailer
Tipping Trailer QM14
Marshall Tipping Trailer QM14
12T dump trailer
Warwick 10T flat trailer
NC 12T dump trailer
Warwick 10T flat trailer
ATV/UTILITY VEHICLES
ATV/UTILITY VEHICLES
DEMO XUV875M Gator
Hustler CH2000 Bale unroller
Claas Volto 670 Tedder
3m Topper
CH2000 Bale unroller
Quicke Flexgrip Bale Squeeze
KRM 3m Topper
Spearhead 460 Trailed Topper
Quicke Flexgrip Bale Squeeze
Wessex SB-150 Topper J
Spearhead 460 Trailed Topper
COMBINE HARVESTER
Wessex SB-150 Topper
COMBINE HARVESTER
John Deere 2056 combine, 1995 J
John Deere 2056 combine, 1995
John Deere 8500 Self Propelled Forager, 22 C
John Deere S790 combine, 2022 C
John Deere 8500 Self Propelled Forager, 22 C
John Deere T560 combine, 2021 He
John Deere S790 combine, 2022 C
John Deere T5601, 2015 Ha
John Deere T560 combine, 2021 He
John Deere T660i, 2015 J
John Deere T5601, 2015
John Deere T670 HM combine, 2017 J
John Deere T660i, 2015 J
John Deere T670HM combine, Choice Ha
John Deere T670 HM combine, 2017 J
John Deere T670HM combine, Choice Ha Claas Tucano 430 combine, 2013
Claas Tucano 430 combine, 2013 A IFOR WILLIAMS TRAILERS
IFOR WILLIAMS TRAILERS
Livestock Trailer
Livestock Trailer
Livestock Trailer
DEMO XUV875M Gator
John Deere TH6x4 Diesel
John Deere TH6x4 Diesel
John Deere XUV865M
John Deere XUV865M
John Deere XUV855D
John Deere XUV855D
John Deere XUV865M, Choice
John Deere XUV865M, Choice
John Deere XUV865M, 2020
John Deere XUV865M, Choice
John Deere XUV865M, 2020
John Deere XUV865M, Choice
CF-Moto U10 Pro-Highland UTV
Suzuki King Quad
CF-Moto U10 Pro-Highland UTV
Suzuki King Quad 400 ATV
CONTRACTORS SERVICES
Lime & Alternative Fertilisers
Other Alternative Fertilisers & Organic Products Muck & Slurry Spreading, Silage, Bailing
Micro/doorway excavators (new Bobcat E10) to 1.5t and up to 3t (Bobcat E26 long reach)
ROAD ROLLER Terex 1200 2.9t vibrating ride on, 1.2m wide
Drive away with our 3t trailers to suit or delivery by us
From £70+VAT to £100+VAT per day
Concrete laying and blockwork can now be undertaken
Jock
All General Contracting Services provided, including:
Call for weekly rates
Efficient Harvesting
High Nutrient Retention
Low dry matter losses
Great Flexibility
Contact us to find out more www.billrae.co.uk
Two high capacity grain mills
Direct drilling / Pasture
Rejuvenation
Ploughing / Sowing
Fertiliser Spreading
Agri Haulage
Groundworks / Dump trailers
Topping & Mulching
Tubeline Bale Wrapping
Boswells
J K LAUDER & SONS
John Gray Contracting Services
Contracting Services
Our new McHale Fusion Vario Plus is a fully automatic variable chamber baler wrapper which can apply film or net wrap to the barrel of the bale. Delivering optimum bale shape and a high density with a 25 knife chopper unit. The advantages of a chamber film system are:
~ Acts as a wrapping layer for silage,straw or hay keeping them dry up to 6 foot diameter
~ Results in better shaped bales
~ Delivers high quality silage
Other jobs include:
Topping grass
Muck spreading
Combining
EMAIL: wtlauder60@gmail.com
~ Makes recycling easier
Contracting Services
Should net wrap be required for hay or straw, this can be done with a simple changeover.
Perfect to bale your herbal leys
Other
Topping
Muck
Combining
a fully wrapper the optimum bale knife chamber silage,straw or diameter or straw, changeover.
Direct
Direct Drilling Grass drilling
Cultivating
Subsoiling
Slurry spreading
High density round baling
Cultivating
Subsoiling
Slurry
High
Other jobs include:
Topping grass
Our McHale Fusion Vario Plus is a fully automatic variable chamber baler wrapper which can apply film or net wrap to the barrel of the bale. Delivering optimum bale shape and a high density with a 25 knife chopper unit. The advantages of a chamber film system are:
MF
Muck spreading
Combining
• Acts as a wrapping layer for silage,straw or hay keeping them dry up to 6 foot diameter
Direct Drilling
Grass drilling
SAME DAY DELIVERY
R L SMITH & SONS LTD SKIP HIRE ASBESTOS REMOVAL
Covering the Scottish Borders & North Northumberland
We run a FR 9050 New Holland forage harvester with a whole crop header. With 5 high speed trailers on low ground pressure tyres.
John Gray Contracting Services
MF 2170 baler with automatic preservative applicator attachment
We run a FR 9050 New Holland forage harvester
Mowing with triple mowers,GPS
Raking
Merging
Tedding
Buckraking
Bale wrapping with front mounted tanco s200 wrapper.
Spraying 12, 24, 36m
• Results in better shaped bales
Cultivating
• Delivers high quality silage
Subsoiling
• Makes recycling easier
Should net wrap be required for hay or straw, this can be done with a simple changeover.
Buckraking Bale
Slurry spreading
High density round baling
Perfect to bale your herbal leys
applicator attachment
Mowing with triple mowers,GPS
Raking
Merging
Tedding
Other jobs include:
• Topping grass
• Muck spreading
• Combining
• Direct drilling
• Grass drilling
• Cultivating
• Subsoiling
• Slurry spreading
• High density round baling
MF 2170 baler with automatic preservative
Our new Roc 880 crop merger offers widths of 20ft, 30ft, 40ft and 50ft. With no unwanted field contamination into your crop.
Fitted with WHOLECROP HEADERS & GRAIN PROCESSING MILL
PART or WHOLE JOB, AG-BAG or PIT
MOWERS, TEDDER, RAKES TRAILERS, FRONT BUCKRAKES
H BIG SQUARE BALING H (Bale Chaser available)
u ALL ARABLE CULTIVATIONS
u DRILLING
u HIGH DENSITY ROUND BALING
u DGPS LIME & FERT SPREADING
u HEDGECUTTING
u SMALL SEEDS DRILLING – Einbock 12m (grass/kale/oilseed rape)
CONTACT:
OFFICE : 01890 840 251
MOBILE : DAVID 07971 409 367
KENNY 07971 409 371
E.MAIL : rwoodandsons@btconnect.com
WEBSITE : www.rwoodandsons.co.uk
J & J Grant
Scotland’s Spreading Specialists
5 spreaders available to meet your precision spreading requirements
High output LGP machines to minimise soil and crop damage Weighing systems and auto steer fitted
We supply our own loader and fuel to minimise disturbance to the customer Blanket or variable rate lime spreading compatible with all mapping systems The following can be supplied and accurately applied Lime, Compost, Slag, Henpen, Fibrophos, FYM, Gypsum, other organic materials
Soil Mapping service
• correct variations across fields
• independent analysis
• 4 samples/ha for accurate pH maps
• all nutrients can be tested
• recommendations to suit your enterprise
Contact us to discuss how we can help reduce your costs with the use of organic products Tel 01875 320363 Mob 07703 113178
Email john@j-jgrant.co.uk
Contact:
Connon Construction Ltd.
Construction of shuttered slurry tanks and silos (all built to SEPA requirements)
Christopher07843 208 544
Patrick07701 040 681
Contact:
Christopher07843 208 544
Slurry spreading available with umbilical, dribble bars and ferry tankers. Tractors on floatation tyres
Dung spreader hire or complete service
Complete silage service
All types of digger work undertaken
Patrick07701 040 681
Connon Farms / Connon Construction
Connon Farms / Connon Construction
IF YOUR FARM TRACK OR FOREST ROAD NEEDS SOME ATTENTION, WE HAVE THE SKILLS, MACHINERY AND EXPERIENCE TO DELIVER A LASTING SOLUTION.
• REDUCES OR ELIMINATES THE NEED TO IMPORT MATERIALS.
• IMPROVES DRAINAGE TO PREVENT FURTHER DAMAGE.
• QUICK AND EFFECTIVE SOLUTION THAT MINIMISES DISRUPTION TO TRAFFIC MOVEMENTS.
Film binding instead of net wrap results in more plastic where the bale needs it most on the barrel, only one recycling stream as well. 25 knife bank giving 45mm chop length with bale getting wrapped immediately out the bale chamber. Onboard bale weighing giving average bale weight and total weight of crop baled. Application of inoculants or additives.
BLUE CHIP FORESTRY AND VEGETATION
MULCHING
Large Scale Site Clearances of Stumps, Trees and Brash
• FOUNDATIONS • PONDS • AGRICULTURAL & COMMERCIAL CONCRETE WORK • FABRICATION WORKS • FENCING (WITH TRACTOR OR DIGGER OPTION) • SNOW CLEARING FOR HIRE
• TRACTOR HIRES UP TO 360HP, GPS
• DIGGER HIRE 9T, 13T, 14T
• TWIN DRUM VIBRATING ROLLER 80, 120
• D4 DOZER • DUMPER 1T, 3T, 9T
• DUMP TRAILERS UP TO 20T
• GRAIN/SILAGE TRAILERS UP TO 18T
• GPS CONTROLLED DEPTH
• DEPTH OF UP TO 1.2 METERS
• BORE OF PIPE UP TO 4 INCHES
• FLATBED TRAILERS 32FT
• LOWLOADER 32FT TRI AXLE
• TOPPER HIRE, BATWING & FLAIL
• IRRIGATION REELS & PUMPS
85 SPRINGWOOD RISE, KELSO TD5 8BE 07590 592300 • GBHOGARTH@HOTMAIL.COM OFFERING DRAINAGE WITH SOILMAX TILE PLOUGH WITH MINIMAL DISTURBANCE
• WITH OR WITHOUT GRAVEL MULCHING & SAWBLADE HEAD TREE / LOG GRAB • WOODLAND CLEARANCE
• GORSE, WILLOW & BRASH • TREES UP TO 300MM
TREE ROOTS & STUMPS
J&W Glendinning
Peter Graham Contracts Ltd
On Our Farm
April 8th 2026
Hugo Lee farms in partnership with his father, Guy, at Sandystones, near St Boswells. Arable crops of wheat, oilseed rape, malting barley and oats are grown, 500 Angus cattle are finished annually, 8000 organic hens produce eggs for Waitrose and 8,000 organic point of lay pullets are reared each year.
The end is almost in sight for what has a been an extremely busy last month so far. By the end of today we should finally be up to date with all the fieldwork.
Spring barley went into a lovely seedbed and is slowly emerging. All winter cereals have had a T0 and the Winter barley is not far off its T1. Winter wheats are the only crop requiring their final dose of nitrogen otherwise the gate as been closed on all other crops as far as fertiliser is concerned. Crops are looking ok overall but could do with a warm dry settled spell, they have struggled a little bit with the cold wet weather over the past month.
Grass growth got off to a flying start but has been checked by recent overnight frosts. All silage fields have now been rolled and are starting to kick on. I am particularly pleased with the new ley which was cultivated with a Sumo after wheat and drilled with a grass harrow. Despite all the trash it has established well and is something that I will try again.
The final batch of grazing cattle arrive tomorrow and will be turned out immediately. Hopefully we will see an uplift in the finished price over the summer to close the ever-widening gap between stores and the fat price. Due to the new hen shed development we have had to sacrifice one of our silage fields as the fencing on the new ranges has been delayed. Hopefully the arable silage will yield well and make up for the decrease in grass silage area.
Currently all our organic hens are fenced in using a 9-wire temporary electric fence which we move every time a shed is pulled onto a new range. It works well at keeping foxes/badgers out and hens in. I am going to try and copy this on a more permanent basis using a Clipex post with 9 wires of electric for the new shed. Hopefully this will be a cost-effective way to keep both vermin and cattle out and the poultry contained.
I cannot finish without talking about the Iran war. The two-week ceasefire announced overnight should help to settle down the oil price a little. However, with the Straits of Hormuz being closed for so long it will take time for fuel prices to come down, if the ceasefire holds. It is not a great time to start on a large building project as everything now has a fuel surcharge on it which changes daily, especially concrete!
If anything positive comes from the war I hope the government has woken up to the fact that we must be more self-sufficient. Not only energy but also food. For far too long we have become over reliant on imports.
The sun is beating through the window and there is not a breath of wind. I must get on and spread the last of the nitrogen on the Spring barley ground before the rain and wind returns tomorrow.
Rolling Spring Barley
RAF fly over of the new shed site
SILAGE PITS, FARM ROADS, DRIVEWAYS, ESTATES
BLOCK PAVING OF PATHWAYS, DRIVEWAYS & CAR PARKS
BLOCK PAVING OF PATHWAYS, DRIVEWAYS & CAR PARKS
SURFACE DRESSING WITH NATURAL STONE FINISHES
SILAGE PITS, FARM ROADS, DRIVEWAYS, ESTATES
BLOCK PAVING OF PATHWAYS, DRIVEWAYS & CAR PARKS
SCHOOL PLAYGROUNDS, PATHWAYS, CAR PARKS
TARMACADAM, ASPHALT, PATCHING & POTHOLE REPAIRS
CALL FOR A FREE NO OBLIGATION QUOTATION & SURVEY
LOCAL COMPANY WITH OVER 45 YEARS EXPERIENCE
OBLIGATION QUOTATION & SURVEY
SCHOOL PLAYGROUNDS, PATHWAYS, CAR PARKS
SCHOOL PLAYGROUNDS, PATHWAYS, CAR PARKS
TARMACADAM,
TARMACADAM, ASPHALT, PATCHING & POTHOLE REPAIRS
DRAINAGE, KERBING, GROUNDWORKS
PRIVATE & COMMERCIAL WORK UNDERTAKEN
DRAINAGE, KERBING, GROUNDWORKS
PRIVATE & COMMERCIAL WORK UNDERTAKEN
APPROVED CONTRACTOR
SURFACE DRESSING WITH NATURAL STONE FINISHES
SILAGE PITS, FARM ROADS, DRIVEWAYS, ESTATES
BLOCK PAVING OF PATHWAYS, DRIVEWAYS & CAR PARKS
BLOCK PAVING OF PATHWAYS,
WITH NATURAL STONE FINISHES
Warreners House,
Langtonlees
Broad eld Farm, Symington
Warreners House, Morpeth
Sandystones, Jedburgh
The Stiel, Yarrowford
Broad eld Farm, Symington
APPROVED CONTRACTOR
Sandystones, Jedburgh
The Stiel, Yarrowford
Broad eld Farm, Symington
Langtonlees Farm, Duns
Sandystones, Jedburgh
The Stiel, Yarrowford
Langtonlees Farm, Duns
The Stiel, Yarrowford Broad eld Farm, Symington
Langtonlees Farm, Duns
Warreners House, Morpeth
Sandystones, Jedburgh
The Stiel, Yarrowford Broad eld Farm, Symington
Langtonlees Farm, Duns
COMPUTERISED 4 WHEEL ALIGNMENT YOUR LOCAL INDEPENDENT TYRE SUPPLIER
ALL LEADING BRANDS & SIZES OF TYRES & WHEELS
AGRICULTURAL TYRES
COMMERCIAL TYRES
CARS / VANS / 4X4 TYRES
PURPOSE BUILT DEPOT
FULLY EQUIPPED BREAKDOWN VEHICLES
For a free quotation or technical advice ring 01573 225454 or e-mail sales@candrtyres.co.uk
C & R TYRES LTD
STATION YARD, SPROUSTON ROAD KELSO TD5 8EU www.candrtyres.co.uk
Talking......Organic
Sawn Posts & Rails Sleepers
Gates Round Posts & Strainers Treestakes
ADVANCED DRYING of timbers to produce the very best treatment results
Other Products Available: Tanalised End Grain Preservative Fencing Wire
Gates & Fittings • Post Crete Various Types of Firewood
Ford & Etal Sawmill, Letham Hill Farm, Cornhill-on-Tweed, Northumberland TD12 4TP forestry@ford-and-etal.co.uk
April 8th 2026
Simon Bainbridge farms in partnership with his wife Claire and his mother Elisabeth in Northumberland. They run suckler beef, sheep and laying hen enterprises across 650 ha of mainly SDA and moorland - organically. With calving in full swing and lambing just started we are already at the stage of disrupted sleep patterns and some grumpiness settling in. Admittedly a bout of sickness has not helped matters and the jury is out as to whether it was a bug, too much Easter Egg or whether Claire has finally reached the end of her tether and tried food poisoning as a route? The heifers started calving on the 23rd March and the cows the first of April, two weeks in and we have reached 80 calved. Sadly, early this morning we lost a twin. She calved in the night, we checked the calf was ok, left her to it, and then the twin appeared and she did the classic of looking after the first and not worrying about the second, and we missed it too. As we scan quite late, it’s often impossible to pick up on twins, so she wasn’t marked as a twin. It does not matter how the loss comes about, it’s always tough.
The housing order on the hens is about to be lifted, which is good news. It’s now about managing the pop holes opening, especially for the new hens. We’re doing a little each day, as we don’t want to cause any stress especially as they are doing so well now.
Tony Juniper, Chair of Natural England has joined a Twitter debate this morning regarding the high density of predators across the country and the issue this is creating for ground nesting birds. It’s very welcome to see those comments come from him, and there is a definite correlation between badger, fox, crow and buzzard numbers increasing and ground nesting birds declining, certainly on our farm. What’s frustrating for us is that we have an environment that supports ground nesting birds, we have breeding pairs, but their success is limited due to the increased predator pressure. Sadly, any debates around predator control gets side-tracked, and we have environmental groups that cannot comprehend any sort of control, as blaming land managers for the decline in numbers is more palatable.
Trump and Iran have reached a two-week ceasefire, with this morning’s headlines reporting that a barrel of oil is back down below a $100. Good news, a great headline, however it will be interesting to see if the price at the pump falls as quickly as it went up? We all know that this won’t happen, and I suspect there may be shortages to come as the full effect of the time lag on transportation kicks in. All of this puts inevitable pressure on profitability of crops and any operation that requires fuel.
The challenge facing rural Northumberland in moving away from fossil fuels and embracing electric is the lack of infrastructure to support this. We have just bought a hybrid vehicle (bought just before the war commenced). It ticks lots of business boxes in theory. It ticks an environmental box (however I am not entirely convinced on this), but it is overcooking our supply infrastructure. Plug the car charger in, have the usual day to day appliances running and switch something like the pressure washer on as well, and the system goes bang – literally. We now have a new transformer, a new fuse and an understanding that when the vehicle is plugged in, you can’t use the pressure washer or anything else. It’s not exactly moving with the times!
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Talking......North of the Forth
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April 6th 2026
Tom Pate farms 240ha of arable on a tenanted farm in Angus. Cropping includes wheat, spring barley, rye and oilseed rape along with land let for potatoes and vining peas. Additionally, around 6500 pigs are reared annually under contract and 600 Christmas turkeys sold directly to the public under the KellyBronze franchise. On his wife’s 380ha family farm in the Angus Glens they also run 200 red deer hinds plus followers for venison production, along with developing a forestry enterprise.
So far the spring sowing campaign has been a stop-start affair. With the new Mzuri strip till system we have adopted, I have been strongly advised to wait until soil conditions warm up and go at least a week later than your plough-based neighbours. The thinking being that ploughed ground will dry and heat up more quickly than uncultivated stubbles. It’s tough to watch others progress whilst I try and hold my nerve. With the start of April I decided now was the time to go with the promise of warmer weather forecast and time ticking on. Unfortunately, the weather became unsettled as Storm Dave rolled in. We should still be drilled up by mid-April so I am not too concerned. Spring barley is the one crop I am most worried about under this new system. Lack of tillering and less robust than their winter sown cousins there is more chance of a yield penalty. Seed rates have been adjusted upward of 440 seeds/m to compensate which is quite costly given the price of certified seed (obviously seed prices aren’t correlated to malting prices…).
Autumn sown OSR, wheat and rye look well enough but cold, dry winds in March did make the wheat look a bit stressed. All recovering now with warmer temperatures and a bit of moisture.
Given current diesel prices I am pleased that the strip till system is keeping fuel usage to a minimum with plough and cultivation passes saved. Obviously, this also needs to be backed up by a decent yield to realise any cost savings. My success or otherwise will, as always, be documented here in Agrimart.
I am pleased to report that all 100 deer that escaped on 2nd February have now returned. The last six made a circuitous journey from our neighbours over the hill, (where we feared they had decided to take up full time residence), through another neighbour’s farm, up the River Isla and then around to the far end of the farm. Thankfully an eagle eyed (unarmed) stalker watched their progress from his kitchen window and contacted me. After that it was just a case of opening a gate and they walked right in, promptly being rewarded with a feast of barley. Amazing how their homing/hefting instinct kicked in. Very relieved and grateful to have them all home, albeit 8 weeks after their escape.
Costs are increasing at an alarming rate. Emails from suppliers drop into my inbox on a daily basis announcing yet more price hikes. Securing gas for brooding turkeys and drying grain are my main operational concerns as the fuel crisis continues. As an industry we must ensure agriculture is recognised as a priority user of fuels and that anticipated shortages don’t prevent us from operating. The current UK government hasn’t, to date, shown much understanding or sympathy towards the rural sectors but surely they realise that fuel shortages AND food shortages would be the demise of any government?
roll some wheat
A hired mini digger allowed various jobs around the farm to be completed. Drainage, finding an old water pipe, maintaining a soakaway, scraping a track and tidying around sheds. Great to have the time to get these wee jobs done
Mzuri sowing spring barley 6th April
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Northbank Farm, Cameron, St. Andrews, Fife, KY16 8PE
Talking......New Zealand
April 6th 2026
Ian Mackenzie is an arable and dairy farmer from the Canterbury Plain in the South Island of New Zealand. He runs a number of fully irrigated intensive cropping farms, producing grain, vegetable and grass seeds with some stock finishing.
We live in interesting times.
Living on a collection of islands off the map somewhere beyond Australia in the southern ocean used to confer safety and a detached neutrality from the rest of the world.
Now it means in a world short of diesel and fertiliser NZ’s isolation and insignificance may well mean we lose our supplies of both which will make farming quite difficult.
The Australians (reputably our closest friends) think we are expendable.
Apparently when Trump was threatening to invade Greenland, their PM offered to sell NZ to the USA. The sale’s pitch was that like Greenland, NZ is cold, sparsely populated, remote and although we don’t have puffins we do have penguins. The deal fell through when they couldn’t find NZ on any American maps of the world.
So we are still an independent collection of islands near the edge of the world wondering vaguely what might happen next.
As yet our milk and meat prices are unaffected, and I can’t help but think that our domestic market for grain will rise as the transport costs impact imported grain. That might of course be wishful thinking.
In the meantime Fonterra, the milk cooperative we supply, has sold off its retail brands and is returning $2.40/share to us suppliers. The advice is that the retail brand business had the lowest gross margin and required huge amounts of capital investment. Fonterra can make much larger margins making food ingredients and better returns investing in technologies creating new products for the ingredients business. We hold 1 share for every kg of milk solids we produce (for our wee farm around 170,000) so the dividend will be very welcome. There are more than a few farms in this area who produce more than a million kgs.
As a consequence there is a very buoyant land market with dairy farms and those suitable to be converted to dairy farms selling for record amounts ($65k-$85k/ha).
We’ve managed to lease (with prospects to purchase) a wee bit of land across the road from our dairy farm so we can increase the herd size to 400 cows; and both boys are working through the option of converting some of our other farms to cows. The arable industry is likely to disappear off the Canterbury Plains.
Interesting times indeed.
2 Mackenzie Farms trucks heading south to pick up lambs
4th crop of silage on its way down to the dairy
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In today’s climate, farm businesses are operating in an increasingly uncertain world. Global events, including ongoing conflict in the middle east, continue to influence markets and contribute to volatility in fuel, fertiliser and feed prices. Coupled with this, fixed machinery costs continue to rise and vulnerability remain in grain and livestock markets, placing pressure on margins across all enterprises.
At policy level, change is also on the horizon. In Scotland, The Rural Support Plan was laid before parliament and published on 24 March. This outlines the future framework although, no major changes are anticipated before 2030. Whilst providing some short-term stability, it also leaves many businesses questioning what the future support landscape may look like. In a world where so much is outside of your control, it is more important than ever to focus on what you can control - your business performance.
Profit is more than just a ‘figure’ at year end. A sustainable business must generate enough to cover drawings, debt repayments, reinvestment and future succession. Understanding if your business is achieving this is key to long term resilience.
Analysis of farm accounts has shown that, in some cases, profit is largely made up of subsidy payments. With future support mechanisms still evolving, this can leave businesses exposed. Understanding how reliant your business is on support payments is an important step in planning ahead.
There is also a clear relationship between higher fixed costs and reduced profitability. Costs such as machinery, labour and finance are often difficult to adjust quickly, but they have a significant impact on overall performance. Reviewing these costs can highlight opportunities to improve efficiency and strengthen margins.
While global uncertainty and policy change will continue to shape the industry, your financial performance is something that you can influence. Carrying out a detailed accounts analysis allows you to understand where your profit is coming from, identify strengths and weaknesses, compare performance over time and make informed decisions for the future.
By reviewing your recent accounts, you can build a clearer understanding of your business and take practical steps to improve your business resilience, helping you plan ahead with greater confidence. For more information, please contact St Boswells office on 01835 823 322 or stboswells@sac.co.uk.
Alongside this, support schemes such as AECS can play an important role in planning for the future, offering a level of certainty through fixed payments over the five year agreement once accepted. AECS is once again open to applications, with the window closing on 22 June (31 July for organic). The scheme remains competitive, with successful applications running for five years. There is a high level of information and detail required for an application therefore, if you are interested in pursuing an application, don’t delay and start looking into it now.
For more information on any of the above, please contact SAC St Boswells on 01835 823 322 or stboswells@sac.co.uk
Thorburn Group, Duns
Lower Mansfield Road, Hawick, TD9 8AW
Willowford Farm, Jedburgh
Thorburn Group, Duns
I am typing this with one hand as the other is in an enforced elevated position. Before you jump to the conclusion that I am subjected to some of voluntary bondage, I feel an explanation is necessary! Three weeks ago I was clearing brambles away where we were building a new stile so Philly could do a circular dog walk first thing in the morning. Unbeknownst to me at the time a thorn broke off in my thumb, four days later it was throbbing and my wife extricated the offending impediment at 4am before I left to catch a flight for 3 days golf in Portugal. Although sore for a couple of days it got better and I thought nothing more about it. A week later a large blister appeared on my thumb (for no reason?) and then last Thursday I woke in the middle of the night with a very large and stiff hand. At first I thought I had pricked myself with a syringe when we vaccinated cattle, in hindsight I realise it must be delayed reaction to the thorn. I have now been to A & E every evening for five doses of intravenous antibiotics, so far, and have been told to keep my arm up for the fluid to drain which at last it seems to be doing. The swelling is going down and there is far less pain. Despite some fairly long waits at A & E I can’t fault the NHS although I have seen four different doctors so far all with a different opinion of necessary treatment! The turmoil of the last few weeks in the Middle East are going to have ramifications lasting for a considerable amount of time. I don’t know how many of the users of inorganic fertilisers appreciated just how much reliance was placed on a constant flow of materials through the Straits of Hormuz.
We are in the midst of building the largest infrastructure project we have invested in. The two single largest items are secured on a contracted price, namely the building and the kit inside, everything else is at the vagaries of the market and to say that is volatile would be an understatement, especially cement which is such an energy demanding product. The only positive out of all this is we will be producing a lot of hen pen which will reduce our reliance on bought in fertilisers.
I do feel smug with my electric car being recharged by solar panels on the farm, our heat coming from woodchip and a robot mower removing the need for trips to the pumps filling up petrol cans. Our hope on the arable side of the business is that cereal prices might rise with a potential shortfall in global harvests next year as fertiliser availability might cause reductions in yield. On the other hand we are going to be as much buyers as sellers!
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Will Howe is an arable farmer from Sleaford, Lincolnshire. The soils are predominantly heavy. There is 1000ha of cropping including winter wheat, spring beans, spring oats and oilseed rape. He also manages a contracting business Thorpe Farming Ltd.
Spring Drilling was a pleasure this year. The cover crops had done a great job of keeping the soil structured and a timely dose of glyphosate had allowed the biomass to die back enough to let the wind dry the soil. The three lessons I have learnt were to use a lower seed rate, aiming for 220 plants/sqm was great for rooting but made the canopy too dense; that giving the cover crops the whole month of August to grow leads to a massive increase of biomass compared to late August drilling, and finally fields which were Cambridge rolled in the autumn to aid the germination of the cover, were less structured and wetter in the spring compared to the field that were just pressed with a DD ring.
As the spring crops are just poking through, we seem to have reverted to last year’s weather system of rain always being 5 days away from today. We have not had any meaningful rain in the last 4 weeks, and as I am currently planting grass seed ready for my second midlife crisis beef enterprise, it could do with a rain soon. To be utterly perverse, a field destined for grass has a solid baked cap on top, and is like plasticine underneath so I have dragged it with my 50yr old pigtail pulled by the new to me Challenger to “let some air in”. This operation may have been slightly recreational, but by God it was fun. The noise was phenomenal and a 20 acre field only takes just over an hour, my kind of tractor driving!
Cattle? Again? The failure of the last enterprise has been eating away at me for some time. In fact it would be wrong to call it a failure as I walked away having made a healthy profit, even the equipment was sold for more than I paid for it. Time has added clarity to what went wrong, and how it could be done better. Added to that is the fact I am sat here, as I was 6 years ago, trying to find a profitable break crop for 1250 acres/yr. The start is small (90 head over 65 acres), in fact the spreadsheet is labelled “Baby Steps Beef” so that it can be managed by existing staff (predominately me) and it will act as an experiment to see if it is something that can easily be scaled up to offer other landowners. If it does not work as planned, it will be closed down for what will most definitely be the final time!
With all the uncertainty in the world, grain prices seem to be the least affected commodity. I did have to have a little chuckle when a grain merchant cold called me and was trying to get me to forward sell wheat which I haven’t even bought the fertiliser for or planted as the price had risen a little. At least there are still some optimists out there!
Deadline date for the JUNE issue is Friday 1st May
Spring beans drilled into cover crop residue
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