Through a farm walk in Northern Ireland, beef and sheep farmers will have the opportunity to see for themselves how multi-species swards can fit into a commercial enterprise.
The European Innovation Partnership (EIP) group ‘Multi-species Swards for Beef and Sheep’ will be host a farm walk on Wednesday, September 1.
The event will take place on the farm of group member Dale Orr, who is based in Strangford, Co. Down.
The group's activities are jointly funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA).
Over the past year, members have been establishing multi-species swards on each of the six participant farms, exploring the different establishment techniques and determining the opportunities and challenges that arise as a result of incorporating multi-species swards within a range of Northern Ireland farming systems.
Group member Dale Orr said: “There is significant interest in multi-species swards amongst Northern Ireland farmers but there is a lack of practical information about how multi-species swards can be established, managed and utilised successfully.
"We will be using this event to share our experiences as a group and allow those interested in multi-species swards to come and see an established sward.”
Farm walk
The Multi-species swards for Beef and Sheep EIP Operational Group is supported by technical and administration leads from AFBI, Queen’s University and AgriSearch who along with CAFRE will also be presenting at the Farm Walk.
Tours will operate at regular intervals with the first tour starting at 10:30a.m and the final tour at 3:00p.m.
All attendees must pre-book and can do so by visiting the AgriSearch website.
