Category Archives: Agriculture

Fingers crossed

Posted on November 1, 2018 by hoddlecows

Fingers crossed this is the start of a, ‘from little things big things grow’ story. These tiny little seedlings will hopefully form part of our cows summer diet. The seed was sown directly into the stubble of a silage crop … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Dairy Farming, Pasture, Soil, Summer | Leave a comment

Kimchi for cows

Posted on March 2, 2018 by hoddlecows

Fermented foods seem to be all the rage at the moment. Our cows, like so many other cows around Australia, have been on the fermented food bandwagon for years. At this time of the year as our pasture dries off and … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Cows, Dairy, Dairy Farming, Pasture | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Topping off summer

Posted on February 15, 2018 by hoddlecows

Managing our pastures has been a challenge this summer(a challenge in a good way). Some of our mixed species perennial pastures have got a bit over mature, they look pretty with all those flowers but they aren’t the best feed … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Dairy, Pasture, Summer, Weather | 1 Comment

Back on the horse

Posted on March 2, 2015 by hoddlecows

The motivation to get back on the horse, blow the dust off MontroseDairy.com & start blogging again came from a recent trip to Melbourne. I go to Melbourne often for meetings and usually enjoy the contrast of the city, to … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Dairy, Dairy Farming, Education | 1 Comment

Checking in on the BIG boys

Posted on March 1, 2014 by hoddlecows

I enjoy checking in on cattle after I have sold them to other farms, it’s good to see how they have grown up and how they are going with their new owner. Recently I went to see how some of … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Calves, Dairy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Plans sometimes need to be changed

Posted on October 17, 2013 by hoddlecows

Waking early most mornings to collect the cows for milking I sometimes head off in the dark thinking here we go again, ground hog day.  But what I love about my job is each day is different and as much … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Dairy, Dairy Farming, Pasture, Weather | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Winter milestones

Posted on July 17, 2013 by hoddlecows

  Winter can be hard work on a dairy farm, wet, muddy, cold, windy and short days.  It’s not all bad though, I love the crisp winter days and I must admit part of me enjoys the cold fronts which … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Dairy Farming, Environment, Pasture, Soil, Weather | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Sun setting on another season

Posted on May 17, 2013 by hoddlecows

The Montrose Dairy farming calender revolves around our herds calving date. Our herd is a seasonal calving herd, which means all the cows calve in one batch over a few weeks. This calving period is timed to match the seasons … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Cows, Dairy Farming, Pasture | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Why we plant trees

Posted on May 16, 2013 by hoddlecows

We are often asked by visitors and others why we plant trees on our farm.  Shade and shelter for our cows, biodiversity and habitat for native species and creating a great place to live and work are the reasons we … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Cows, Dairy Farming, Environment | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Record heatwave matched and more to come

Posted on March 10, 2013 by hoddlecows

Record heatwave matched and more to come March 10, 2013 from The AgeWe always expect a bit of early autumn hot weather, like usual when the weather turns hot my thoughts turn to cow comfort. Keeping our cows cool is … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Cows, Dairy, Dairy Farming, Environment, Pasture, Weather | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment