Onsite Insights: farm walk & practical actions for nature with Farming for Nature Ambassador Maurice Deasy - “Min-till cereal production and growing heritage grains.”

The Farming for Nature (FFN) farm walks are an opportunity for FFN Ambassadors to showcase their contribution to nature and good farming practices on their land.

Maurice Deasy farms in partnership with his father Ruaidhri in northwest Tipperary. The 120-acre mixed farm is a sheep and tillage operation. Crops grown include winter barley and oats, spring barley, malting barley and beans. In recent years these farmers have been implementing the principles of conservation agriculture on their land – direct drilling, crop rotation and cover cropping. This work is being done to regenerate and protect the soil biology. Maurice has been growing heritage Irish grains to preserve their genetic diversity and maintain their heritage. While these grains are lower yielding, their larger root systems provide crucial disease and drought resistance. “The heritage grains give a better flavour to the finished beer product. I have found they also have higher disease resistance.” The heritage grains are processed and malted on-site and made into a single-source farmhouse beer. Maurice is also experimenting with biological seed coatings made from biochar and seaweed to reduce inputs and adopt more natural farming processes. There are 80 breeding ewes on the farm. Some of the grassland is permanent pasture and Maurice is reseeding some of the pasture with multispecies swards. There is approximately 20 acres of mixed woodland on the farm which attracts lots of birds to the land. Hedgerows are managed for biodiversity and act as nature corridors running throughout the land. There is an area of wet/boggy land which has been fenced off and left for biodiversity. A river runs through the farm and there is a pond on the land. On the farm there are deer, woodcock, snipe, pheasant, kingfisher and otter.

WHAT ARE THE FARM WALKS:

• This will be a 2.5 hour (approximately) visit to the farm and will include a walk around with the farmer/farm family, a look at some of the habitats and species present, as well as the livestock and/or crops, and a discussion with the farmer about how he/she/they manage the land in support of nature.
• These walks are for farmers and people with an interest in farming for nature. They are meant to be an interactive knowledge exchange between people with a real interest in farming and nature. They are not suitable for children, or for people/groups looking for an ‘organised walk’ in the countryside.
• These walks are non-profit but a booking fee is necessary to minimise the frustrating level of no-shows. It costs €10 to register and all funds are circulated back into the farming community.
• Please wear suitable footwear for uneven and potentially muddy conditions.
• We would ask that you please respect these farmers, their land and livestock when visiting. Dogs are not welcome. You will be turned away if you arrive with one.
• The exact location of the farm walk will be sent via email to ticket holders on the week of the walk (keep an eye on your email & your spam folder as sometimes the emails end up in spam).
• Please arrive at least 10 minutes before the walk commences.

Thank you to the NPWS and the DAFM for supporting these farm walks.
For more info on FFN events, resources, programmes - go to www.farmingfornature.ie