Uggeshall: Red Polls on their home turf

.Giles and June Crisp applying the calming back-scratching technique demanded by these extraordinarily quiet Red Poll cows.
Lavenham Sir Galahad, with heifers on salt marshes near Uggeshall. Semen from this bull can be imported into Australia. An impressive individual up close.
A prospective herd sire at 9 months of age
An improvised windbreak of big bales of hay protecting an over-winter feeding area
Giles Crisp inspecting a field of pasture (ley) ready to cut for silage
19 month old heifer Uggeshall Yearn, subject of a competitive 5 pound bet

I spent a very enjoyable 2 days at the home of Giles and June Crisp at Uggeshall House, near Beccles, about 5 miles from the North Sea in East Suffolk. Home to the Uggeshall Red Poll herd, the farm has a very productive 150 acres supporting around 38 breeding cows plus followers and replacements.

Uggeshall receives about 18 inches of rainfall annually. Make no mistake, 18 inches in old money, dry by Australian standards. Roll that in with the fact that there has been a distinct drought in the region and it is in need of rain. Relatively shallow soils, some clay based and some sandy, mirror familiar Australian conditions. A cold and prolonged winter has led to slow pasture growth this spring and there was little carry-over feed from the winter.

Calves are born in groups in spring, summer and autumn. Heifers are mated at 24-27 months to calve at about 3 years of age. Birth weights are in the range of 35-42 kg and the high supervision level means that few births are not observed. An experienced cowman, Tony Neville, is responsible for the day-to-day management of the herd with assistance from former dairyman Peter Wilson. Peter engaged Giles in a bet about the quality of the on-farm heifers compared to the unseen, yet to be judged, winner of the under 22 months heifer at the Suffolk Show. As the adjudicator, I declared the heifer on the farm to be superior. Giles is therefore 5 pounds out of pocket.

Heifers are often sold as replacement breeders if not required in the herd but sometimes find their way to the butchers' shop, which is the fate of the steers. Meat is sold from the farm gate at something of a premium on high street prices. Age at slaughter is 22 months and above. Some effort has been put in by the Crisps and other Red Poll breeders to establish a breed-specific product but continuity and regularity of supply have been difficult to overcome.

Crops grown include winter wheat and oats as well as maize and oilseed rape in some years. Sugar beet for human consumption is a very popular cash crop in the region, with a local destination for the processing of the beets. Strong emphasis on minimum soil disturbance requires direct drilling equipment for most sowing jobs. Retention of soil moisture is as important in East Anglia as it is in Australia, as is weed control. It is interesting that people in East Anglia discuss the weather and its effects at least as much as Australians.

These Red Polls were amongst the quietest I have ever seen, even show cows. They walked up to the Crisps in the fields and presented their backs for scratching by hand or with a field crook. One butted into my back as a response to me walking past without offering a relaxing pat. This applies to almost all animals not just previously shown cows.

Semen from an Australian bull, Eurimbla Gladstone (owned by Ian and Jill Coghlan), was imported to the UK by Giles and another breeder Richard Dawes. Offspring of this bull were clearly identifiable by a slightly lighter coat colour and the presence of dapples in the coat. A noticeable increase in size and capacity has led to significant improvements in the herd, a point acknowledged by both Giles and Richard. Gladstone, coincidentally, was prepared by students of Richmond TAFE for the Royal Easter Show in 1999.

We travelled some 5 miles to check on the development of a bull, Lavenham Sir Galahad, owned by Giles. This bull was grazing salt marsh fields near the noted Cathedral of the Salt Marshes at Blythburgh. Semen from this bull is approved for export to Australia and NZ, and after his time at a licenced AI centre in Devon he is back among the heifers in Suffolk. He is an impressive bull with a strong hindquarter and spine and good feet and movement.

The Crisps extended a warm hand of friendship to me and made me feel extraordinarily welcome in a short space of time. The 2011 Red Poll World Congress will be held in the UK and a visit will be made to the Uggeshall herd as well as the Suffolk Show (see next blog entry). I am sure visitors will come away with feelings and memories similar to mine.