MAS MAIENSA
After maybe 30 years of industrialized agriculture, agronomic and nursery crops, we had already undergone many changes. We stopped treating pests and diseases in the nursery. Suddenly pests disappeared. After years of delivering a constant chemical battle with aphids, problems ended when we quit spraying. One year we noticed many lady beetles and decided not to act. That was the end of aphids in our farm. And so it went for each of the other pests, whiteflies , etc. And frogs and toads became very abundant. Herbicides were next to follow and abandoned as well, with no regret using alternative cultural and rotational practices.
Young bull
But the circle closed when we decided to reintroduce herbivores in to the farm. In an organic free range way. We introduced a small floc of sheep and a larger floc of Aubrac cows. We like to say it is a Beyond Organic farm, because our standards way out pass those required in organic agriculture. You can be organic and still keep animals secluded in sheds where "organic" food is served (“organic concentrates”!!).
The Team
We have grass fed animals. We are heavily influenced by the work of Allan Savory, its revolutionary approach to grazing, and its consequences on carbon storage (organic mater in the soil). Also Joel Salatin has published about self sustaining farms and grazing animals. And others like Col Seis and his pasture cropping are very interesting as well.
Why Aubrac?. The cows needed to be medium size, with good character, easy calving, great rearing, not too modified a species, from nearby area, with a good meat to bone ratio. We considered Aubrac to be perfect for our needs. They can achieve high expectations even when fed less than ideally for some time, as is in dry summer or in cold winter spells. We decided to have a pure bred floc, so we bought 15 weaned 10 month old calves and a 14 months bull from registered breeders in Golinhac Aveyron, France.
Fields have been transformed to pasture using four different approaches: a)permanent leguminous (alfalfa) for summer grazing,
b)permanent mixed pasture (main native species is Arrhenaterium elatior, also clovers, fecues, etc)
c)anual pasture (ray grass, crimson clover)
d)annual cereal (inter seeded with crimson clover)
Cereals are planted early and can be grazed before stem elongation, then allowed to finish their life cycle and oats can be harvested as hay in early milk stage. Annuals should be planted with a direct seed drill as in pasture cropping although we have not reached this stage yet.
Cattle graze all year long. There are no buildings as shelters. A series of corrals with a shute are the only fixed structure these animals sparingly use. The main group we run are the cows, 25 and aiming at 40. Their calves follow along until weaning at 9-10 months old. The bull is with them all except the 2 -3 months needed to synchronize pregnancy to within 2 months. Alternatively he goes with the weaned young bulls. So young bulls are the second flock. We do not castrate, which implies a separate group and the inconveniences it curtails with grazing. The last group are weaned heifers that need to spend 6 months on their own. They go on a separate grazing group, latter they join the cows in time for breeding in summer.
Calving is due in spring, when temperatures are mild and grass is lush. Calves are born in the fields, usually with no assistance. The only critical moment is first delivery in heifers. It is when we might have to help in some manner. We do not need to vaccinate.
Paddocks should be the smaller the better. It is the only way high animal density can be applied on vegetation, for a short period of time. We started with whole fields, 3-4 ha, then divided them by 2, and then even further. During grass dormancy it is Ok to stay longer in a paddock but when in growth then we should move every 1 or 2 days, to attain maximum grass production per unit land. Paddock reentry periods can be as short as 35 days in alfalfa in summer, 45-60 days in spring and fall grasses, or 90 days in winter. Total farm acreage is 100 acres.
The only food that we store is dry grass as round bales and grain cereal to be fed ground as a supplement, the last 2 months before slaughter, at 2-3 kg/day. Fattening is excellent on ray grass- crimson clover pasture. Better than on alfalfa. And animals love it. Grass fed beef is an absolute novelty in Catalonia. The best you can get are animals that free ranged with their mothers before weaning, until they are 6-7 months old. Subsequently are always fattened in confinement with concentrates (high in GMO corn and GMO soy, imported from US and South America, or then rarely organic fed, still confined but fed organic concentrates and straw). Organic concentrates do not contain corn or soy because most are GMO in Spain, and those farmers using it complain of very slow fattening.
Corrals
Corrals
Tractors are in the shed most part of the year, we do very little tillage, many are permanent fields, maxim we till is 2 inches of soil as for ray grass at seeding, we don’t need to howl manure around since animals spread it on their own, and we don’t use silage. We only bale dry food, so we own a grass mower and round baler. We can fix all mechanical problems on our own, needing little outside help.
Commercialization is due to start in the next 2-3 months, and we are getting ready for direct sale to the final customer, as 5 kg air tight packages. Mixed meat will be delivered. We are currently working on the web, so as to keep our clients informed. We contract butchering and packaging. We are considering adding a hamburger shed, summer only (2 months at best), home made, since we have a botanical garden left from the nursery days. Never the less we started with friends and family and are working our way to a broader outreach. We shure have noticed and appreciated that many are very receptive to the alternative way we propose to work.
Close up View
Alfalfa Mowing
masmaiensa@hotmail.com
