The third Scottish Smallholder and Grower Festival showcases seminars to help livestock keepers

The 2014 Scottish Smallholder and Grower Festival returns to Lanark Agricultural Centre this September and will be providing several seminars with a focus on helping small scale livestock keepers. The Festival programme will contain talks on cattle, poultry, sheep, goats, pigs and Bees!

Northern Field Officer for the Rare Breeds Survival Trust, Ruth Dalton, will be returning with a talk on small-scale cattle keeping. Many smallholders hesitate to keep cattle because of concerns about their size and their requirement for grazing, feed and the implications of milking. Ruth will show how our native breeds can be the perfect cattle for smallholders.

Pigs will have a double outing in this year’s seminar programme, as Sam Jones from “The Rushbury Pig” will be giving a roadmap for anyone looking to getting started with Pigs. Later in the day, Sam will also be treating the audience to a Pig showing workshop, allowing novices, old hands and anyone who just likes seeing Pigs to get tips on the way to show and win!

The team from SAC will be at the Festival, and will also be delivering two seminars; one focused on “Sheep for Beginners” and the second looking at the very important topic of disease control in Goats. Sue Blacker, from the Natural Fibre Company will then be on hand to answer one of the most important questions for smaller scale sheep keepers, “What to do with my Fleece?”

Many people interested in rearing their own livestock start with Poultry, and this year’s Festival will see Janice Houghton-Wallace, a well known figure in the Poultry world, give a talk for anyone looking to start with Poultry keeping. From chickens to ducks and turkeys to geese, Janice will give some great advice on what is needed to get started.

Even the smallest garden can usually accommodate a beehive and the benefits are huge. The team from Solway Bee Supplies will tell how to get started and what essential pieces of kit are required to enjoy this rewarding pastime and how to harvest honey and other treasures from the hive.

 

Coupled to the fantastic competitive classes, including Cattle, Sheep, Goats, Pigs and Poultry, this years Festival promises to be a bumper one for anyone interested in Livestock in any way.

[ilink url=”https://ssgf.uk/visitors/programme/”] See the full programme of seminars and demonstrations[/ilink]