Saxlingham – June

As predicted, June was a quieter month than the the manic May I just experienced. But it would be wrong to say it lacked interest…

The month began steadily with some mowing for neighbours…

…adding to my bank balance. I popped in to see one of my neighbour’s cattle on the way back to the farm…

…They seem to have had a successful calving season as there were several youngsters in the field. Then I did a couple of fertilizing jobs…

I cleaned 8s, spreader and the Valtra…

…before putting the power washer back in the shed…

…Being able to wheel it around is a new piece of game functionality that I hadn’t realised was there! And that concluded the first week of the month.

The second week and half of it was lost in a series of hailstorms…

…They did more damage to my crops as shown in this view of my Wheat in field 7…

With the storms now clear I was checking the prices being offered for Soy Beans. They were on the up and although waiting another week might have earned more, I decided to sell with the best price at £1215 per 1000ltrs. I loaded up the Bailey trailer and took them off to the Farmers Market…

…The price crept up a little more during my delivery runs and overall, my 44kltrs earned me £57634 including an eco-friendly farming bonus of £4017 😎 I washed the Bailey in celebration 😅…

Over £250k in the bank meant decision time – should I expand by buying another field. That led to me driving out to field 47 to check on its status…

…There was some minor crop damage and the soil looks like it will need ploughing before a new crop is sown. But the chance to buy a good field complete with a crop that will be ready to harvest in 2 months time is not to be sniffed at. I decided to purchase there and then for £172.5k. I also made a note to get a small runabout for these types of trips!

Back at the farm, another decision was made – I’d harvest my grass fields this month instead of waiting until July. As it’s only 2 months since they were last harvested this will result in lower yield. But I will explain my thinking at the end.

Harvesting the grass to make Silage is a lengthy process, taking a full week for my two moderately sized fields. First we mow…

…Then we bale…

…Then we wrap…

…after which we have to collect the bales and put them in store until the grass has fermented. After that we wait for a good price before selling.

As I predicted, the yield was just over half of what I would have got in a month’s time. But choosing to harvest now free’s up the month of July for crop harvesting. I will have two fields of Oats to harvest…

…But I think there will also be a lot of contract harvest jobs that I can pick up to earn money – Take a look at the map…

…Apart from the grass fields next to the river, all those dark green fields will be ready to harvest! The loss of a few silage bales from harvesting early is minor compared to the potential earnings that freeing up that week may bring!

I will return to the 3 monthly cycle for the grass fields but now harvesting in March, June and September. While the Silage was an important way to earn money in the beginning, it will become less and less important as my arable field count expands. Ultimately, it may even become more trouble than it’s worth – My last task for the month was to roll the freshly mown grass…

…and when the maintenance of those two fields is taken into account, it’s a week and a half of work which could be spent on more lucrative activities. However, were I to move into Sheep farming then having a source of grass for bales would be beneficial. So much to ponder – But that’s Farming Sim for you 😅👍