My Farming Week: Liam O'Donnell, Drumlegga, Cloone, Co Leitrim

The farm: “Myself and my father Seán farm 48ac of heavy ground here in Drumlegga – 24ac of the land are rented. We have 20 suckler cows which are various breeds, mainly Charolais-Limousin crosses and Limousin-Belgian Blue crosses.”

Genetics: “We don’t keep a bull. We use AI from Dovea Genetics. Our local technician is just over the road so it is very handy for when the cows come into heat.”

This week: “The cows are in; the ground is still too wet for them to be out. Some of our herd are due to calve soon. The main priority would be disinfecting calving pens and getting them ready. We would also be setting up pre-calving blocks, other cows that have calved would be getting Fosblock, which is like a fertility mineral to help them go back in-calf.”

Calving: “The herd is mainly spring calving but some of our cows also calve in the autumn. We have a fairly widespread calving pattern but we expect everything to be calved before May. The calves are reared and then sold in Carrigallen Mart as weanlings between 300kg and 400kg.”

Working: “I work part-time on the farm and full-time with Grassland Agro, while my father Seán is at home farming full-time. I would love to be working full-time on the farm, but it’s not possible with sucklers. I would have to look at other enterprises such as poultry or dairy, but that is a big investment so it’s a lot to think about.”

Family: ”I have three brothers and one sister. My sister is in Abu Dhabi and I also have a brother in Australia. My oldest brother Shane works on a farm in Limerick and my brother Paul works nearby in Longford.”

Hobbies: “GAA would be a great passion of mine but I haven’t played in a few years due to injury. I am involved with Carrigallen Macra, we do a lot of community work and there is great enjoyment to be got from it.”