There’s a saying that a shed is for the shepherd rather than the sheep, and this rang through to a certain extent last January when the plastic cover on the polytunnel on the farm of Ronan Gallagher was ripped off by a storm.

The airiness of the shed is ideal for hardening lambs up before heading outdoors, according to Ronan.

Ronan is well known in the pedigree sheep circles for his accolades with his Texel flock under the Enniscrone prefix, with pedigree Charolais, pedigree Suffolk and commercial ewes, some of which are used as recipients, also complimenting the system.

6 clear windows were specked in to the new tarp for additional light at a cost of €400. The tarp itself is translucent, with many opting to go without the windows.

The trained vet also operates Pro Star Genetics, which specialises in insemination, semen collection and embryo transfer, with many of the top pedigree flocks in the country in Ronan’s client list.

The tunnel

The polytunnel, which measures 110ft long by 30ft wide, was built five years ago, with ordinary plastic sheeting used to cover it.

Bird damage through creep feeding of lambs in the tunnel was the main culprit for the demise of the cover.

The bird damage likely combined with the proximity of the farm to the seas, with Ennisrone Beach and the Atlantic Ocean visible to the eye from the yard.

‘’We have our main sheep shed where we lamb down the ewes just across the yard, and we primarily use this for ewes post lambing. It’s very airy, between the doors being left open the majority of the time, as well as the mesh sides and the space boarding at the gables’’ explained Ronan.

“It works great for lambs; it keeps them dry but hardens them up to the cold when they’re turned out, and they love the fact that they have nearly the full run of the shed. You’d see them racing up and down the length of it’’

Ronan Gallagher’s fitted a new fibre mesh tarp cover to his existing polytunnel after the previous plastic cover was ripped off with a storm.

The polytunnel is piped with mains water and kitted out with fluorescent lighting inside, with LED work lights fitted outside. Silage is fed in bale feeders using the tractor and front loader, with meal being fed in the centre passage.

Excluding space at the doorway, the polytunnel has a rough area of 280m², capable of holding approximately 200 ewes.

While the tunnel is used for replacement ewe lambs, its primary function is for post lambing, with Ronan housing up to 120 lambed ewes in the tunnel.

‘’Last spring, when we didn’t have the polytunnel, we were under serious pressure, especially with the bad weather that we experienced, so having it up and ready for this spring was a priority.

New cover

Carrymacarry Net Works Ltd, located in Donegal, made the cover bespokely, wihththe cover and associated items fitted by a Donegal contractor.

The cover differs from ordinary plastic covers, as it is a fibre mesh tarp, designed for longevity and strength.

Gutters were fitted to the tunnel as an extra.

To purchase the cover will cost approximately two and a half to three times more than the price of your ordinary plastic, but it is designed for long-term use, with an expected working life of 15-20 years.Tunnels built using Carrymacarry coversin 2006 are still functioning perfectly well.

Some of the key areas to prolonging the working life of polytunnel covers are:

  • Correct fitting on day one: if not fitted correctly when erected, then the cover will never be right, and the lifespan of the shed will be compromised. Similar to covering a silage pit, a calm day is required to allow for proper fitting of the cover.
  • Shelter: tunnels do not work well on exposed sites, but work perfectly fine when properly sheltered. Locating tunnels in sheltered areas of the yard, or creating wind breaks with trees or clay embankments will greatly aid reduce the risk of storm damage.
  • Controlling vermin: vermin in the form of crows and swallows need to be properly controlled. Damage done to polytunnel roofs by birds weakens the structure and leaves it more prone to wind damage as a result. Ad lib meal feeding should be avoided when possible.

    A fine mesh can be fitted over the tarp that acts as a deterrent for birds.

  • Maintenance: regular checking and tensioning of the cover as needed and the repairing of any holes or tears in the cover are critical to prolonging the life of a polytunnel. New tunnels or the replacement of the covers on existing tunnels are subject to VAT, but this is reclaimable, according to Doherty.

    • Due to the more durable nature of the tarp cover versus ordinary plastic, some insurance companies are also allowing them to fall under farm cover.

    Space boarding was included in the work carried out, with each gable clad either side of the doorway.

    The total cost of the job came to €12,100 inc. Vat, with €1,440 of this being VAT. The tarp cover and fittings for it came to €6,600, while the six clear windows which Ronan specced in the cover were an additional €400.

    Additional works, such as the supply of gutters, the installation of the space boarding and supply of timber at the gable ends, steel tubing (€420) and labour came to €5,100.

    The installation process took three days, with 53 hours of labour involved for all work carried out. Ronan is extremely happy to having the tunnel back in action. “We re-covered it in the back end of last year, and there has been zero damage done by birds.

    It will be great to have it back in action again this spring,’’ stated Ronan.

    In short

  • 110ft x 30ft polytunnel suffered storm damage in spring 2024 and has recently been reroofed.
  • The new cover fitted is a mesh fibre tarp with a life expectancy of 15-20 years.
  • Locating tunnels in a sheltered site, controlling vermin and maintenance are key to prolonging the lifespan of polytunnels.
  • The cost of the above re-covering came to €12,100 inc. VAT, with extras being gutters and space boarding.