Herby Glynn

Dromore Co. Galway

My name is Herby Glynn, and I am a farmer from Dromore Co. Galway.

Farming is in my blood; my father and grandfather were both farmers before me and I’ve had this farm for around thirty years.

I work in construction as well as running the farm. Originally, I had sheep and a suckling herd on the farm, but it was a lot of hassle, and it didn’t really work for me. I went on to try out a few different enterprises, before settling on calf to beef. I have had a number of different breeds of calf, but the Herefords just stood out as the best for me.

We are happy to say we have a lot of wildlife on the farm, and we work hard to encourage it. I have lots of different varieties of trees and hedging, plenty of oak, willow and beech, as well as whitethorn and blackthorn hedging. It’s great to see the hedging doing so well, we sowed it a few years ago and then again last year. Biodiversity is very important to me, and I love walking down the fields and seeing pheasants, hares, foxes and badgers, it really helps to bring peace of mind, and it puts you in a very good mood.

The Irish Herefords are very easy to manage, they are quiet and tame, and are very easy to finish, they really are an A1 breed.

I usually source my calves from three local dairy farmers, who I know to be good farmers, so there’s no stress on the calves, I buy them, and they are delivered with nice fresh bedding. Buying local, as I do, helps to keep the farm as sustainable as possible. Heading into the future I plan on continuing to farm the Herefords and I am hoping to improve the biodiversity even more, encouraging wildlife onto the farm, with more hedging and more oak trees. I plan to keep going as best I can, for as long as I can.