glossary

Arable - the practice of cultivating land to produce crops. Arable land is usually cultivated annually.

Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) - the group of measures forming the common approach by the members of the European Commission, towards the regulation of agricultural markets.

Coppicing - the periodic felling of mature trees and the subsequent regrowth of new side shoots from the old tree stumps.

Crop Rotation - the sequence of cropping on one field. Fodder - crop grown for animal food either eaten immediately or preserved.

Followers - young livestock (sheep, cattle) including calves and lambs run with the herd or flock.

Grazing management - Free-range systems allow the livestock unrestricted access to pastures: in paddock or rotational grazing the livestock are rotated from one pasture to another over a period of days; in Strip-grazing strips of pasture are fenced off for short periods generally by electric fencing to give maximum control over the grazing regime. Zero-grazing is the practice of bringing cut grass to the housed livestock. Aftermath grazing is grazing after a hay or silage crop has been taken (sometimes referred to as 'fog').

Meadow - an area of grassland used for grazing and cutting for fodder.

Moorland - an area of ground usually found above the level of enclosed or improved land.

Pasture - an area of grassland normally grazed rather than cut for fodder.

Scrub - low growing, woody or thorny vegetation cover resulting from the clearance of vegetation followed by regeneration.

Silage - green fodder preserved by excluding air from the storage site.

Stocking Rate - the number of animals that can be supported in a given area over a given time. An area grazed extensively would have a low stocking rate i.e. few animals grazing over a long period, as opposed to a high rate or intensive system.

Suckler Herd - calves suckle cows, as opposed to dairy herds where milk is used for human consumption.