When a successful businessman decides to change his existing farm machinery and go John Deere, there’s more than just the brand behind his decision.
Mr Ean Branston who farms 1800 acres of combinable crops and contracts a further 200 acres, has a cropping regime of Winter and Spring Barley, Winter and Spring Wheat, Oil Seed Rape and Beans. The farm also runs a reputable, commercial shoot.
His business - Equine Spa (www.equinespa.com) manufactures and supplies self-contained spa units which use cold salt hydrotherapy to treat a multitude of injuries to competition horses prior to and/ or following competitive events, training sessions and rehabilitation programmes. Some 80% of his production is exported, much of it to the USA.
Ean Branston’s Bourton Hill Farm, in Gloucestershire has a soil type that consists of variations of Cotswold Brash and there isn’t a level piece of land on the farm, but that doesn’t deter Mr Branston from driving his HillMaster combine in the most difficult of terrains.
“I’ve always believed that quality products will be in demand, no matter what the market, explained Ean Branston. “that’s the ethos behind the Equine Spa products we produce and why we have been so successful. “we tried a John Deere 6930 on rental from my local dealer Tallis Amos in Bibury and there was no contest with what else was available on the market. We were so impressed with the build quality and performance that we decided to buy it.”
Trying the tractor before making a decision was the reason behind Mr Branston’s choice, because he could test it on his own farm, using his own equipment and this essentially introduced him to the John Deere brand and his local dealer. Bourton Hill Farm, now owns a number of John Deere products including 6830 and 7810 tractors, a 732i Sprayer with BoomTrac and a T670 HillMaster combine, new this year.
“The capacity of the John Deere T670 combine is incredible, said Ean. “It’s a six walker machine and easily has the capacity to handle all of our combinable acreage with ease. It has plenty of power, doesn’t smash the straw and provides an excellent sample. Even with all these steep hills on our farm, the combine takes them all in its stride without losses.”
One of the major features on the John Deere combine is the AMS Precision Farming system which is transferable from the combine to his John Deere tractors. This links to Gatekeeper software in the office and provides reports on yields by spot area, moisture, output and machine performance.
“All of our machines are AutoTrac complete, which includes AutoSteer, which takes away the often tiring process of keeping in a straight line and avoiding overlapping or leaving gaps. commented Ean. “For example, we can drill with our Horsch Sprinter, the tractor steers an absolutely straight line, therefore tramlines are perfect. Then when the sprayer and spreader come down they also steer in an absolute straight line so we avoid overlap. That means we can save on input costs and, we also get better efficacy, all of which add up to better efficiency. Likewise when combining on undulating land, the combine maintains a full cutting width and maximises throughput without leaving gaps.”
All parts, service and after-sales support comes from his local John Deere dealer, Tallis Amos Group at Bibury. “They have an excellent back-up service and are always with us quickly if we ever get any issues. They always seem to have the parts on the shelf and their staff are always very helpful. I really can’t fault them.” he said
Apart from a commercial farming operation, Bourton Hill Farm is heavily involved in environmental practices which is encouraging the regeneration of endangered species.
“we are doing our bit to encourage some of our birds which are suffering difficult times. added Ean. “Skylarks, Grey-leg Partridge, Lapwings and Corn Buntings to name but a few and we try to help out by feeding year round.” he concluded.
