We publish four times a year, late Mar, June, September and December. Print copies are posted via Royal Mail.
A new subscription includes the current issue and then the next three.
Instruct us if you want to start with the issues previous to the current.
Our bundles are:
Offer A: 1 yr sub + two back issues £22.20 + p&p
Offer B: 1 yr + four back issues £27.85 + p&p
There will be more bundles added to these
Like very many farmers, Mike has always had an enthusiasm about farm machinery. In 1988 he built a grassland aerator (or sward slitter) and the following year some adaptable cattle pens which were hugely effective and won a Gold medal at the 1991 Bath & West 'Farmer's Brainwaves' competition. He produced the Vol 1-1 in spring 1992.
There have been 26,000 pages of editorial, 5,500 workshop projects and a huge number of articles on farm finance and management. Workshop projects are often inexpensive and this gives them a massive return on capital.
The magazine was founded with muddy wellingtons and remains steeped in the practical side of the business, on the basis that an effective farmer needs all the husbandry skills going.
It continues to be published with no advertising and is financially totally dependent on subscribers and supporters. Farmers who have been inspired to build what they have read are sometimes want to make a donation. It has become an internationally relevant farming magazine for industry professionals around the world. Subscribe now for full access to our wide range of high-quality content.
General Farm Articles; articles for every farmer irrespective of enterprise. Tractor modifications such as power steps for disabled drivers are a good example.
Number of articles <600
Fencing, fertiliser spreading ideas, farm buildings, work platforms are included. Some more general cultivation equipment - but other implements are included in arable and other indexes like muck & slurry. Do look in hte complete index if you fail to find what you are looking for, and use the 'Search function at the top of the right hand column.
Each entry is located by the Volume, the Issue and the Page.
Livestock Articles; cattle rearing, calves, cows and dairy, sheep, pigs, poultry. Check those under grass and also muck
Index contents: < 1,500 articles
The Livestock index covers the feeding, housing, breeding, disease management and other aspects for the full range of farm livestock. Dairy and beef cattle and sheep make up the bulk of articles, but there are a number of very interesting ones on pigs. Poultry are less well represented.
Some other livestock ideas are found in the grassland index (which includes all hay and silage machinery), arable index (for sowing, fertilising techniques), muck and also the general index.
Arable Articles; cereals, potatoes, field vegetables, roots, planting, crop care and harvesting
Number of articles: < 600
HERE IS your guide to the ARABLE features which have been published in Practical Farm Ideas. Ideas which have cut farmers’ costs, improved performance, reduced labour and helped raise safety standards. Ideas which can benefit every arable farmer.
Each entry is located by the Volume, the Issue and the Page.
Farm Business and Finance Articles; loans and funding, cash management, benchmarking, and other management methods
HERE IS your guide to the specialist FINANCIAL features which have been published in Practical Farm Ideas since the magazine was first published in 1992 - 2010.
Each issue includes a two page "Financial Focus' which covers financial management, farm planning and financing, company structure, grants and subsidies, tax, including reliefs such as Agricultural Protery Relief.
Number of articles < 200
Each entry is located by the Volume, the Issue and the Page.
Health and the Farmer Articles; farm specific diseases such as leptospirosis, common farm health problems mental as well as physical
HERE IS your guide to the specialist HEALTH features which have been published in Practical Farm Ideas published in 1992 to 2010.
Farmers have specific health risks, some which are not often found in the general population. Orf, ringworm, leptospirosis (Weils disease) are some diseases. Then there are consequences of using chemicals, both pesticides and veterinary. In addition the farmer's physique can take a battering, even today.
Each issue from Vol 1 issue 1 to Vol 12 had a Health and the Farmer article, and later issues have health articles as an occasional topic.
Each entry is located by the Volume, the Issue and the Page.
Muck and Slurry Management Articles; spreading and storage, scraping and loading,
Safety and Made-it-Myself Children's Toys; projects of all sorts - and the pleasure of making toys for children
Farmers make wonderful parents and growing up on a farm is often said to be the ultimate childhood. A number of the farmers I visit not only make and adapt farm equipment, they make their children toys.
These sometimes extend to mini adventure parks. This indeex includes other workshop projects made BBQs, furniture, sculptures etc all help make the family farm a unique place to live and work. This Index is a real insight into how creative farmers are!
Each entry is located by the Volume, the Issue and the Page.
Environment Management Ideas; woodland and hedges, flood control
THIS INDEX includes all articles relating specifically to the environmental aspects of farming featured in Farm IDEAS magazine in issues published from 1992 to 2010.
All articles concerned with on-farm energy saving and generation; waste disposal including carcas incineration,on-farm fuels such as wood and log splitting; the effect of various regulations; improving the farm environment such as farm lanes, but not fencing and hedging which are in the general index; pest and bird control... all these are included here. Articles regarding recycling machinery (which is of-course of environmental benefit) are not, simply because the bulk of each issue features this activity. These articles are classified as ‘General’ - and every one published is included in the Complete Index.
Each entry is located by the Volume, the Issue and the Page.
Workshop Methods, Tips, and Ideas; welding, drilling, fitting, fault diagnosis
This Index includes a wide number of home built tools and clever methods devised by farmers and farm mechanics.
Contents: < 1000 articles
Farmers don’t spend time mak- ing tools for the fun of it - each is created to serve a need at the time. Workshops are all very different, and we see great ideas built in places where you would think the muddle was overwhelming!
This index includes methods, workshop layouts, lifts and tools. Also machinery service management. Mobile workshops.
Using the electronic version allows for quick searching with the ‘find’ function. Type in the word describing your inter- est and review the selection.
Each entry is located by the Volume, the Issue and the Page.
Grassland Management Articles; reseeding and overseeding, direct seeding, sward lifting and aerating, weed control, grazing systems.
HERE IS your guide to the features on Grassland. It includes seeding, repairing swards, making hay and silage. All processes from the clamp are under livestock.
More general fertiliser articles are in arable and general farming indexes. Do look in hte complete index if you fail to find what you are looking for.
Using the electronic version allows for quick searching with the ‘find’ function. Type in the word describing your inter- est and review the selection.
Each entry is located by the Volume, the Issue and the Page.