Settle in at the showground for a day of competition and conversation | Rural Notebook

Sheep studs from across the Central West will display a selection of their stud sheep and local commercial breeders will compete in the Super Six event for six young ewes.

The expo has established itself as a no-fuss venue for sheep producers to check what's on offer from various stud breeders and to spend a couple of quiet hours with industry peers.

Please support new president Stuart Kelly and his team as they present one of Bathurst's best displays for the sheep and wool industry.

THIS year's Burraga Sheep Show on Saturday, August 19 has sections for stud and commercial sheep, wool categories and champion ribbons if your entries are judged to be winners.

The Bathurst Merino Association-sponsored Hi5 for five young ewe teams is a tempting event for Merino breeders.

For a real country event at a quiet village, Burraga Sheep Show may be for you.

RECENT RURAL NOTEBOOK COLUMNS:

OUR district continues to dry out and spring rains will be really welcome.

A lot of fingers have been burnt as the beef markets slumped and restocker demand is not obvious at the tail end of winter.

A lot of hay is being fed every week and plenty of molasses is added to lower quality hay to make it a bit tempting.

Old hands are remembering plenty of spring seasons that failed to fire because of a lack of rain in July/August, but we all realise that the growing season will change overnight if the Rain Gods smile again.

WE must give credit to the Albanese Federal Government as they have worked hard to partially restore trade relations with China.

The Chinese Government took umbrage at the way the former Morrison Government reacted to the COVID-19 outbreak and most Australian exports were banned.

The current lifting of the ban on barley exports to China may well be worth $2 billion annually to our farmers and exporters.

Grape growers and wine exporters must be anxiously hoping that Chinese tariffs on their products will be next in line for a change.

REPORTS from stud bull sales are positive, with top prices and catalogue averages being viable for both buyer and seller.

Most buyers seem to study the estimated breeding values first and then make a detailed physical examination of the young bull.

In our district, we have a wide choice of cattle breed, lots of quality Angus, Charolais and Hereford in the main, and there are bulls in every price range to suit every budget.

There is excellent value in the store cattle pens with second calf Angus cows, to calve to Angus in September and in 3 score condition, being valued at not much more than $1500.

Fortunes are made and lost at times like this and we must never let fear stop us.

DAN and Nicola McMahon from the Oberon district featured in an article in the Whiteface cattle supplement in a recent edition of The Land and Stock And Land rural newspapers.

Dan's comments on his Hereford breeding strategy are well worth repeating: "I look for structural soundness and softness in my bulls and want them to be above breed average for growth. Fertiliser is a big priority. We want to maintain a moderate birth weight for a safe calving herd. I also look at rump fat and scrotal circumference as they go hand in hand with fertility."

The McMahons have one of our district's very best Merino flocks: Demondrille blood, snow white wool, long staple and good conformation.

Cheers to Nicola, Dan and your little family.

A REMINDER that we must notify neighbours, obtain a fire permit and contact the Rural Fire Service on 1300 258 737 if we want to light a fire.

Your local RFS leaders will help with any questions, but we must be careful even if you are just having a bonfire.

Social media has made it possible to alert a lot of interested parties when commonsense used to prevail.

Please, if you plan a burn-off or a bonfire, tick all the boxes first. It can cost a lot of money if RFS brigades arrive.

A REAL heads-up for all of us is the advance notice that the manufacture of internal combustion engines for passenger and commercial vehicles will cease in 2030 in the UK and Germany, and in 2035 in the USA, Canada, France, China, South Korea, Japan and Italy.

Of course, there will still be fuel supply for the vehicles and machines that we will operate after this date, but we have to accept that the days of petrol and diesel vehicles are numbered.

LAST night I held a little hand, so dainty and so sweet,

I thought my heart would surely break, so wildly did it beat.

No other hand in all the world could greater solace bring;

Than that sweet hand I held last night - four aces and a king.

A THOUGHT for the week: Life is too short to carry grudges; when you solve the problem, both parties will feel so much better.