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In general, land is a lot drier this spring compared to last year, so the risk of damage is less. That said, each farm is different, so make the call based on the conditions you have. Don’t listen to negative influencers saying you can’t or you shouldn’t – do what is right for you and for your farm.
The spring rotation planner is a nice tool to keep track of what area you should be grazing per week, but it is not the only tool in the box – you should be keeping one eye on average farm cover too.
The aim should be to start the second round in early April at a cover of 500kg/ha. Any more than this and you have wasted supplement, any less than this and you will reduce growth rate over the following weeks.
Some people like to keep cows in at night for the first few weeks and feed silage. This is OK if it’s wet but if conditions are good then I’d prefer to leave them out, as I think cows do more damage and graze poorly when there is a lot of silage in the diet. Grass is a superior feed and the outdoors is a healthier environment for cows than being cooped up in a shed surrounded by health risks.
Grass+ dairy: a good forecast for early grazing
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