Establishing a tighter calving profile and improving grazing infrastructure are two key steps taken by Bill Brown in recent years that have allowed him to get cows out to grass earlier.
The first cows got out on Bill’s farm near Millisle, Co Down, on 14 February and there were 17 days of grazing before the weather broke and ground conditions deteriorated.
When conditions eventually improved, cows got back to grass last Tuesday and, so far, over half the milking platform has been grazed this season.
A grass walk last week showed average farm cover is at 750kg DM/ha (utilisable) and growth rate stood at 15kg DM/ha/day. A bag of urea per acre has been spread on the grazing block and outlying silage ground got three bags of 25:0:5 plus sulphur and slurry.
Bill is not happy with the residual covers being left by cows at present. He has put this down to cows not being hungry enough when they go out and grass allocations being too big.
Concentrate feed levels have been reduced, with cows averaging 6.5kg/cow/day, and less grass is being allocated to cows to encourage better clean-outs.
A grass walk last week showed average farm cover is at 750kgDM/ha (utilisable).
Around 135 cows that are mostly scanned in-calf were out at grass by day and night from last Friday. No total mixed ration (TMR) is being offered to this group anymore, which should also improve appetite for grass.
Steps
Since joining phase one of the Dairylink Ireland programme in 2015, Bill has reduced his calving spread from 24 weeks to less than 16. The main aim of this is to improve herd fertility, as cows that are slow to get in calf will not breed replacements and will eventually leave the herd.
Having more cows calving in early autumn allows Bill to capitalise on winter bonus payments and means more cows are over peak production and settled in calf by February, making them suitable candidates for early turn-out.
Bill has also further developed grazing infrastructure on the milking platform in recent years. He has laid additional laneways, constructed a bridge across a waterway and changed fencing to allow multiple entry points to paddocks.
The main aim on Bill’s farm is to produce more milk from forage, particularly from grazed grass in the spring by cows that are past peak milk yields and are scanned in-calf.
In 2018, the herd averaged 7,960 litres from 2.2t of concentrates, representing a milk from forage of 3,072 litres. Comparing this with 2015 when Bill joined Dairylink, milk from forage was up by 382 litres last year and feed rate was down from 0.28kg/litre to 0.25kg/litre.
However, milk from forage and feed rate on the Brown farm last year was not as good as 2017 levels due to an additional 250kg of concentrates being fed and average milk yields being down by around 200 litres. Both factors were mainly due to drought conditions during the summer on the Ards Peninsula.
Solids
Milk components have continued to increase on the Brown farm due to improved herd genetics and getting more milk from grazed grass. Butterfat and protein averaged 4.00% and 3.31% in 2018, up from 3.89% and 3.19% in 2015 respectively.
In the longer term, a question facing Bill is whether he remains focused on delivering 8,000 litres from 2t of meal or should he put an even greater focus on grass.
Cutting concentrate feeding and breeding cows to deliver more from grazed grass will further improve herd fertility, increase butterfat and protein and make it easier to hit target residual grass covers, although this must all be weighed up against a further reduction in the total volume of milk sold.
Close monitoring of production costs
Farm finances are closely monitored by Bill, with production costs logged monthly and then shared at the end of the year in a local discussion group as part of a cost analysis exercise.
Last year proved another good year on the Brown farm, with milk price averaging 28.3ppl over the 12-month period, up slightly from 28.1ppl during 2017.
As Figure 1 outlines, farm working expenses stood at 21.33ppl on the Brown farm last year, excluding drawings, loan repayments and taxation. This is up from 19.42ppl in 2017 and is partly due to higher concentrate costs stemming from increases in amount fed and price.
However, the main additional cost last year was with farm buildings work, which was paid for from cashflow. This involved a shed being renovated and extended for new calf-rearing facilities.
Farm facts
175 Holstein cows. Average yield 7,960 litres. 4.00% butterfat. 3.31% protein. 2.2t of concentrates.Dairylink April farm walks
Two participants in the second phase of the Dairylink Ireland programme are holding farm walks during April. The first event takes place on John Oliver’s farm near Limavady, Co Derry, on Tuesday 16 April and the second is on Frank Goodman’s farm near Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan, on Thursday 18 April. Further details will feature on this page over the next two weeks.
Read more
Watch: sub-optimal soil fertility on Dairylink farms
Dairylink: making the most of on-farm resources
Establishing a tighter calving profile and improving grazing infrastructure are two key steps taken by Bill Brown in recent years that have allowed him to get cows out to grass earlier.
The first cows got out on Bill’s farm near Millisle, Co Down, on 14 February and there were 17 days of grazing before the weather broke and ground conditions deteriorated.
When conditions eventually improved, cows got back to grass last Tuesday and, so far, over half the milking platform has been grazed this season.
A grass walk last week showed average farm cover is at 750kg DM/ha (utilisable) and growth rate stood at 15kg DM/ha/day. A bag of urea per acre has been spread on the grazing block and outlying silage ground got three bags of 25:0:5 plus sulphur and slurry.
Bill is not happy with the residual covers being left by cows at present. He has put this down to cows not being hungry enough when they go out and grass allocations being too big.
Concentrate feed levels have been reduced, with cows averaging 6.5kg/cow/day, and less grass is being allocated to cows to encourage better clean-outs.
A grass walk last week showed average farm cover is at 750kgDM/ha (utilisable).
Around 135 cows that are mostly scanned in-calf were out at grass by day and night from last Friday. No total mixed ration (TMR) is being offered to this group anymore, which should also improve appetite for grass.
Steps
Since joining phase one of the Dairylink Ireland programme in 2015, Bill has reduced his calving spread from 24 weeks to less than 16. The main aim of this is to improve herd fertility, as cows that are slow to get in calf will not breed replacements and will eventually leave the herd.
Having more cows calving in early autumn allows Bill to capitalise on winter bonus payments and means more cows are over peak production and settled in calf by February, making them suitable candidates for early turn-out.
Bill has also further developed grazing infrastructure on the milking platform in recent years. He has laid additional laneways, constructed a bridge across a waterway and changed fencing to allow multiple entry points to paddocks.
The main aim on Bill’s farm is to produce more milk from forage, particularly from grazed grass in the spring by cows that are past peak milk yields and are scanned in-calf.
In 2018, the herd averaged 7,960 litres from 2.2t of concentrates, representing a milk from forage of 3,072 litres. Comparing this with 2015 when Bill joined Dairylink, milk from forage was up by 382 litres last year and feed rate was down from 0.28kg/litre to 0.25kg/litre.
However, milk from forage and feed rate on the Brown farm last year was not as good as 2017 levels due to an additional 250kg of concentrates being fed and average milk yields being down by around 200 litres. Both factors were mainly due to drought conditions during the summer on the Ards Peninsula.
Solids
Milk components have continued to increase on the Brown farm due to improved herd genetics and getting more milk from grazed grass. Butterfat and protein averaged 4.00% and 3.31% in 2018, up from 3.89% and 3.19% in 2015 respectively.
In the longer term, a question facing Bill is whether he remains focused on delivering 8,000 litres from 2t of meal or should he put an even greater focus on grass.
Cutting concentrate feeding and breeding cows to deliver more from grazed grass will further improve herd fertility, increase butterfat and protein and make it easier to hit target residual grass covers, although this must all be weighed up against a further reduction in the total volume of milk sold.
Close monitoring of production costs
Farm finances are closely monitored by Bill, with production costs logged monthly and then shared at the end of the year in a local discussion group as part of a cost analysis exercise.
Last year proved another good year on the Brown farm, with milk price averaging 28.3ppl over the 12-month period, up slightly from 28.1ppl during 2017.
As Figure 1 outlines, farm working expenses stood at 21.33ppl on the Brown farm last year, excluding drawings, loan repayments and taxation. This is up from 19.42ppl in 2017 and is partly due to higher concentrate costs stemming from increases in amount fed and price.
However, the main additional cost last year was with farm buildings work, which was paid for from cashflow. This involved a shed being renovated and extended for new calf-rearing facilities.
Farm facts
175 Holstein cows. Average yield 7,960 litres. 4.00% butterfat. 3.31% protein. 2.2t of concentrates.Dairylink April farm walks
Two participants in the second phase of the Dairylink Ireland programme are holding farm walks during April. The first event takes place on John Oliver’s farm near Limavady, Co Derry, on Tuesday 16 April and the second is on Frank Goodman’s farm near Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan, on Thursday 18 April. Further details will feature on this page over the next two weeks.
Read more
Watch: sub-optimal soil fertility on Dairylink farms
Dairylink: making the most of on-farm resources
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