Until now, grazing conditions have been relatively favourable for this time of year. We have seeen excellent clean-outs, even on farms grazing covers >2,000kg DM/ha.

However, recent downpours in parts of the country, particularly in the south, have forced farmers to adapt their grazing management strategies.

It’s crucial to continue weekly farm walks to assess ground conditions. In wetter areas, reintroducing strip grazing with 12-hour intervals can help minimize surface damage while improving grass utilization. However, the challenge is often in calculating the right grazing allocations.

A weekly farm walk and having an up-to-date measure of paddock covers can make this process easier. For farmers using PastureBase, the “grazing calculator” tool can be especially useful.

By entering your updated grass covers, cow numbers, and the desired allocation of grass, the calculator provides guidance on how many grazings each paddock can sustain and how to divide the area accordingly.

Minimizing paddock damage is critical as we move deeper into autumn. Paddock entrances and exits will become poached if constantly used. Using multiple access points can reduce the amount of traffic over the same ground, helping to preserve soil structure.

Back fences are also essential for both dairy and beef farms, preventing livestock from trampling over previously grazed areas.

Staying flexible and vigilant with grazing plans will help farmers navigate the unpredictable weather conditions we expect to occur in late October/early November.

Dry matter

Grass dry matter (DM) percentages have dropped to the low teens, with 13% recorded on several research farms this week. When DM is low, cows consume more grass to meet their intake requirements.

Swardwatch

  • This week, farms should aim to have 15-30% of the land closed off, depending on soil type.
  • Delaying closing paddocks by just one week can end up reducing spring grass supply by over 100kg DM/ha.
  • Choosing the right paddocks to close is crucial for setting up the farm for spring grazing.
  • To achieve good clean-outs, continue strip grazing and use back fences along with multiple access points to minimize damage and protect regrowth.

    • Farmers

    John Blackburn – Glanworth, Co Cork

    The cows are getting a fresh strip of grass after each milking. We’re also feeding palm kernel and 1-2 kg of silage at the feed barrier.

    Grazing conditions are excellent, and we aim to graze the 20 acres of this year’s reseeded paddocks before the weather turns too wet. We’ll graze for as long as the weather allows. Milk solids are holding steady compared to last year, even with 15 fewer cows in the herd.

    We have enough fodder for a four-month winter, but we might supplement with some palm kernel to conserve high-quality silage for calving season. Young stock will remain out until the week before Christmas.

    Stocking Rate (cow/ha) 2.57

    Growth Rate (kg/day) 40

    Average Farm Cover (kg/cow) 318

    Yield (l/cow) 15.2

    Fat% 5.17

    Protein% 4.29

    Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.48

    Concentrates 4

    Denis Finnegan – Coachford, Co Cork

    Growth rates improved over the past week, but we’re still behind our target. The main focus now is to ensure we close with an average farm cover of 800kg DM/ha.

    Based on the feed budget and a predicted growth rate of 35kg DM/ha over the next two weeks, the cows should be able to stay out until 12 November, grazing 14kg of grass along with 4kg of concentrate.

    Our in-calf rate after 11 weeks of breeding was 92%, with 84% of the cows expected to calve within the first six weeks, excluding the heifers. We’ve grown 12 tonnes of DM so far and hope to add another 1.5 tonnes by year end.

    Stocking Rate (cow/ha) 3.1

    Growth Rate (kg/day) -58

    Average Farm Cover (kg/cow) 265

    Yield (l/cow) 17.2

    Fat% 5.3

    Protein% 4.2

    Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.7

    Concentrates 6

    Sean Ryan – Loughrea, Co Galway

    Ground conditions have remained excellent. We fed 50-60 bales of silage in August, and the consistently strong growth over the past six weeks has set us up well for the final rotation.

    Cows are typically housed by 30 October, but this year we are aiming to keep them out for an additional 10 days, weather permitting.

    Our goal is to have a closing cover of 750kg DM/ha by 1 December. The cows are on 12 or 24-hour allocations, with pre-grazing yields of 2,500kg DM/ha, and clean-outs are good.

    So far, we’ve grown 11.2 tonnes of grass. We had a 11.5% empty after an 11 week breeding period.

    Stocking Rate (cow/ha) 3.02

    Growth Rate (kg/day) 60

    Average Farm Cover (kg/cow) 353

    Yield (l/cow) 13.4

    Fat% 5.77

    Protein% 4.51

    Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.42

    Concentrates 4.5