Kale: The next two weeks is the time to sow kale if you want to winter young stock or cows on it next winter. You can plough and till the field or some farmers will spray off a silage crop before cutting and direct drill the seed into the aftermath and then plough and reseed with grass next spring when kale is finished. With more dry weather forecast, it may be better to wait until some rain is on the way to plant. Aim for a field that dries out quickly and this will ease management next winter.

Kale requires extra labour during the winter months moving fences and checking stock daily. You also need good fences and a strong electric fence to make sure it is grazed properly. It’s a good idea to place a line of bales of silage in the field at sowing time and then the feeder can be moved with the fence at feeding time in winter.

Animals also need access to 1ha/LU of lieback in order to meet cross-compliance requirements. Sowing rate depends on the sowing method – if sowing via the broadcast method, sow 3-3.5kg/acre and if direct drilling sow at 2-2.5kg/acre. Kale requires high fertility levels and the optimum soil pH is 6-6.7. You will need to spread three bags/acre of 10:10:20 at sowing time and top dress with two bags CAN/acre later. Other hybrid varieties of rape and kale can be planted later in the year but yields won’t be as high as kale planted now.

Silage: With a lot of silage being cut this week, those thinking of closing up for a second cut should plan their fertiliser requirements now. Slurry should be applied first with about a week left between slurry and fertiliser applications to avoid nitrogen losses. As grass growth and yields are generally lower than in the first cut, the advice is to go with 70 units/acre (2.5 bags of 27.5 CAN/acre) on old pasture and around 80 units/acre on perennial ryegrass swards.

Take account of nitrogen in any slurry that has been spread, though nitrogen recovery will be lower in summer. One thousand gallons of slurry should contain about three units of nitrogen (N), five units of phosphorus (P) and 30 units of potassium (K). Get as much slurry out now as you can when ground conditions are good and nutrients can be returned to silage fields where they are needed.

BPS amendments: BPS applicants have until Sunday 31 May to change or amend any land details submitted on their BPS application. Any changes after this date may result in a penalty. Make sure you are happy with all deductions and that you have all the land included on your BPS application that you will be farming in 2020.

Farm Safety: With children around yards more due to COVID-19, keep safety at the top of your priorities. At silage time, yards can get very busy and children shouldn’t be allowed in the yard at this time. Remember to close all tanks once slurry spreading is complete. On a quiet day, have a walk around the yard with your children and encourage them to identify the risks and potential dangers. Explain to them why things are dangerous. Education and culture change is key in reducing farm deaths.