It’s either a feast or a famine, and right now it’s a bit of a famine for grass supplies, as growth has failed to kick in to any significant gear this spring. Despite the excellent grazing conditions, growth just hasn’t taken off. Even where daytime temperatures are warm, it’s the nighttime temperatures that are causing harm, with soils failing to warm up – this will particularly affect organic farmers (such as Ken below) who are dependent on clover to push on growth, as clover likes warmer soils.It’s important to not deplete covers too much over the next week or two, as we refer back to the old mantra ‘grass grows grass’. Holding as much cover as possible will mean that there is more green leaf area there to capture sunlight and kick off growth when the warmer temperatures do come.
It’s either a feast or a famine, and right now it’s a bit of a famine for grass supplies, as growth has failed to kick in to any significant gear this spring. Despite the excellent grazing conditions, growth just hasn’t taken off. Even where daytime temperatures are warm, it’s the nighttime temperatures that are causing harm, with soils failing to warm up – this will particularly affect organic farmers (such as Ken below) who are dependent on clover to push on growth, as clover likes warmer soils.
It’s important to not deplete covers too much over the next week or two, as we refer back to the old mantra ‘grass grows grass’. Holding as much cover as possible will mean that there is more green leaf area there to capture sunlight and kick off growth when the warmer temperatures do come.
Ken Gill,Clonbollogue, Co Offaly
Grass is very slow to take off here, with the colder soil temperatures not suiting the clover in the sward. I have the autumn born weanlings turned out to grass, but yearlings and cows are still indoors. Hopefully stores will go out in the next week, with cows going out the week after. Silage ground has been grazed and slurry applied, and with no mulching done on the red clover sward last back end, this will likely be cut early May.
System:Organic suckler to beef
Soil Type:Variable
Farm cover (kg/DM/ha):323
Growth (kg/DM/ha/day):8
Demand (kg/DM/ha/day):7
Niall O’Meara,Killimor, Co Galway
Grass is extremely tight. Some 15% of the farm was spread with 20 units of protected urea/acre, with and additional 25 acres injected with 2,000 gallons slurry/acre last week to try push on growth.
The rest of the farm will get protected urea as soon as possible.
Weaning will take place next week, so intake of cows will be reduced to aid drying them up. Weanlings are receiving 1kg meal/head/day in the run up to weaning.
System :Suckler to weanling
Soil Type:Variable
Farm cover (kg/DM/ha):246
Growth (kg/DM/ha/day):10
Demand (kg/DM/ha/day):26
Jack Spillane, Tipperary
calf farm, Co Tipperary
All store cattle are out at grass now and on 24-hour breaks. Two rounds of N has been spread to date, with another round likely to be spread in 10 days’ time. For this round we will go with 22-24 units/acre of 38N+S to give ground some sulphur – with 60 units of this blend also likely to go on the silage ground next week.
Another 35 calves are landing today (Wednesday), which will bring our total up to 270.
System :Dairy calf to beef
Soil Type:Variable
Farm cover (kg/DM/ha):647
Growth (kg/DM/ha/day):19
Demand (kg/DM/ha/day):21
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