The Grass Week: second-round grass looking set to be tight

March so far has been a world apart from what we experienced last year and the vast majority of farmers are progressing well, with many dairy farmers now close to the target percentage of 66% grazed by St Patrick's Day.

On the beef side of the house, the last two weeks has seen some early calved cows and/or yearling cattle hit grass, with reports from farmers being that minimal damage is being done and graze-outs are excellent where covers are chosen right.

A more pressing issue is that grass growth isn’t where it should be and with the second round rapidly approaching, farmers are worried that they will run out of grass just when cows start peaking and are approaching breeding.

Grass growth over the past few weeks has been consistently behind the norm for this time of the year, with regrowths on grazed paddocks in particular behind.

It’s important to remember as well that cow intake will continue to rise for the next few weeks, so factor this in to allocation and planning of grass.

Keep cows fed

The most important thing to do is to keep cows fed with high-quality feed.

Depending on what grass is on farm and when the planned start date for the second round is, high-quality silage can go into cows either at milking times or by housing at night.

Where grass is tight, pushing the start of the second round back will be required. If there is only a minor deficit envisaged, additional meal in the parlour can be given, but be careful to do this on a phased basis, especially with freshly calved cows.

For both drystock and dairy farms tight on grass, fertiliser application has to be kept up.

Where no fertiliser has gone out yet, do so immediately at a rate of 20 to 22 units/acre.

Where fertiliser went out on paddocks over three weeks ago, it may be worth another application of 15 units/acre to ensure nitrogen is not the lacking factor in growth.