February and March couldn’t have been more contrasting when it came to grazing. Even the heaviest of farms were getting away with virtually no damage at the start of the grazing season, while even the driest were struggling when the weather turned in March.
Thankfully, ground has dried out rapidly as the rain has subsided, with the difference in conditions underfoot between the morning and evening milking surprising most.
If it hasn’t been already completed, getting back on track with fertiliser application should be the priority for all farmers.
The remainder of the week appears settled, which should give a window to get the milking platform up to date, while N utilisation should be high with the predicted growths given.
At this stage of the year, the cost effectiveness of using straight urea as opposed to protected really needs to be questioned, so this should be considered when purchasing fertiliser.
Having spoken to a lot of farmers over the past couple of weeks, fertiliser application on silage ground has been delayed for nearly everyone.
This needs to be tackled in the next few days. Delaying application any further will result in either a reduced yield or high nitrogen levels in grass come cutting time, if normal application rates and cutting times are followed.
While utilisation levels of nitrogen are dependent on growth, farmers targeting an early-mid May cut of silage really need to consider if 100 units is the best option, or should it be peeled back.
Maiden heifers should be out to grass at this point, and ideally sooner, to give them at least one reproductive cycle at grass before breeding commences.
Get fertiliser out on the milking platform if applications have lapsed. Use of straight urea has to be questioned at this time of the year.Apply fertiliser on silage ground if not already completed. Consider the volume of N going out between chemical and organic fertilisers.Try to get any maiden heifers to grass so as to allow for adjustment before you commence breeding.James Hoey, Dunleer Co Louth
Cows had been in the past two weeks due to the weather but are back out again full time. We have 90% of the first round grazed, having grazed 50% of it in February.
We’ve skipped on to a dry paddock in the second round as the final grazings in the first round are on wetter paddocks, with the hope being we will get in to these at the weekend.
Growth is set to really take off, with a bag of urea/acre spread last week across the majority of the milking platform.
Our predicted growth for the coming week is 64 kg, so we should definitely grow over 50kg.
Stocking Rate (cows/ha) 3.94
Growth Rate (kg/day) 32
Average Farm Cover (kg/ha) 841
Yield (l/cow) 24
Fat % 4.14
Protein% 3.31
Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.84
Supplement fed (kg/cow/day) 4
Sean Roberts – Old Ross, Co Wexford
Growth has really taken off, although ground is still a little damp. However, if the rain subsided for a few days ground would dry up rapidly, so it’s not a major concern at the minute.
We have just started the second round today (Wednesday). With such strong cover, we are going to measure again in a few days and then decide based on weather and growth conditions what we are going to take out.
The milking block was spread with 18-6-12 this week, having gotten urea earlier in the year. Silage ground has received 80 units of N, with a target of cutting early, high-quality silage in mid-May.
Stocking Rate (cows/ha) 3.74
Growth Rate (kg/day) 44
Average Farm Cover (kg/ha) 1,125
Yield (l/cow) 24
Fat % 4.45
Protein% 3.33
Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.92
Supplement fed (kg/cow/day) 3.5
Donal Patton – Teagasc Ballyhaise, Co Cavan
Growth is normal for this time of the year, and with some improved weather we could see that climb to 40-45kg in the next week.
We have 74% of the first round grazed, with approximately 10 days of grazing left. We will likely finish this off, grazing first round by day and second round by night for the final few grazings.
We have a full bag of urea spread on the milking platform this week. Silage ground has received 80 units of N, with a target cutting date of the 20 May. We will hopefully cut 18 acres of red clover silage in the two weeks before this, having received no chemical N.
Stocking Rate (cows/ha) 2.6
Growth Rate (kg/day) 30
Average Farm Cover (kg/ha) 700
Yield (l/cow) 21
Fat % 5.1
Protein% 3.39
Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.83
Supplement fed (kg/cow/day) 2
February and March couldn’t have been more contrasting when it came to grazing. Even the heaviest of farms were getting away with virtually no damage at the start of the grazing season, while even the driest were struggling when the weather turned in March.
Thankfully, ground has dried out rapidly as the rain has subsided, with the difference in conditions underfoot between the morning and evening milking surprising most.
If it hasn’t been already completed, getting back on track with fertiliser application should be the priority for all farmers.
The remainder of the week appears settled, which should give a window to get the milking platform up to date, while N utilisation should be high with the predicted growths given.
At this stage of the year, the cost effectiveness of using straight urea as opposed to protected really needs to be questioned, so this should be considered when purchasing fertiliser.
Having spoken to a lot of farmers over the past couple of weeks, fertiliser application on silage ground has been delayed for nearly everyone.
This needs to be tackled in the next few days. Delaying application any further will result in either a reduced yield or high nitrogen levels in grass come cutting time, if normal application rates and cutting times are followed.
While utilisation levels of nitrogen are dependent on growth, farmers targeting an early-mid May cut of silage really need to consider if 100 units is the best option, or should it be peeled back.
Maiden heifers should be out to grass at this point, and ideally sooner, to give them at least one reproductive cycle at grass before breeding commences.
Get fertiliser out on the milking platform if applications have lapsed. Use of straight urea has to be questioned at this time of the year.Apply fertiliser on silage ground if not already completed. Consider the volume of N going out between chemical and organic fertilisers.Try to get any maiden heifers to grass so as to allow for adjustment before you commence breeding.James Hoey, Dunleer Co Louth
Cows had been in the past two weeks due to the weather but are back out again full time. We have 90% of the first round grazed, having grazed 50% of it in February.
We’ve skipped on to a dry paddock in the second round as the final grazings in the first round are on wetter paddocks, with the hope being we will get in to these at the weekend.
Growth is set to really take off, with a bag of urea/acre spread last week across the majority of the milking platform.
Our predicted growth for the coming week is 64 kg, so we should definitely grow over 50kg.
Stocking Rate (cows/ha) 3.94
Growth Rate (kg/day) 32
Average Farm Cover (kg/ha) 841
Yield (l/cow) 24
Fat % 4.14
Protein% 3.31
Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.84
Supplement fed (kg/cow/day) 4
Sean Roberts – Old Ross, Co Wexford
Growth has really taken off, although ground is still a little damp. However, if the rain subsided for a few days ground would dry up rapidly, so it’s not a major concern at the minute.
We have just started the second round today (Wednesday). With such strong cover, we are going to measure again in a few days and then decide based on weather and growth conditions what we are going to take out.
The milking block was spread with 18-6-12 this week, having gotten urea earlier in the year. Silage ground has received 80 units of N, with a target of cutting early, high-quality silage in mid-May.
Stocking Rate (cows/ha) 3.74
Growth Rate (kg/day) 44
Average Farm Cover (kg/ha) 1,125
Yield (l/cow) 24
Fat % 4.45
Protein% 3.33
Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.92
Supplement fed (kg/cow/day) 3.5
Donal Patton – Teagasc Ballyhaise, Co Cavan
Growth is normal for this time of the year, and with some improved weather we could see that climb to 40-45kg in the next week.
We have 74% of the first round grazed, with approximately 10 days of grazing left. We will likely finish this off, grazing first round by day and second round by night for the final few grazings.
We have a full bag of urea spread on the milking platform this week. Silage ground has received 80 units of N, with a target cutting date of the 20 May. We will hopefully cut 18 acres of red clover silage in the two weeks before this, having received no chemical N.
Stocking Rate (cows/ha) 2.6
Growth Rate (kg/day) 30
Average Farm Cover (kg/ha) 700
Yield (l/cow) 21
Fat % 5.1
Protein% 3.39
Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.83
Supplement fed (kg/cow/day) 2
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