Growth is now back to 58kg/day on average and for a lot of farmers this is close or equal to demand.
September is your last month to build grass unless you’re lowly stocked. According to PastureBase figures, a lot of farmers are behind target at the moment.
This may change, with reseeds and silage ground coming back in for some, but it is important to put a plan in place and ensure you reach an AFC of between 950kg/ha and 1,200kg/ha.
If you are behind target, it is important to feed now to build grass rather than planning on feeding silage in October to stretch out what grass you have, and here’s why. On paper, feeding silage in October works and you may have a plan which will get you to your target closing cover.
However, when you enter October you will be on your last rotation and how you graze out paddocks is extremely important as it sets up grass quality for the coming year.
So this needs to be a priority. Once silage is in the diet, graze-outs will suffer.
The next major focus on farms in October is getting 70% of the grazing block grazed before 1 November.
This is essential on farms that have early turnout and a compact calving pattern. It helps ensure a good grass supply in the spring.
Feeding silage will slow down cows and delay farmers from achieving this target. So if silage is needed to build grass and stretch out the grazing season, it should be fed this month.
Note if grazing conditions are unfavourable at any stage the plan may change and feeding silage in October may be necessary.
Growth is now back to 58kg/day on average and for a lot of farmers this is close or equal to demand.
September is your last month to build grass unless you’re lowly stocked. According to PastureBase figures, a lot of farmers are behind target at the moment.
This may change, with reseeds and silage ground coming back in for some, but it is important to put a plan in place and ensure you reach an AFC of between 950kg/ha and 1,200kg/ha.
If you are behind target, it is important to feed now to build grass rather than planning on feeding silage in October to stretch out what grass you have, and here’s why. On paper, feeding silage in October works and you may have a plan which will get you to your target closing cover.
However, when you enter October you will be on your last rotation and how you graze out paddocks is extremely important as it sets up grass quality for the coming year.
So this needs to be a priority. Once silage is in the diet, graze-outs will suffer.
The next major focus on farms in October is getting 70% of the grazing block grazed before 1 November.
This is essential on farms that have early turnout and a compact calving pattern. It helps ensure a good grass supply in the spring.
Feeding silage will slow down cows and delay farmers from achieving this target. So if silage is needed to build grass and stretch out the grazing season, it should be fed this month.
Note if grazing conditions are unfavourable at any stage the plan may change and feeding silage in October may be necessary.
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