The average level of grass growth across the country for the last seven days is 53kg/ha/day which is about 20% below normal, according to the latest PastureBase figures from Teagasc.
Head of the Teagasc Grass10 programme John Maher said farmers were adapting and reacting well to the current growing conditions. The average level of grass demand on farms is similar to the growth figure at 51kh/ha/day.
However, Maher pointed out there was significant variations across the country with grass growth much lower in eastern parts of the country at 45kg/ha/day.
A number of strategies and recommendations from Teagasc to deal with the current period of difficulty are outline here, in the weekly Grass10 newsletter.
Farm buildings
Elsewhere, Teagasc farm buildings specialist Tom Fallon has stressed that the next six months will be very busy for farm buildings. Applications under the latest TAMS tranche closed on Friday 5 June with the number of applications the highest to date.
“Farm building contractors are likely to be very busy for the rest of the year due to the loss of valuable time during the COVID-19 related restrictions, and the pending closure of TAMS at year end,” Fallon said.
However, he argued that just because contractors were busy did not mean construction costs would increase.
He outlined a number of factors including:
An increased availability of labour due to COVID-19 where the effect has been less severe in the farming sector. The completion dates for TAMS will extend into 2022 so all building work can be done in an orderly fashion reducing the need for a rush to get work done. Read more
THRIVE programme: grass growth slows and weaning progress
Farmer Writes: a sunburnt heifer and slow grass growth
The average level of grass growth across the country for the last seven days is 53kg/ha/day which is about 20% below normal, according to the latest PastureBase figures from Teagasc.
Head of the Teagasc Grass10 programme John Maher said farmers were adapting and reacting well to the current growing conditions. The average level of grass demand on farms is similar to the growth figure at 51kh/ha/day.
However, Maher pointed out there was significant variations across the country with grass growth much lower in eastern parts of the country at 45kg/ha/day.
A number of strategies and recommendations from Teagasc to deal with the current period of difficulty are outline here, in the weekly Grass10 newsletter.
Farm buildings
Elsewhere, Teagasc farm buildings specialist Tom Fallon has stressed that the next six months will be very busy for farm buildings. Applications under the latest TAMS tranche closed on Friday 5 June with the number of applications the highest to date.
“Farm building contractors are likely to be very busy for the rest of the year due to the loss of valuable time during the COVID-19 related restrictions, and the pending closure of TAMS at year end,” Fallon said.
However, he argued that just because contractors were busy did not mean construction costs would increase.
He outlined a number of factors including:
An increased availability of labour due to COVID-19 where the effect has been less severe in the farming sector. The completion dates for TAMS will extend into 2022 so all building work can be done in an orderly fashion reducing the need for a rush to get work done. Read more
THRIVE programme: grass growth slows and weaning progress
Farmer Writes: a sunburnt heifer and slow grass growth
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