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Teagasc ran a drought and feed management event in Ballyclough, Co Cork, on Thursday to highlight best management practices over the drought period. Topics covered on the day were current management, water, winter feed and alternative feed for supplementation.
Grassland management
Adrian Hughes spoke about the importance of rotation. It should be kept between 25 and 27 days. Each farm will have their own method of dealing with grass shortage. The main objective is reduced daily grass intake to the level of daily growth or below it. Reduce the grass demand by feeding up to 6kg of concentrates plus silage; typically grass 33%, concentrates 33% and silage 33%.
“Be under no illusion that you need to plan for the next three weeks”, said Adrian. Alternatives to concentrate supplements were also discussed such as soya hulls and palm kernel. If farmers intend to purchase alternative feeds, they should do so immediately as stocks are expected to last for the next two weeks. Once they are gone they will not be replenished until August, according to Adrian.
Water
Water requirements for milking cows is 120 to 140 litres per day currently. Some 200 litres/day should be supplied per cow. Trough capacity and pipe size must be correct. Farmers were considering placing troughs near the parlour. According to Tim Doody (pictured), if it does not restrict cow flow then it can take the pressure off the trough in the field. After milking, cows drink 50% of their daily water intake. Cows should be provided with adequate shade in paddocks also.
Fodder
Fodder budgets were discussed on the day. All farmers need to measure their pits and figure out how much of a deficit needs to be filled. As many farmers have started grazing their second-cut silage, alternative feeds were discussed by tillage adviser Michael McCarthy.
Whole-crop feeds are an option for farmers. Michael encouraged farmers to look at the field they are buying and he identified ways to assess the quality of a crop.
Grain should be past the milky stage and have a slight texture to it for whole-crop wheat or barley. “Farmers need to be prepared to pay more than market price as there are other options for tillage farmers”, said Michael. Straw was described as the elephant in the room – it is expected that there will be 1.5m less 4x4 round bales this year.
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