Farmer Writes: urea to follow slurry for early growth

Thankfully, we started February on a positive note with a clear TB test, which is a massive weight off our shoulders.

This means we can sell calves as needed and sell cull cows without having to continue feeding them for the factory, thereby conserving our already limited silage stocks. So far, 55 out of our 85 spring-calving cows have calved. Although it’s early days, the freshly calved spring batch is milking well, averaging 30 litres at just 16 days in milk. Meanwhile, the autumn-calving batch is maintaining an average of 30 litres at 129 days in milk.

I finished artificially inseminating on 22 February, concluding eight weeks of breeding for the autumn-calving batch. While it is still not possible to determine whether all the cows are in-calf, our first scan – covering the first three weeks of breeding – showed a promising 56% conception rate. Hopefully, the results from the final five weeks of breeding will be just as strong and the majority of the autumn-calving batch will be back in calf.

Slurry

I have yet to take the first grass measurement of the year, but it is on my to-do list for the week ahead.

Fortunately, the second week of February delivered some decent weather, making ground conditions ideal for spreading the first slurry of 2025. All fields near the lagoon received 2,500 gallons per acre of slurry using the umbilical system, which pumped directly from the lagoon. This system proved to be highly efficient, with the contractor managing to shift 1.8m litres and cover approximately 135ac in just two and a half days.

Besides its efficiency, this method also significantly reduces ground compaction compared to the conventional tractor and slurry tanker system, especially around gateways and headlands.

Additionally, we were able to spread slurry on the silage ground at our out-farm. The ground was surprisingly dry for this time of year, allowing us to cover a larger proportion of land than usual for early February.

Fertiliser

Another key task on the list for this week is sowing fertiliser, provided the ground conditions allow.

Our plan is to apply half a bag of urea per acre across most of the ground at home to give the grass a much-needed boost. With a few dry and milder days in the forecast, we hope to get this done soon and kickstart the growing season.

This week, we also received the results from the Soil Nutrient Health Scheme samples taken from each field.

I was pleasantly surprised by the pH levels of soils. Whilst we have been applying lime to a few fields every year, it’s reassuring to see that this effort has paid off and can be seen in the results.

I usually soil sample a few fields annually, but it is very useful to have individual soil data for every field.

Although we bought a load of urea at the end of 2024 for early-season growth, we will assess all the soil results to determine the fertiliser and slurry requirements for each field, for the year ahead.

Over the next few weeks we will continue to monitor ground conditions and grass growth, with the hope that in my next update, the cows will be out grazing and our reliance on silage will be significantly reduced.