Cows out grazing for three hours in west Clare last week. Ground conditions on heavy soils are only OK for on/off grazing.
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Fertiliser:
Grass growth is good after a mild winter and spring. Most farmers spread nitrogen earlier than normal too and this has definitely boosted growth. The result is that there is much more grass on farms than normal. Even farms that have been able to get a lot of grazing in have much higher average covers than normal. This could present an opportunity to spread less nitrogen at this time. The normal rule of thumb for nitrogen is to have 70 units/acre spread by the end of March and 100 units/acre spread by the end of April. Rather than skipping a round of nitrogen, I would suggest spreading a bit less at this time. The nitrogen saved could be spread later in the year. Alternatively, buy less nitrogen or store existing supplies for next year and spread more chemical phosphorus and potash now on low index land. Instead of going with urea in this round, many farmers are now routinely going with two bags per acre of 18:6:12 across the farm in late March to satisfy maintenance requirements. They are then spreading more 18:6:12 later in the year on the fields that need buildup. Be conscious of spreading too much potash on land as it could restrict magnesium uptake in cows and lead to grass tetany.
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Fertiliser:
Grass growth is good after a mild winter and spring. Most farmers spread nitrogen earlier than normal too and this has definitely boosted growth. The result is that there is much more grass on farms than normal. Even farms that have been able to get a lot of grazing in have much higher average covers than normal. This could present an opportunity to spread less nitrogen at this time. The normal rule of thumb for nitrogen is to have 70 units/acre spread by the end of March and 100 units/acre spread by the end of April. Rather than skipping a round of nitrogen, I would suggest spreading a bit less at this time. The nitrogen saved could be spread later in the year. Alternatively, buy less nitrogen or store existing supplies for next year and spread more chemical phosphorus and potash now on low index land. Instead of going with urea in this round, many farmers are now routinely going with two bags per acre of 18:6:12 across the farm in late March to satisfy maintenance requirements. They are then spreading more 18:6:12 later in the year on the fields that need buildup. Be conscious of spreading too much potash on land as it could restrict magnesium uptake in cows and lead to grass tetany.
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