Some dairy farmers are beginning to think about silage from outfarms or from paddocks that have gone too strong.
Many will try to get it into the pit rather than bales if yield is good.
Some will try to get it in a separate pit to the main cut so that they can keep a bit of quality silage for when it's required.
Cutting silage at the correct stage when grass is leafy leads to the best quality silage.
Every week you delay cutting crops that are ready from mid-May to early June results in a drop of 2.5 to three percentage units dry matter digestibility (DMD) per week.
When to cut
Aim to cut the silage when the sward is still dominated by leaves and young stem or before the seed heads emerge fully.
If the weather allows, wilting grass helps improve the digestibility of the silage made.
Grass has to be drying out for wilting to be beneficial, there’s no point leaving cut grass in large rows.
Preferably it should be tedded out to maximise the contact between the cut grass and the sun and air. Otherwise, leaving single rows as wide as possible in the field on a good dry day will help quality.
Another important point that farmers usually have control over is the time of cutting.
Morning dew in the grass can result in an extra 1t of water per acre harvested in the silage, compared with silage cut in the afternoon.
If the crop is at the correct stage for cutting and there is a dry settled gap in the weather, take it out once it is physically possible to do so.
Nitrogen in the silage
Some farmers have a fear of too much nitrogen in their silage at the time of cutting and decide to wait until they feel enough time has passed for the grass to use up all the available nitrogen.
Most local Teagasc offices or agri merhcants can test sugar levels in the silage.
Bring a good representative sample of the grass for harvesting to test the sugar levels and, if they are high enough, it will offset the effects of high nitrogen levels.
Wide range in quality
Soil fertility plays a big role in silage quality because it largely determines growth rate.
You must give back what you take off and that includes lime because high nitrogen applications will reduce soil pH.
Ryegrass-based swards lead to superior silage compared with old leys.
There can be a difference of five percentage units of digestibility between ryegrass and old leys. Ryegrass contains twice as much sugar and is easier to preserve compared with old grasses.
Soil fertility is key to a good yield when grass is at its optimum for cutting.Ryegrass-based swards are easier to preserve than old leys.Cut silage when a window of opportunity arises. When a crop is fit, every week's delay in cutting reduces quality by two to three percentage points DMD. Read more
Watch: Silage 2017 kicks off in Dublin Airport
Full coverage: Silage 2017
Some dairy farmers are beginning to think about silage from outfarms or from paddocks that have gone too strong.
Many will try to get it into the pit rather than bales if yield is good.
Some will try to get it in a separate pit to the main cut so that they can keep a bit of quality silage for when it's required.
Cutting silage at the correct stage when grass is leafy leads to the best quality silage.
Every week you delay cutting crops that are ready from mid-May to early June results in a drop of 2.5 to three percentage units dry matter digestibility (DMD) per week.
When to cut
Aim to cut the silage when the sward is still dominated by leaves and young stem or before the seed heads emerge fully.
If the weather allows, wilting grass helps improve the digestibility of the silage made.
Grass has to be drying out for wilting to be beneficial, there’s no point leaving cut grass in large rows.
Preferably it should be tedded out to maximise the contact between the cut grass and the sun and air. Otherwise, leaving single rows as wide as possible in the field on a good dry day will help quality.
Another important point that farmers usually have control over is the time of cutting.
Morning dew in the grass can result in an extra 1t of water per acre harvested in the silage, compared with silage cut in the afternoon.
If the crop is at the correct stage for cutting and there is a dry settled gap in the weather, take it out once it is physically possible to do so.
Nitrogen in the silage
Some farmers have a fear of too much nitrogen in their silage at the time of cutting and decide to wait until they feel enough time has passed for the grass to use up all the available nitrogen.
Most local Teagasc offices or agri merhcants can test sugar levels in the silage.
Bring a good representative sample of the grass for harvesting to test the sugar levels and, if they are high enough, it will offset the effects of high nitrogen levels.
Wide range in quality
Soil fertility plays a big role in silage quality because it largely determines growth rate.
You must give back what you take off and that includes lime because high nitrogen applications will reduce soil pH.
Ryegrass-based swards lead to superior silage compared with old leys.
There can be a difference of five percentage units of digestibility between ryegrass and old leys. Ryegrass contains twice as much sugar and is easier to preserve compared with old grasses.
Soil fertility is key to a good yield when grass is at its optimum for cutting.Ryegrass-based swards are easier to preserve than old leys.Cut silage when a window of opportunity arises. When a crop is fit, every week's delay in cutting reduces quality by two to three percentage points DMD. Read more
Watch: Silage 2017 kicks off in Dublin Airport
Full coverage: Silage 2017
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