As dairy calf to beef farms prepare for the start of winter, the Thrive Programme will host two farm walks on preparation for housing, winter nutrition and growth targets as well as looking at cattle performance at grass this year.

On Thursday 28 October at 3pm we head to John Brosnan outside Castleisland, Co Kerry, while the following day at the same time we visit the farm of Diarmuid and Sean Murray outside Knockcroghery in Co Roscommon.

This is a free event, however all attendee’s must register via the form below.

Winter costs

The winter period is when a significant proportion of feed costs are incurred and so having a proper nutrition plan is important to manage finances.

While there is plenty of fodder on most farms heading into this winter period, it is still important to get as much production from the feed on farm as possible. This, alongside targeted concentrate feeding where required, will be key to ensure cattle continue to hit target growth rates over the winter period.

Grazing

Currently there are still 2021-born calves grazing on both farms and given the amount of grass on farm, the plan is to hold these stock out until early November weather permitting.

Provided stock are still at grass, we will also discuss management over the final few weeks of grazing and the farms closing strategy to ensure adequate grass covers are available for turnout in spring.