Curtins Farm in Moorepark grew 79kg/day over the past seven days. Normally, we wouldn’t expect this level of growth until May, but the fact that it has arrived now means that action must be taken now or else grass will get out of hand very quickly.

Farmers who are good at managing grass will walk the farm twice a week and take action to keep average farm cover between 150 and 180kg per cow. This might involve skipping over paddocks and/or re-introducing paddocks that were intended for silage if growth rate drops or if the outlook for growth changes.

Demand

Remember, the goal is to provide the best quality feed for the milking cows and this is young, leafy grass which is green to the base with a cover of between 1,200 and 1,500 kg/ha.

Keep an eye on demand - this is the growth rate you require to maintain average farm cover. Some farmers will set demand at 70 or 80kg per day at this time of year, which is fine in the short term, but if the plan is to keep demand at this level until after first cut silage this could be a risky strategy.

It might be better to cut out one or two paddocks for bales in the next few weeks, which will drop the demand and allow these paddocks to be included in the rotation again.

Breeding

Today is the day many farmers will start breeding heifers. Heat detection is critically important to achieve good results. Many will put the heifers in a paddock near the house and check them a couple of times per day.

The choice of heat detection aid is more important in heifers. Because heifers are lighter, some farmers feel that tail paint is not suitable as they don’t have sufficient force to rub it off. When applying kamars and scratch cards make sure they are put in the correct place along their back. Most farmers will use carpet glue in addition the adhesive on the device to make sure it sticks well.