Grass growth rates: Farmers are recording exceptionally good growth rates and grazing conditions for mid-September. Most that were tight on grass have caught up on building up grass covers by now. As grass covers are quite heavy in some paddocks, don’t be afraid to use the strip wire, even though grazing conditions are perfect. I know it’s more work, but it will force cows to graze out paddocks better and milk solids yield won’t be as affected at this time of the year. You need to clean out paddocks well when you can. There may well be wet days to come when you won’t be able to clean out perfectly. Get the last days of the bag nitrogen out this week.

Be very careful on cutting out paddocks for bales at this time of the year. I know it’s exceptional growth, but regrowth will be slower. Maybe pre-cutting rather than baling would get you out for a hole for a paddock or two and leave a clean sward?

Scanning: I’ve had a number of queries this week from farmers who have scanned cows and found 10 to 20 cows empty. They are wondering what to do – sell now, milk on, dry off, but graze on and feed with a view to selling in January next year (new tax year for some)? Many with good young black and white Friesians (600kg plus) are considering holding them because there is lots of feed around and it could push income/output into January next year. The alternative is to take the €600 to €700/head available now.

The rule of thumb is to only hold cows that will fatten and put on condition. It won’t pay to keep lame or old cows, they won’t do well and feed conversion will be poor. Only hold cows if you have adequate wintering and feed space – don’t compromise feed space for cows that are in-calf.

You need to buy feed right and keep it uncomplicated. A simple three-way mix can be bought for €180/t. Only quality forage will work – poor to average quality forage won’t do much to put condition on. The decision to sell or keep will vary from farm to farm depending on answers to the above issues.

Vaccinations: Some experts suggest the use of the salmonella vaccine mid-pregnancy may prevent abortions caused by salmonella. While the vaccine available in Ireland is not licensed for this purpose, many spring-calving farmers will use it in September and October, with a view to preventing salmonella abortions. Talk to your vet if you have a problem.

Autumn-calvers should be done as well now and make sure to do what the label advises, at least three weeks prior to calving. The best advice suggests vaccinating all animals in herd at the same time for optimal control and not to administer other vaccines on the same day. Leptospirosis vaccination for the autumn-calvers pre-service is advised now and in mid-March for spring-calving herds.  

Remember the deadline for spreading chemical fertilizer is 14 September 2014.