Looking at the long range weather forecast, with high temperatures and no rain worth talking about, it now seems inevitable that much of the country will be facing into a drought scenario.

The latest data on soil moisture deficits (SMD) from Met Eireann shows that as predicted, most of the country is now at a soil moisture deficits greater than 40mm with some of the worst affected areas with an SMD up over 70mm.

When SMD goes above 40mm it starts to impact grass growth and the higher the deficit the greater the impact and the longer it will take for recovery.

In this weather, it is expected that SMD increases by about 10mm to 12mm per week, so next week places that are at 40mm today will be up over 50mm and so on.

The current weather is already having an impact on grass growth rates and many farmers are feeding zero grazed grass, silage or extra concentrates to support cow intakes.

Decisions around when to start feeding extra supplement should be made based on average farm cover, growth rates and the impact of the weather on the individual farm.

Many farmers still have plenty of grass on farms and I’m always slow to encourage high supplementation rates too early because a lot of the time all that happens is that grass gets pushed out ahead of the cows and eventually withers back before it is grazed.

It is now inevitable that most farmers, particularly in Leinster, Munster, east Ulster and east Connacht will have to feed some silage or other feeds to support grass growth.

Rather than worrying about this and dreading the prospects, farmers and those working on farms may as well lean into it and enjoy the sunshine in the process.

There are a couple of points to note. Firstly, cows are usually very content during a drought and are happy to graze out paddocks to the scut and while the material looks very low quality, cows continue to perform well when grazing it. Plus, it means the subsequent regrowth is very high quality.

Secondly, the low milk price is concern because it changes the economics of dealing with a grass deficit in summer. Rather than feeding a lot of concentrates, it might make more sense to feed more silage instead.

Thirdly, try not to get stuck watching the weather. Weather apps can show rain in the forecast and then it can disappear again, causing frustration and apps.

Finally, farmers need to mind their own and their colleagues health in the sun. Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer so farmers should wear hats and sun cream when working outdoors.