Drought

There is rain in the long-range forecast for the end of next week, but we have seen that in the forecast before only for it to evaporate closer to the time. By all accounts, the worst effects of the drought will be when the rain does come. The problem then is that dead grass will disappear so the amount of feed on the farm will drop meaning the need for supplement will continue.

But it’s not all doom and gloom, cows are milking well on most farms and are in excellent body condition. While there’s not much grass on farms, what is available is high dry matter so cows are easily contented once they have enough water. See page 31 for tips on dealing with water shortages. A reservoir or water storage tank is the critical piece of infrastructure. A direct feed from a well that is under pressure is a disaster because the requirement for water is very uneven. If the cows can’t get water when they need it, they will become very unsettled very quickly.

In terms of feed, we have seen supplies of palm kernel dry up with the next delivery not due until mid-August. Soya hulls have come down in price to around €200/t. Some merchants are making up fodder stretcher rations that can be fed at high rates (up to 10kg/cow/day). These are coming in a nut so can be fed through the parlour. I’m hearing prices of around €230/t for these type of rations at 16% crude protein.

Whole-crop wheat

There is a lot of talk about whole-crop wheat, but it is of limited value in most situations. In terms of cost, even paying €620/acre for spring barley is expensive. It works out at 20c/kg which is the same as soya hulls. The difference is you don’t have to commit to buying soya hulls now.

Buying whole-crop ties up a lot of money in a feed that is difficult to store and difficult to feed. The attraction of whole-crop is that it’s a forage source. But the forage element is straw which has a low feeding value. I think farmers would be better off holding out rather than panic buying whole-crop as it is overpriced. You only need to have 50% of your silage requirements to get through the winter – the rest can be stretched with meal. Where less than 50% of silage will be made, consider reducing stock numbers, sending out animals on B&B or sowing forage crops such as hybrid rape on an outside block.

Stock

It’s a dangerous time to be a lame, empty or a high cell count cow. Many farmers are making the decision to offload problem or underperforming cows. This is a good decision and the right response to a drought. Selling 10% of the herd now increases the total amount of feed available to the remaining animals by 2kg/day. Or, in other words, 2kg less meal or silage will have to be fed to the remaining animals provided grass remains constant. Prices in the factories have dropped as a glut of cows have come on the market. Another option is to dry off cull cows or young cows and put them on a maintenance diet on an out farm until the drought is over.

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