Weather: Grazing conditions went from perfect to abysmal in just a few hours on Tuesday which meant that most herds had to be rehoused.
With more rain forecast for the weekend, we could be in for a tricky spell.
A couple of pointers:
Rain in March is very different to rain in February. Land will dry out much quicker now if given a chance.Don’t graze while it’s raining, even on dry land. Use on/off grazing to keep some grass in the diet. Most farmers will feed some silage in the shed but make sure cows aren’t full of silage when they do go out to grass. When cows have an appetite they will do very little damage in a three hour grazing stint. Avoid grazing high covers in the wet as the area will be smaller and more feed will be walked into the ground.
Wet weather grazing is a balancing act between getting grass into cows and avoiding poaching fields. If cows need to be housed to avoid damage, then so be it. Inputs: There is concern among farmers and suppliers about the availability of farm inputs later this season. Issues with fertiliser are well known but I’m told there is still some available to be purchased now.
Cost is high and cash-flow is an issue on some farms but the question is whether farmers afford not to buy it?
The impact on grass growth will be substantial. I think most farmers will be worse off by not having fertiliser to spread than by buying expensive fertiliser now.
Short-term credit facilities should be available either from merchants, banks or the credit union. It’s unlikely that prices will fall any time soon, so delaying purchase risks the product not being available when you need it.
The availability of meal or concentrate feeds is another issue that may or may not come about.
While most dairy farmers will get by with less concentrate feeding one potential issue is how to feed essential minerals and vitamins if these are currently being fed through the meal. There are alternatives available such as feeding essential minerals through the water, either through a dosing system or adding to the trough manually.
Slurry: I spoke to a farmer last week who lost cows through slurry gas.
Soon after he started agitating, five cull cows at the back of the shed collapsed and four never got back up. The situation could have been much worse if more cows happened to be in the shed at the time, or worse still if a person died. We’ve all heard the saying ‘evacuate and ventilate before you agitate’ but farmers can be guilty of taking chances, especially when they are busy.
One mouthful of slurry gas can kill instantly. The highest risk is shortly after starting the agitator. Where there are no external agitation points, leave the area for 30 minutes after starting and leave the area again immediately after changing the direction of the outlet. Slurry gas detectors are available to buy from some agri-merchants for less than €100. These are easy to use and can be clipped on to the operators belt or wellington when agitating slurry.
Weather: Grazing conditions went from perfect to abysmal in just a few hours on Tuesday which meant that most herds had to be rehoused.
With more rain forecast for the weekend, we could be in for a tricky spell.
A couple of pointers:
Rain in March is very different to rain in February. Land will dry out much quicker now if given a chance.Don’t graze while it’s raining, even on dry land. Use on/off grazing to keep some grass in the diet. Most farmers will feed some silage in the shed but make sure cows aren’t full of silage when they do go out to grass. When cows have an appetite they will do very little damage in a three hour grazing stint. Avoid grazing high covers in the wet as the area will be smaller and more feed will be walked into the ground.
Wet weather grazing is a balancing act between getting grass into cows and avoiding poaching fields. If cows need to be housed to avoid damage, then so be it. Inputs: There is concern among farmers and suppliers about the availability of farm inputs later this season. Issues with fertiliser are well known but I’m told there is still some available to be purchased now.
Cost is high and cash-flow is an issue on some farms but the question is whether farmers afford not to buy it?
The impact on grass growth will be substantial. I think most farmers will be worse off by not having fertiliser to spread than by buying expensive fertiliser now.
Short-term credit facilities should be available either from merchants, banks or the credit union. It’s unlikely that prices will fall any time soon, so delaying purchase risks the product not being available when you need it.
The availability of meal or concentrate feeds is another issue that may or may not come about.
While most dairy farmers will get by with less concentrate feeding one potential issue is how to feed essential minerals and vitamins if these are currently being fed through the meal. There are alternatives available such as feeding essential minerals through the water, either through a dosing system or adding to the trough manually.
Slurry: I spoke to a farmer last week who lost cows through slurry gas.
Soon after he started agitating, five cull cows at the back of the shed collapsed and four never got back up. The situation could have been much worse if more cows happened to be in the shed at the time, or worse still if a person died. We’ve all heard the saying ‘evacuate and ventilate before you agitate’ but farmers can be guilty of taking chances, especially when they are busy.
One mouthful of slurry gas can kill instantly. The highest risk is shortly after starting the agitator. Where there are no external agitation points, leave the area for 30 minutes after starting and leave the area again immediately after changing the direction of the outlet. Slurry gas detectors are available to buy from some agri-merchants for less than €100. These are easy to use and can be clipped on to the operators belt or wellington when agitating slurry.
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