Grass growth is currently outpacing demand on many farms, with PastureBase figures showing a 17kg DM/ha difference in favour of growth.
While this is positive, managing grass quality is now a top priority as growth rates typically begin to drop heading into August.
The average pre-grazing yield is 1,500kg DM/ha, which is too high. Grazing covers over 1,400kg DM/ha often leads to poor utilisation, higher residuals, and lower-quality regrowth. This is especially noticeable now, with dung pads leaving tufts and uneven swards.
Where these are common, target pre-grazing yields closer to 1,200kg DM/ha to maintain quality. Aim to keep average farm cover per livestock unit between 180 and 220 kg DM/ha. Any paddocks with covers over 1,500kg DM/ha should be removed immediately. Be strategic when choosing which paddocks to take out – those with heavy dung pad build-up or ones that haven’t been cut yet this year should be prioritised.
With growth exceeding demand, now is a good time to cut back on meal feeding. This won’t last long, as we’ll soon need to shift focus toward building covers for the autumn rotation. Current PastureBase data shows the average cover per cow is 219 cover/LU, giving farmers a good base to work from.
If you have a significant surplus on-farm, reduce meal to the minimum. Any surplus grass removed now can contribute to winter fodder stocks. However, act fast – paddocks taken out should be cut and returned to the grazing platform quickly to stay on track as we move into the next phase of the season.
Walking the farm every five to seven days will help track growth changes and make timely grazing or cutting decisions. Maintaining grass quality now will support milk solids through late summer.
Swardwatch
Building grass supply should be a top priority as August approaches, with the key to building grass supply being rotation length.Target is to increase from 18 to 20-day rotation to a 25-day rotation by mid August.Focus on soil fertility throughout August – lime and K should be applied on all farms, with a recommendation of 2t/acre of lime and targeted K application, depending on soil results and silage offtakes.Peter and Nelius Irwin, Kilmeedy, Co Limerick
We’ve made the most of strong grass growth this year and completed plenty of reseeding. Ten percent of the farm was reseeded in April, with another 7% sprayed off earlier this month. These paddocks will return to the rotation shortly. Over 6.8t of grass has been grown so far. We’ve kept meal feeding under 2kg since early June. Grass went stemmy for a round or two, but we tidied it up with pre-mowing, topping and surplus bales. Pre-grazing yields are at 1,500 kg DM/ha with good clean-outs. We did 11 weeks of AI, using sexed semen on selected cows and beef on the rest. Milk is holding steady, with 5% fewer cows.
Stocking Rate (cow/ha): 3.5
Growth Rate (kg/day): 69
Average Farm Cover (kg/cow): 205
Yield (l/cow): 18.5
Fat%: 4.93
Protein%: 3.88
Milk Solids (kg/cow): 1.68
Concentrates: 1.8
Fergal Coughlan, Innishannon, Co Cork
We’re on a 22-day rotation, grazing in 24 to 36-hour blocks. Cows are getting 15 kg of grass, 3kg of meal, and 1kg of zero-grazed grass. Cover per cow dropped to 126kg 12 days ago due to a soil moisture deficit, but growth has improved with recent rain. Supplement fed over the next few weeks will align with autumn grazing targets. Cows are being followed with 17 units of 25:2.5:10 + 4 sulphur, with reduced rates on clover swards. We’ve grown 8.3t of grass so far, up 5% on last year. Milk solids are up 8% despite 5% fewer cows, helped by protein % up 0.18 on milk supplied YTD.
Stocking Rate (cow/ha): 4.04
Growth Rate (kg/day): 68
Average Farm Cover (kg/cow): 171
Yield (l/cow): 20.62
Fat%: 4.91
Protein%: 4.12
Milk Solids (kg/cow): 1.92
Concentrates: 3
John Russell, Ballylawn, Co Donegal
Grass growth has been strong this year, helped by consistently mild conditions, a big change from the cold winds of last year. Grass quality has held up well, with much of the sward being cleaned up over recent rounds. We’re on 12-hour breaks, grazing covers of 1,450–1,500kg DM/ha. Third-cut silage is planned for next week, weather permitting. Bulls only came out this week after 11 weeks of AI, which began on 10 May. We’ve another milk recording planned shortly and will use this opportunity to pregnancy check cows. Flies have been a real challenge and we’ve had to dose cows a few times already to keep them under control.
Stocking Rate (cow/ha): 3.79
Growth Rate (kg/day): 68
Average Farm Cover (kg/cow): 205
Yield (l/cow): 25
Fat%: 4.04
Protein%: 3.71
Milk Solids (kg/cow): 2
Concentrates: 4
Grass growth is currently outpacing demand on many farms, with PastureBase figures showing a 17kg DM/ha difference in favour of growth.
While this is positive, managing grass quality is now a top priority as growth rates typically begin to drop heading into August.
The average pre-grazing yield is 1,500kg DM/ha, which is too high. Grazing covers over 1,400kg DM/ha often leads to poor utilisation, higher residuals, and lower-quality regrowth. This is especially noticeable now, with dung pads leaving tufts and uneven swards.
Where these are common, target pre-grazing yields closer to 1,200kg DM/ha to maintain quality. Aim to keep average farm cover per livestock unit between 180 and 220 kg DM/ha. Any paddocks with covers over 1,500kg DM/ha should be removed immediately. Be strategic when choosing which paddocks to take out – those with heavy dung pad build-up or ones that haven’t been cut yet this year should be prioritised.
With growth exceeding demand, now is a good time to cut back on meal feeding. This won’t last long, as we’ll soon need to shift focus toward building covers for the autumn rotation. Current PastureBase data shows the average cover per cow is 219 cover/LU, giving farmers a good base to work from.
If you have a significant surplus on-farm, reduce meal to the minimum. Any surplus grass removed now can contribute to winter fodder stocks. However, act fast – paddocks taken out should be cut and returned to the grazing platform quickly to stay on track as we move into the next phase of the season.
Walking the farm every five to seven days will help track growth changes and make timely grazing or cutting decisions. Maintaining grass quality now will support milk solids through late summer.
Swardwatch
Building grass supply should be a top priority as August approaches, with the key to building grass supply being rotation length.Target is to increase from 18 to 20-day rotation to a 25-day rotation by mid August.Focus on soil fertility throughout August – lime and K should be applied on all farms, with a recommendation of 2t/acre of lime and targeted K application, depending on soil results and silage offtakes.Peter and Nelius Irwin, Kilmeedy, Co Limerick
We’ve made the most of strong grass growth this year and completed plenty of reseeding. Ten percent of the farm was reseeded in April, with another 7% sprayed off earlier this month. These paddocks will return to the rotation shortly. Over 6.8t of grass has been grown so far. We’ve kept meal feeding under 2kg since early June. Grass went stemmy for a round or two, but we tidied it up with pre-mowing, topping and surplus bales. Pre-grazing yields are at 1,500 kg DM/ha with good clean-outs. We did 11 weeks of AI, using sexed semen on selected cows and beef on the rest. Milk is holding steady, with 5% fewer cows.
Stocking Rate (cow/ha): 3.5
Growth Rate (kg/day): 69
Average Farm Cover (kg/cow): 205
Yield (l/cow): 18.5
Fat%: 4.93
Protein%: 3.88
Milk Solids (kg/cow): 1.68
Concentrates: 1.8
Fergal Coughlan, Innishannon, Co Cork
We’re on a 22-day rotation, grazing in 24 to 36-hour blocks. Cows are getting 15 kg of grass, 3kg of meal, and 1kg of zero-grazed grass. Cover per cow dropped to 126kg 12 days ago due to a soil moisture deficit, but growth has improved with recent rain. Supplement fed over the next few weeks will align with autumn grazing targets. Cows are being followed with 17 units of 25:2.5:10 + 4 sulphur, with reduced rates on clover swards. We’ve grown 8.3t of grass so far, up 5% on last year. Milk solids are up 8% despite 5% fewer cows, helped by protein % up 0.18 on milk supplied YTD.
Stocking Rate (cow/ha): 4.04
Growth Rate (kg/day): 68
Average Farm Cover (kg/cow): 171
Yield (l/cow): 20.62
Fat%: 4.91
Protein%: 4.12
Milk Solids (kg/cow): 1.92
Concentrates: 3
John Russell, Ballylawn, Co Donegal
Grass growth has been strong this year, helped by consistently mild conditions, a big change from the cold winds of last year. Grass quality has held up well, with much of the sward being cleaned up over recent rounds. We’re on 12-hour breaks, grazing covers of 1,450–1,500kg DM/ha. Third-cut silage is planned for next week, weather permitting. Bulls only came out this week after 11 weeks of AI, which began on 10 May. We’ve another milk recording planned shortly and will use this opportunity to pregnancy check cows. Flies have been a real challenge and we’ve had to dose cows a few times already to keep them under control.
Stocking Rate (cow/ha): 3.79
Growth Rate (kg/day): 68
Average Farm Cover (kg/cow): 205
Yield (l/cow): 25
Fat%: 4.04
Protein%: 3.71
Milk Solids (kg/cow): 2
Concentrates: 4
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