Over the past week, parts of the south have received 30-60mm of much-needed rain – just what was needed to lift soil moisture back to ideal levels.
Soil temperatures are running 2–3°C above normal for this time of year, which will help growth. Farms that kept covers above 550–600kg DM/ha during the dry spell should now see a strong bounce in growth.
Extra feeding
Where average farm cover dipped below 550kg DM/ha, extra feeding will be needed for another week or so to let covers recover. As always, grass grows grass.
Growth in the midlands, north, and northwest has been flying over the past month to six weeks.
Many farmers have taken out paddocks for surplus bales just to stay on top of it. Where this has happened — or will happen — it’s important to replace the nutrients lost.
Every tonne of dry matter removed in bales takes away about 3.2 units of phosphorus (P) and 20 units of potassium (K). A compound like 18-6-12 or a round of slurry will help replace these nutrients.
Fertiliser planning
With 14 September fast approaching (the cut-off for fertiliser application) now’s the time to plan the final rounds. Take stock of what fertiliser you have and match it to paddock needs.
Some southern farmers may have held off spreading during the dry spell, while others in the northwest missed a round due to sticky ground. Factor that into your plan so grass can keep moving into the backend of the year. Utilisation of fertiliser will be much higher in August than in early September.
Walk the farm every five days to ensure that you stay on top of grass quality. Check your second-cut to see if it is fit to cut to allow the possibility of a third-cut.Fields that you plan to reseed this autumn should be burnt off in the next week and should be sown in the first week of August.Strip wires and back fencing may be needed on farms hit by last week’s torrential downpours, as ground remains sticky.Jerome Bernard – Riverstick, Co Cork
Growth slowed with the dry conditions, so we maintained
a 21-day rotation and increased meal to 5kg in the parlour. That has since dropped back to 3kg and will reduce further soon.
Thankfully, most of our silage ground is on the milking platform, which gave us 11 days of good-quality aftergrass to help us through the dry spell.
With 85mm of rain in the past 10 days, grass is recovering well.
We’ve 12 weeks of breeding done, and bulls will be pulled this week. Two vasectomised bulls were introduced after week six, which worked very well for spotting repeats. To date, we’ve grown 7.7 tonnes of grass.
Stocking Rate (cow/ha) 3.64
Growth Rate (kg/day) 49
Average Farm Cover (kg/cow) 217
Yield (l/cow) 23.25
Fat% 4.25
Protein% 3.67
Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.9
Concentrates 3
Karl Monahan – Clonfert, Co Offlay
It’s been a great year so far for growing grass, up a tonne on this time last year. Pre-grazing yields are around 1,450 kg DM/ha, though keeping on top of this has been a bit of a challenge.
We’ve already reseeded 10% of the platform and have another paddock sprayed off and ready to go.
Breeding wrapped up last week after 11 weeks, two more than usual as we’re expecting a strong demand for cows next spring.
We’re 100% AI, with no bulls. Early indications are showing an 84% six-week in-calf rate and 66% holding to first serve. Milk is up too, running 10% ahead on the same time last year.
Stocking Rate (cow/ha) 3.63
Growth Rate (kg/day) 91
Average Farm Cover (kg/cow) 190
Yield (l/cow) 22.1
Fat% 4.78
Protein% 3.78
Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.95
Concentrates 1.5
Gerard Finneran – Carignavar, Co Cork
Cover per cow dropped to 100kg over a week ago as growth slowed to the low 30s. It’s now back up to 53 kg/day and rising.
We were in a serious soil moisture deficit, but 50mm of rain last week has greened up paddocks that had turned orange. We’ll continue feeding heavily for another week, with silage the first to be cut once covers normalise.
Cows are milking well, up on average 24kg of milk solids/cow on this time last year. Breeding wraps up this week after 12 weeks. The top 15% of cows received sexed semen, with repeats covered by a Friesian.
The remaining got a conventional or an Angus.
Stocking Rate (cow/ha) 3.94
Growth Rate (kg/day) 53
Average Farm Cover (kg/cow) 129
Yield (l/cow) 22
Fat% 4.48
Protein% 3.65
Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.84
Concentrates 6
Over the past week, parts of the south have received 30-60mm of much-needed rain – just what was needed to lift soil moisture back to ideal levels.
Soil temperatures are running 2–3°C above normal for this time of year, which will help growth. Farms that kept covers above 550–600kg DM/ha during the dry spell should now see a strong bounce in growth.
Extra feeding
Where average farm cover dipped below 550kg DM/ha, extra feeding will be needed for another week or so to let covers recover. As always, grass grows grass.
Growth in the midlands, north, and northwest has been flying over the past month to six weeks.
Many farmers have taken out paddocks for surplus bales just to stay on top of it. Where this has happened — or will happen — it’s important to replace the nutrients lost.
Every tonne of dry matter removed in bales takes away about 3.2 units of phosphorus (P) and 20 units of potassium (K). A compound like 18-6-12 or a round of slurry will help replace these nutrients.
Fertiliser planning
With 14 September fast approaching (the cut-off for fertiliser application) now’s the time to plan the final rounds. Take stock of what fertiliser you have and match it to paddock needs.
Some southern farmers may have held off spreading during the dry spell, while others in the northwest missed a round due to sticky ground. Factor that into your plan so grass can keep moving into the backend of the year. Utilisation of fertiliser will be much higher in August than in early September.
Walk the farm every five days to ensure that you stay on top of grass quality. Check your second-cut to see if it is fit to cut to allow the possibility of a third-cut.Fields that you plan to reseed this autumn should be burnt off in the next week and should be sown in the first week of August.Strip wires and back fencing may be needed on farms hit by last week’s torrential downpours, as ground remains sticky.Jerome Bernard – Riverstick, Co Cork
Growth slowed with the dry conditions, so we maintained
a 21-day rotation and increased meal to 5kg in the parlour. That has since dropped back to 3kg and will reduce further soon.
Thankfully, most of our silage ground is on the milking platform, which gave us 11 days of good-quality aftergrass to help us through the dry spell.
With 85mm of rain in the past 10 days, grass is recovering well.
We’ve 12 weeks of breeding done, and bulls will be pulled this week. Two vasectomised bulls were introduced after week six, which worked very well for spotting repeats. To date, we’ve grown 7.7 tonnes of grass.
Stocking Rate (cow/ha) 3.64
Growth Rate (kg/day) 49
Average Farm Cover (kg/cow) 217
Yield (l/cow) 23.25
Fat% 4.25
Protein% 3.67
Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.9
Concentrates 3
Karl Monahan – Clonfert, Co Offlay
It’s been a great year so far for growing grass, up a tonne on this time last year. Pre-grazing yields are around 1,450 kg DM/ha, though keeping on top of this has been a bit of a challenge.
We’ve already reseeded 10% of the platform and have another paddock sprayed off and ready to go.
Breeding wrapped up last week after 11 weeks, two more than usual as we’re expecting a strong demand for cows next spring.
We’re 100% AI, with no bulls. Early indications are showing an 84% six-week in-calf rate and 66% holding to first serve. Milk is up too, running 10% ahead on the same time last year.
Stocking Rate (cow/ha) 3.63
Growth Rate (kg/day) 91
Average Farm Cover (kg/cow) 190
Yield (l/cow) 22.1
Fat% 4.78
Protein% 3.78
Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.95
Concentrates 1.5
Gerard Finneran – Carignavar, Co Cork
Cover per cow dropped to 100kg over a week ago as growth slowed to the low 30s. It’s now back up to 53 kg/day and rising.
We were in a serious soil moisture deficit, but 50mm of rain last week has greened up paddocks that had turned orange. We’ll continue feeding heavily for another week, with silage the first to be cut once covers normalise.
Cows are milking well, up on average 24kg of milk solids/cow on this time last year. Breeding wraps up this week after 12 weeks. The top 15% of cows received sexed semen, with repeats covered by a Friesian.
The remaining got a conventional or an Angus.
Stocking Rate (cow/ha) 3.94
Growth Rate (kg/day) 53
Average Farm Cover (kg/cow) 129
Yield (l/cow) 22
Fat% 4.48
Protein% 3.65
Milk Solids (kg/cow) 1.84
Concentrates 6
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