I have taken more bales from the grazing platform this year than ever before, to stay on top of the grass growth and maintain grass quality for the herd.

Second-cut silage is going into the pit this week after eight weeks growth and crops are heavy. I have plenty of silage for the winter ahead and quality is good.

Cows are going round the grazing block in 25 days, and we are following up with a compound fertiliser to help with the deficiency in soil phosphate.

We are using 19 units/acre of 25-4-0 compound to follow cows, which is a low level due to plenty of grass.

However, I intend to increase this to 25 units/acre from now on.

Cows were very unsettled last week, with heavy downpours of rain in the Cavan area, while ground conditions just about remained acceptable. Cows have been restless and not grazing paddocks fully, with some poaching damage along hedges.

I increased concentrate in an attempt to get more energy into the herd, with 3kg of a 14% protein nut going in, which seemed to do the job. This week cows are back down to 1kg and producing 21.5 litres at 3.63% butterfat and 3.32% protein (1.53kg MS per cow).

With cows unsettled, grazing has been poor, so the topper will have to come out for some paddocks to clean off the grass left behind.

Herd grass demand is 45kg/ha with my stocking rate of 2.7cows/ha, which includes 10 acres of reseeded ground this year. Growth is starting to slow on the farm, making me think about building up some grass cover. Some silage ground will be able to come into the grazing block and the new grass, which has now been grazed once, will help build the average grass cover on the farm for autumn.

The new grass received lime, straight phosphate and potash fertiliser, based on soil analysis. Grass seed used was mostly late-heading diploid varieties with high ground cover characteristics. The mix was made up with three varieties: 6kg Glenveagh, 5kg Glenroyal, and 3kg Aspect.

A significant investment into land drainage and improvement was made before the actual cost of reseeding.

With cash in short supply at the moment, I did question the logic of the investment.

However, considering the area was producing next to no grass in its former state, I can now see the investment was good. Cows have had one grazing of the reseed already, and it’s ready to graze again.

David Brady Stradone Co Cavan

Rearing replacement heifers can be a major drain on farm resources. Land required for heifers and the labour involved to get heifers calving at 24 months is significant. A lot of effort is put into heifers, especially the first 15 months, to get heifers in calf at 350/360kg liveweight.

Once heifers are in calf, they tend to go into cruise control, with very little effort needed to hit target weights on this farm. This year’s February- and March-born calves are currently managed in one group, still receiving 1kg of concentrate at grass. This young group of 24 heifers went through the crush last week for a worm dose. The average weight of the group was 155kg, with 10 heifers below 130kg. These heifers will be split into two groups when they are housed over the winter, with the lighter heifers getting additional feed to push them on. I might consider feeding the smaller group in September and October to push them along also.

On average on this farm, 385kg/head of concentrate is fed to heifers each year. That’s a cost of almost €100/heifer, not to mind the labour aspect. If I had enough quality grass I know some other farmers that are feeding 10 to 20kg per heifer and getting the same liveweight gain performance.

The older group of in-calf heifers was AI bred in May and is now with a stock bull on an outfarm. Grass quality in front of the heifers is not ideal, because I was busy managing grass for the milking cows. This group of in-calf heifers is ahead of target for a calving weight of 560kg, so grass quality is not as critical. Currently the average weight of this group is 402kg, ranging from 370kg to 420kg. Average EBI of the heifers is €182, with the herd average €112.

From a cost perspective, my focus will be on reducing the number of heifers required. Last year, 22 heifers came into the herd, a replacement rate of 27%. Currently I have 19 heifers due to calve in February/March next. I don’t intend to expand over the next two years, so a replacement rate of 18% is my target for 2017, allowing for some stock sales this year to help with the cash situation. Our heifer rearing plan is based on liveweight targets for weaning, breeding and calving. In the short-term, my focus is on reducing the cost of rearing and the number of replacements needed for the main milking herd. This means breeding for longevity and good animal health traits.