For the first time in months, there is no variation between growth in the north and west of the country compared to the east and south. The average growth rate is 54kg DM/ha/day nationwide, down 6kg DM/ha/day from last week. Most significantly, however, average growth rates across all regions are resting between 51kg and 58kg DM/ha/day.

As pointed out last week, cold nights and shorter days appear to be the new threat facing grass growth. Thankfully, there has been no significant drop in rates as of yet, with ground temperatures holding steady at 15°C.

Unfortunately, from here on in, growth rates are only going to go one way – the best we can hope for is that they decline at only a slow rate. With this in mind, it is critical to continue growing as much grass as possible now.

Fertiliser

Farmers across the country are reporting very good responses from fertiliser being spread.

Either one bag of CAN per acre or one and a half bags of 18:6:12 per acre are the preferred options. Where slurry has been spread, or will be spread, the former would be most suitable.

However, on ground that will not be receiving organic fertiliser this back-end the latter would be the best option to boost P and K levels in the soil now and throughout the winter.

If spreading slurry now, be cautious with the consistency and amounts applied. Blackening ground will not lend itself to a quick turn-around for grazing. Dilute where possible and reduce the level of application as needs be.

As a general rule of thumb, pure slurry has an N value of six units/1000gal when spread with a splash plate, and 10units/1000gal if spread with a trailing shoe.

Falling off the cliff

Those not spreading fertiliser post-grazing risk falling off a cliff in terms of grass growth. In particular, where heavy volumes of grass have grown in recent weeks, beware that if the soil and grass plant are not adequately replenished with the nutrients they require, growth risks stalling completely and at this time of the year, it will not get back growing again.

Tommy Holmes

Co Mayo

System Suckler/ weanlings to

bull beef

Soil type Variable

Farm cover (kg DM/ha 1135

Demand (kg DM/ha/day) 44

Growth (kg DM/ha/day) 67

Grass is still growing well up here in the northwest, mainly down to the increased soil temperatures. The weather is changing and nights are now a lot cooler but cattle are still thriving well outdoors. I’ve picked off the heaviest of my bulls and they are now being finished inside. I killed eight last week and was happy with fat scores and carcase weights. Hopefully meal won’t be as expensive as predicted. Higher variable costs are beginning to put the squeeze on dry stock farmers. Calving is going well with no casualties to report. I’ve plenty of grass ahead of me and I went with another round of fertiliser last week as I continue to build grass covers. My target is to keep cows until November even though I have enough silage for well over six months. I grew 15t DM of grass in 2017 and with the amount of surplus bales I’ve taken out so far, I’ve grown the same if not more this year.

Martin O’Hare

Co Louth

System Suckler to bull beef

Soil type Free-draining

Farm cover (kg DM/ha) 670

Demand (kg DM/ha/day) 95

Growth (kg DM/ha/day) 58

In the last few weeks grass has really started to push-on on the farm and as a result, there is a nice cover of grass present all around. This good growth is coming at a good time as I look to try and build covers as we head into the autumn. I have 53ac of second cut which will be harvested in the next 10 days and I will be aiming for around 6t to 7t per acre. The majority of paddocks have received fertiliser in the last two weeks and the entire farm will get at least one more application before the deadline. My autumn cows are currently in the middle of calving and so far, all is going well, thankfully. Last years’ autumn-born bulls are currently housed and on ad-lib meal and they will be finished around Christmas time. The last of the spring calving cows are being scanned this week and those that are not in calf will be meal-fed and finished before housing to spare fodder.

Shaun Diver

Tullamore farm Ltd.

System Suckler to beef/

replacement heifers

Soil type Variable

Farm cover (kg DM/ha) 541

Demand (kg DM/ha/day) 25

Growth (kg DM/ha/day) 59

Growth is 59kg DM/ha/day – up from 34kg DM/ha/day recorded in the week previous. While growth has picked up again, the farm cover is struggling to do the same. After this weeks’ grass walk, the average farm cover has come back at only 541kg DM//ha – this is below target but not unexpected due to the drought and an extremely slow return to meaningful grass growth rates. The farm has a high number of stock-groups leaving it difficult to keep grass in-front of all. To try and build-up the cover, a number of steps will be introduced. CAN was spread on 40ac of grazing ground at a rate of one bag per acre to boost growth. Concentrates will be increased from 3kg/head to 5kg/head with the 40 dairy heifers for finishing this winter. Cull cows will be weaned in the next two weeks and housed on a high-concentrate diet to build condition for slaughter. Ewes which were previously split to build BCS will now be joined together again to reduce the number of grazing groups.

John McSweeney

Co Cork

System Suckler/dairy calf to beef

Soil type Relatively dry

Farm cover (kg DM/ha) 451

Demand (kg DM/ha/day) 41

Growth (kg DM/ha/day) 38

On Tuesday I hosted the first of the Teagasc/Irish Farmers Journal BETTER farm autumn walks. I was very pleased with the crowd of over 100 people that attended. I hope the evening was informative and worthwhile for all that attended and I know I certainly learned a lot from the speakers present on the day.

This year has been an extremely difficult one for us here, with drought badly affecting the whole farm system. On the fodder front, plans to buy-in feeding and meadows were badly hampered. As well as that, grass supplies for grazing almost ran out completely. I was forced to sell stock early which I hadn’t planned for; 31 spring 2018-reared calves and just under 30 2017-born Angus and Hereford type steers were sold live. Going forward, I will re-think the type of stock I am buying in.

Thankfully things have turned around in the last three weeks with growth back up and running and my Redstart is performing very well.