Grazing difficulties: The cold weather in the past week has kept growth rates low, causing concern for farmers on dry ground that are moving quickly through the first rotation, while those on heavy farms are struggling to graze off silage ground. For those on dry ground, low grass growth could cause a shortage of grass supply in the second rotation, particularly on farms that had a delayed start to the grazing.

Where growth rates are struggling, or where fertiliser has only been spread in the past week and the average farm cover is dropping rapidly (under 550kgDM/ha), it may be worth avoiding turning any additional stock to grass but feeding some silage at grass to slow the rotation slightly. If growth rates pick up in the coming week, then additional stock can be turned out again.

Those on heavy farms have the opposite issue. For those who normally close up for silage in the first week of April, there are only two weeks left to get silage ground grazed and slurry applied. With heavy rain forecast in many areas, this will compound the difficulty. Avoid damaging the sward if possible. During periods of heavy rain try and move stock to drier fields or to stand-off pads for short periods of time to allow ground to soak before grazing again.

Planning slurry for silage ground: It is important to get slurry out on silage ground to meet the P and K requirements of the crop. Spreading slurry in summertime will result in about half the availability of N due to volatilisation, so getting it out now will save on the amount of nitrogen required to grow the crop. To avoid contamination of grass, slurry should only be spread on grass covers of <6cm/500kgDm/ha. Teagasc estimates that average quality slurry contains about six units N, 5 P and 30 units K per 1,000gals. Where you are considering applying slurry to grazed ground, only do so if grazed very bare and if the slurry is very watery. Before applying slurry to swards that will be grazed again in the next 30-35 days, consider the palatability issues.

Controlling ragwort: While cattle will not generally eat ragwort in the field, if it is present in silage or hay or in topped swards, it can pose a serious risk to cattle. Along with this, you are required to control the weed under GAEC. Farmers who have a serious issue with ragwort in pasture should act early in the year to control it. Herbicides or sprays are most effective against ragwort when it is in the rosette stage, which normally occurs in March or April. Where a pasture will be grazed, spraying with a suitable herbicide such as MCPA should take place from mid-February to late March. With colder weather in recent weeks, growth has been slower. Where ragwort is in silage fields, spraying before the flowering stage can also be effective, but spraying should take place well in advance of harvesting to allow the plant to wither before harvest.