Producing milk with high solids from grazed grass is the primary focus for Co Down dairy farmer Brian McCracken on his farm in Craigantlet near Newtownards.

“I would describe the farm as a New Zealand system adapted to local conditions,” Brian told members of the Greenmount Association during a visit to his dairy farm last week.

The herd compromises 200 Friesian KiwiCross crossbred cows in a spring-calving system. Brian said that cows calve down from 26 February, with half of the herd calving in two weeks, and 80% to 90% calved in six weeks.

The aim is to have cows at grass for eight and a half months per year with cows calving indoors and then going out to grass if and when the weather permits.

At present, cows are close to drying off and are yielding 13 litres at 5.27% fat and 4.12% protein from 2kg concentrates. The average herd yield is 6,000 litres from 600kg concentrates and projected milk solids (MS) yield this lactation is 451kg MS per cow with protein and butterfat at 4.64% and 3.66%, respectively.

“Good solids have allowed me to get through the downturn. I roughly estimate my milk price to be around 27p/l for October and November from a 2p/l winter bonus and 5p/l for solids. This would mean average price for the year will be around 23p/l,” Brian said.

Drying off

All cows are dried off during the first and second week of December. “There is no desire to milk for longer. It is a short season but we want to maximise the milk we produce during the growing season - 80% of our milk is produced from the end of February to the end of August,” Brian said.

Grazing will finish in mid-November with a target closing grass cover of 2,100kg dry matter per hectare. Cows were housed at night for the first time on 2 November.

Brian said that the good weather and late grass growth meant that there is a temptation to graze cows for longer. “But there are certain rules that you have to abide by in this system. One of the main ones is to save grass for spring,” he added.

Paddocks vary in size throughout the farm and are mostly grazed as whole blocks. In most paddocks, the only temporary fence put up is to split off around an acre of grass for cows in the last grazing.

Grazing

“If cows are getting four grazings in a paddock, for three out of four they will be well fed. They will then work during the last grazing to clean up the sward after they get the fresh bite that was fenced off,” Brian said.

He maintained that there is less chance of heifers getting bullied when cows are in the same block for more than one grazing. “For 12-hour breaks, you need a very accurate calculation of grass cover and demand to get the balance right,” he said.

A plate meter is not used on the farm. Instead, covers are measured by clipping grass in a quadrate and then weighing the sample and estimating dry matter content. Values are then put into Agrinet software to give growth rates and average covers.

“We try to feed the best quality grass all season to get good protein levels and a positive energy balance at breeding. On 6 May, cows were yielding 29 litres from 2kg concentrates,” Brian said.

Bales are made from heavier covers at times of surplus grass and there is limited topping done on the farm. “If I have to top, then I have done something wrong. We never blanket top a paddock and instead just go around the outside and around drinkers, only where residuals are heavy.”

Layout

There are 140 acres of owned land and approximately the same amount of land is rented. The farm extends from 450ft to 700ft above sea level and is quite steep in places. The parlour is positioned on one side of the farm meaning cows generally walk around two miles each day, so good feet and legs are a selection priority in breeding decisions.

Main platform

A central lane runs through the main grazing platform and paddocks also have several gaps to reduce traffic on grazed areas and around gate ways.

Compared with areas in the Ards peninsula that are at sea level, Brian estimated that the elevation of his farm meant soil temperatures were on average 1.5oC lower, meaning around a fortnight’s less growth in both the spring and autumn.

“Grass growth on average is around 12t/ha on the farm and the best performing paddocks are growing 14t. There is a range in growth rates and the more exposed areas grow less grass,” Brian said.

Reseeding is carried out specifically on underperforming paddocks. “Some swards have been in the ground since I was a child and are still productive. I am reluctant to reseed some of the colder areas as a tight sward is what is needed and some new varieties may open them up too much,” suggested Brian.

Breeding programme for block calving

During the breeding season, artificial insemination (AI) takes place once a day for five weeks, which is enough to produce 70 to 90 heifer calves. “My ideal cow is 500kg to 520kg body weight as a second calver and produces 80% of her weight in milk solids in a lactation. This is a commercial system, so I am after a cow that will last. The main traits I select for are milk solids, fertility and good feet and legs,” Brian said.

There are six AI bulls selected for use on the herd each year. Cows with more Friesian genetics get a KiwiCross bull and vice versa.

KiwiCross bulls are defined by the proportion of Jersey and Friesian genetics present, which is expressed in sixteenths.

For example, Te Aranga Ap Joseph is F3 J13 (3/16 Friesian and 13/16 Jersey) and is used on cows with mostly Friesian genetics. KiwiCross bulls with mostly Jersey genetics are used on all heifers on the farm for ease of calving.

Aberdeen Angus and Hereford bulls are used as sweepers after AI. Three weeks before breeding, all cows are tail-painted, so that any cow that hasn’t come on heat prior to the beginning of AI is identified and can be injected with estrumate. Cows were scanned in mid-September and had an empty rate of 8%.

Heifers are on an out-farm meaning it is more difficult to detect heats so fertility treatment is used in the form of CIDRs and estrumate. Heifers are then artificially inseminiated once and bulls are put in the next day to sweep up. Of the 60 heifers served this year, 57 turned out in calf and 44 are due to calve in the first four weeks

Milking parlour and winter housing

Cows are milked in a 30-unit swingover parlour fitted with modified pig feeders, meaning that all cows receive the same level of concentrates.

Brian said that the parlour was built in 2003 and was extended by six units four years ago, which took around 30 minutes off milking time. Two people are needed in the parlour for milking and there are no automatic cluster removers (ACRs) installed.

Brian said that the extension was viewed as a better investment than installing ACRs, especially given that it was completed at around half the cost. A herringbone crush and handling pens are positioned outside the parlour and are used for TB testing, tail clipping, vaccinating and pregnancy diagnosing.

During winter, cows are in one group in a cubicle house with round bales from surplus grazing covers fed initially when cows are still milking, and then clamp silage fed with a sheer grab thereafter. Cows receive dry cow minerals on top of silage from January.

Brian said that if weather turns bad in the spring cows can be housed with increased concentrates fed in the parlour. “You have to feed them what they need. This can be 6kg meal if cows are in and on silage, then the meal is taken off them when they go back out,” he said.