1 Nitrogen is to grass what Red Bull is to people

It gives an instant burst of energy. While most intensive dairy farms are spreading in the region of 30 units of nitrogen per month on the milking block, there is scope to increase nitrogen rates on outfarms, heifer blocks and beef farms.

In May, every 1kg of nitrogen grows 40kg of grass. So every bag/acre of CAN spread now will grow an extra 550kg of grass dry matter, equivalent to two round bales of silage at a cost of around €6/bale for the fertiliser.

So by spreading extra nitrogen, the stocking rates can be increased by grazing cattle on a smaller area and leaving aside more ground for silage. Spreading more than 30 units/acre in the month is not advised as the law of diminishing returns applies.

Spreading compound fertiliser will also boost growth rates, especially where there are deficiencies. Sulphur is the forgotten fertiliser on many farms.

Up to 20 units/acre should be spread over the year in deficient areas.

The amount of nitrogen and phosphorus that can be spread is governed by the Nitrates Directive, so check with your adviser about how much you can spread.

2 Prioritise quantity

Most farmers don’t need to make all top-quality silage. Dry cows that are dried off at the correct body condition score only need to put on a small amount of condition over the winter.

Silage quality in the mid to high 60s should be sufficient to achieve this. Going for lighter and higher-quality crops will make it very hard to build up reserves.

Around 60 to 70% of the silage made on most spring-calving dairy farms this year should be from heavy cuts, with the rest being higher-quality silage fed to producing animals at the shoulders.

This doesn’t mean first cut should be delayed longer than normal. I would still aim for an early June cut on most farms, to leave enough time for a decent second cut in late July.

3 Reduce surplus animals

A 600kg cull cow (not milking) will eat the equivalent of two round bales of silage per month.

That is what she will eat if in the shed, and that is the equivalent amount of grass she will eat if out grazing. The question is, are they better off on your farm, or someone else’s?

On most dairy farms, keeping cull cows and some beef cattle are not core to the business, but they still consume 10 or 20% of the feed grown on the farm. This is OK if you have enough feed, but where silage stocks need to be built up, reducing some of these non-core animals might be a good idea.