With the current slow grass growth rate, farmers have been put under pressure to try and and achieve some sort of peak milk supply, as the conditions this summer have been stagnating production.
Over the last two to three weeks, there has been an increase in extra supplementation being added to a lot of diets around the country.
Now, more than ever should be the time to get out and walk the farm on a regular basis, considering the lower than average growth rates.
Grass growth
Grass growth rates are back again this week, with a drop to 51kg dry matter DM/ha with a demand of 50kg DM/ha, leaving grass very tight on most farms.
According to PastureBase Ireland, the typical diet around the country consists of 14kg DM of grass, with 4kg of meal and an added 1kg of silage being fed in an effort to hold the rotation at 21 days.
Warmer weather has arrived and is forecasted to stick around for the next number of days, which will hopefully see grass growth rates improve.
The urgency of correcting grass quality paddocks might be a priority for many in order to get them into the next rotation with fresh grass, but it should be avoided.
However, avoid getting into a full rotation of correcting grass quality. Doing so may put your farm into an unnecessary grass deficit, as it will drop grass growth rates by 20-30kg DM/ha.
Targets for mid-season should be:
- An average farm cover of over 600kg DM/ha which equates to 150kg DM/LU;
- A rotation length of 21-24 days;
- A pre-grazing yield of over 1200kg DM/ha.
The goal for this time of the year should be making sure that your cows daily intake requirements are being met, ensuring an intake of 18-18.5kg DM/cow.
Increase average farm cover
The recommendations have been to bring your grass demand down with the farm grass growth, and keeping a close eye on how regrowths are progressing.
If there is an option to introduce more grazing area to your rotation, it should be considered in an effort to hold your rotation at 21 days, at least.
The introduction of high quality silage of about 3/4kg cow/day in a combination with concentrates, as increasing your concentrates supplementation alone will not be sufficient to increase the rotation length.
Fertilising should continue to give the grass the best chance of rapid growth, as paddocks with no clover should be getting 20-25kg N/ha of chemical or organic N.
For clover paddocks, the clover content should be 20% or higher, before considering a significant reduction in N input.