Recent rainfall invariably has brought about mild temperatures and higher night time temperatures – all in all desirable to maintain growth rates on farm which in the past week have ranged from 26 to 44 kgDM/ha/day. In general, growth rates are still ahead of those expected for the time of year, but 9am soil temperatures now consistently below 12 degrees indicating that growth will inevitably slow.

The weekly updates of the past two weeks have focused on the strategy for closing paddocks and associated issues – they allow us to plan for the end of grazing – but of course things don’t always go to plan. Grazing conditions, soil conditions, growth rates, cow performance etc. all conspire to throw us off course. So, lets look at two contrasting scenarios and the issues surrounding them.

Farm A:
AFC – 1140 kgDM/ha / 405 kgDM/cow
Issues:
a. Farm cover is well ahead of target and expected growth for remainder of season shows that budgeted closing cover will be 700 kgDM/ha – too high. Solution: Keep demand on grass as high as possible - minimal concentrates while grass dry matter is high. Delay drying off of cows and keep them at grass providing body condition on the farm is sufficient.

b. % of farm closed is 20% and should be 30% closed at this stage. Solution: Some heavy covers are still of good quality and some are going off i.e yellow tips and yellow at the base– persevere in grazing the paddocks that are “going off” then move immediately to the light covers on the farm – continue grazing these until back on target and revert to heavier covers again. Essential to know what percentage is grazed at any time.

c. Now grazing long growing heavy covers in wet weather conditions – cows are not grazing out the paddocks and are dirtying the grass. Solution: In wet weather graze in 12 hour allowances with strip wires but most critically, drive a high appetite. Keep the cows in after milking for 2-3 hours – once they go out their appetite is high and they are focused on grazing – not walking! When on 12 hour allowances be prepared to keep and look at the cows grazing at least once during the grazing – 12 hour allowances in heavy covers usually mean that space is restricted and in these heavy showers the ground can get poached before you know it. Heavy covers in large paddocks also mean many movements in and out of the gap of the paddock. Maximise the number of entry and exit points in the paddock - more “gaps” means less movements, less damage to the sward and less wastage.

Farm B:
AFC – 781 kgDM/ha / 280 kgDM/cow
Issues:
a. Farm cover is below target and budget shows that grass will run out in early November. Solution: Must reduce demand – probably by a combination of concentrate and silage (preferably high quality bales) in the diet. Introduction of these feeds must be relative to the performance of the herd especially the low producing cows in the herd. If body condition and cow performance is low then it is more prudent to dry off these cows and house them.

b. % of the farm closed is 30% and should 20% at this stage. Solution: This is indicative of a farm with low AFC and low pre-grazing covers, but the consequences of being ahead of having too much ground closed at any stage is minimal in the context of preparation for the Spring. It does however suggest that the farm will run out of grass early. So the solution is similar to a. above – reduced demand will slow movement through paddocks. Critical to keep grazing the heaviest covers on the farm in sequence.

I want to re-iterate the importance of “knowing where you are at any time” with regard to:
• Farm cover relative to the budget and ideal closing cover
• % ground closed in 1st 30 days of closing
• Residual grazing height of closed paddocks.
These 3 factors have a significant effect on your grass availability and quality in the Spring - prepare now!