what to feed wenlings on rape

valtra2

hi this is my first year feeding wenlings on rape, will be letting them out during the day to graze weather permiting and will be feeding them wholecrope silage when in was just wondering what else to feed them to balance the diet, thanks

5live

Teagasc recommend feeding some silage for the fibre. Also you will need iodine supplementation probably by bolus. That seems to be what Teagasc are doing anyway

leg wax

i grew it last year for the first time and grazed heifers on it ,gave them dry silage in bales and barley/citrus mix with a mineral bucket to lick,they were mud fat going to grass and never looked back ,they are big incalf heifers now.

Muckit

leg wax wrote: »

i grew it last year for the first time and grazed heifers on it ,gave them dry silage in bales and barley/citrus mix with a mineral bucket to lick,they were mud fat going to grass and never looked back ,they are big incalf heifers now.

Did you plant it after taking first cut silage? What are the costs like Legwax? I'm dying to try it sometime, but reckon I don't really have a dry enough piece of farmland to outwinter (yet:rolleyes:) Cattle don't have the same amount of setback on it and keep motoring on once they hit the grass I hear (and from what i've read)

I think we farmers need to be more self sufficent here in this country. We've too many overheads compared to other countries. We need to remember that it not just the pen of cattle next to us in the factory/mart that we're competing with, it's the whole of farmers in Europe.

Ya it wouldn't suit the majority of us to start growing our own grain to fatten cattle, but wouldn't kale be an excellent substitute?? (supplemented with baled silage of course) I'd much prefer to be moving an electric fence and rolling a ring feeder every day than forking silage to a barrier! Cattle would be healthier too and no real need to be starting a tractor if you've the bales placed in the field before hand

leg wax

mine was set very late last year i think it was just before the ploughing match ,set it in a field after a cut of silage stitched it in cost 30euros a acre,seed i think was only 18 euro a acre and 3 bags of 18/6/12.it was up after 7 days and was flying until the very wet weather that stopped growing,it only grew to about 8-12 inches high,i have grown kale this year the plan was to have it for the weanlings but they have enough grass ahead till middle of dec,so i let dry cows on to kale 1 nov.

Pat the lad

Did you use the same field again this year leg wax or do you rotate fields????
I was thinking of trying something like that myself Kale/Rape for replacement heifiers & dry cows that won't be calving until Mid Nov & Dec - great way of keeping cows fit - I 'd say?? - but my land might not be dry enough for it??.
I was also looking into wholecrop silage (Wheat/Barley & Bean Mix) as a option for good energy source for cows after calving - better milk & quickier to come back into heat. I know continental cows aren't going brust with milk, but anything extra would be benifical too. I would like to try maize - but too expensive for a suckler herd ( me Thinks???) plus I'd probably have to take con acre or buy a standing crop -as again ground might be just good enough to justify it??
Reason for interest is because I brought some Maize (30 Tn as a trial)off a friend who's a dairy farmer last Jan/Feb and I thought that the cows had more milk and the last of the Autumn calvers seemed to come back in heat quickier??? They weren't getting a huge amount each, but it was noteable while they were on it??? Thought the wholecrop might do the same trick but at a lower cost???
Anyone any experience of either or both????

leg wax

i put it in a new paddock its on a farm i have taken the owner wants to reseed the whole farm over time its my first year in it so it suits me and him for my cows to tear it up he does not want to plough for the reseeding because of lots of small stones. i have barley /peas and new grass in bales for this winter ,have fed it before 3years ago the cows do well on it ,dont need to feed any meal with it even with a lot of the harder grains passing thru the cow.had maize when milking but it is gone to exspencive with the price of fert we used to put 10 bags of 10/10/20 on it in the good old days.

Tipp Man

Lads have never tried kale or rape for weanlings, how many acres of kale or rape would I need for 100 weanlings from November 15 to march 15?? How much round bales would you need to go with that??

leg wax

Tipp Man wrote: »

Lads have never tried kale or rape for weanlings, how many acres of kale or rape would I need for 100 weanlings from November 15 to march 15?? How much round bales would you need to go with that??

not very sure as i am new to this as well ,but at a guess kale 15 acers 200 bales ? anyone else with numbers? i have 30 cows on kale at the moment the feed face for the kale is only 30 meters long approx ,it will double in length in a few days,the wire is moved every day up to the kale so the cows have to eat the kale from under the wire and are not standing in the kale ,they are eating 1 bale of silage a day and are full the whole time. hope this helps work some sums out

blue5000

Hi Legwax,

I'm just about to start feeding kale to a bunch of weanling heifers.
How tall is your kale and are you giving yours any minerals (iodine)?. I'm thinking of giving them a bolus.

leg wax

its at waiste height or 3 feet tall, i am giveing them mineral buckets with a higher level of iodine that i got made up for the job, but if things go well next year i will hopefully buy a head scoop and bolus all cows.

dar31

mine is just over 3ft tall, it is essential they get iodine in kale and more so for cow. a least with a bolus you are sure they have got the required level.
ill post up after this the calculations for feed budget i have done for myself.
take what you like from them.

dar31

4.45ha kale 80 weanling 15 nov - 15 feb 90 days
10t/dm/ha kale
weanling requirement 8kg/dm/day

4.45ha * 8.8 = 44500kg/ dm total

44500/7200(80 weanling*90 days)=6.18kg/dm day kale

8kg/dm - 6.18 kg/dm = 1.82 kg/dm day silage

1.82 * 80 = 145 kg/ dm day or 1 bale

bale silage @ 500kg 28%dm = 140kg/dm bale

1.82 kg/dm * 80 weanlings * 90 days = 94 bales of silage for 90 days

another way

4.45ha kale will keep 61 weanlings for 90 days with no silage.

Sam Kade

leg wax wrote: »

i grew it last year for the first time and grazed heifers on it ,gave them dry silage in bales and barley/citrus mix with a mineral bucket to lick,they were mud fat going to grass and never looked back ,they are big incalf heifers now.

If the weanlings were in good condition going onto the rape and silage you shouldn't need to feed meals to them.

Muckit

leg wax wrote: »

its at waiste height or 3 feet tall, i am giveing them mineral buckets with a higher level of iodine that i got made up for the job, but if things go well next year i will hopefully buy a head scoop and bolus all cows.

Hi Legwax

You obviously sowed it earlier this year then? (it being taller than last year) Great to see your gaining experience and getting a better crop year on year.

When did you sow it this year?

Another thing, might seem like a stupid question, but do you have to powerharrow and reseed to get it back in grass then? I like the idea that you successfully stitched the kale seed into grass stubble to get it established - that keeps costs down. Was it a special contractor machine you used for that or did you broadcast it with spreader and roll (or would this work)???

Sorry for all the questions!:rolleyes: Just trying to widen my knowldege base and maybe get ideas

Sam Kade

The earlier you sow kale the better, sow in May/early June. You can spray off the old grass then power harrow and sow seed by broadcasting or with a one pass. It is better not to plough because the soil will be firmer when grazing it and it should cause less damage to the soil. You need to plough the field the following spring to reseed it, if you don't you will have problems with weeds.