3rd Cut

restive

Is it to late to set for a third cut of silage?

Timmaay

Depends on your land, if its a wet feild it could be very hard to get a dry enough window to cut it in sept/oct, also depends on your stocking rate, and how early you plan on getting animals out next spring, if you are stocked fairly high and want to get cows out early next year then you really will need to be building covers from now on, and close off paddocks early enough to keep some grass over the winter, this is difficult to do if you have too much of the farm closed off for silage. I'll most likely be closing off about 10/12acres for a 3rd cut, this is less than 10% of our farm, and we are only stocked at 1.8lu/ha so I'll be able to get away with it.

restive

The reason I want to set for a third cut is that it is land I do not stock. It is positioned away from my house with no water on it. I could get silage in reasonable conditions at the end of September.

restive

Would I be better just cutting it in September instead of now?

case885

cut now give it a shot of slurry and few bags of fertilizer per acre and cut late sep/oct if its not too wet where you are. Our contractor charges 3rd cut 100€ per load which is good.

bob charles

restive wrote: »

Would I be better just cutting it in September instead of now?

No, cut now. still plenty of time to grow 3rd cut aslong as its on dry land, but you may have to be patient as October isnt a favourable silage month, but have cut plenty myself in the past on land that cant be grazed.

I was always told the story of a teagasc advisor doing a farm walk during the middle of winter when he told the group that "this is the type of early june leafy silage that all you lads should be trying to grow" when the farmer interrupted and said he made it at the end of October. Im nearly certain in my younger days my contractor baled hay in October

Muckit

I'd agree. cut now. I thought there would be poor return on my second cut but as it was stuck to the ground. But look at pics, brown butt so grass wwasn't going to grow anymore. It will be the same with yours. You'd want to plan to graze sometime also though to keep sward thickened

Bactidiaryl

Cut now.