Grazing 2022

memorystick

Just in from a walk around the fields. I have most of the cattle in since November 5 but left 20 lighter lads out which are still on beet tops. I usually let the store lambs graze every bit of grass but with so much growth they are still on silage ground so I won't let them run over the grazing ground this time. I actually saw a few yellow flowers out but I don't know what they are. Hardly dandelions? Serious growth out at the minute. How are other lad's fields looking?

Biscuitus

More grass than I had in some of the weeks during the summer. I only finished housing 2 weeks ago and I'm looking forward to an early turn out. As long as January and February aren't too wet then I should get most stock out. I've a mountain of silage too so I'll have enough left over that I won't need to put out that much fertiliser and can graze some paddocks that would have gone for silage.

BIG change from last year. I couldn't get stock out in April cause the fields had turned into lakes and I had to buy in fodder near the end.

Danzy

Grass to kick, sheep working through paddocks for last 2 months been a big help.

Big burst of growth the last week again.

Hopefully a few dry weeks In January and get the heaviest grazed.

Passed a few bunches of cattle today in North Cork.

Dunedin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118401431#Comment_118401431

This year could take a twist yet........

Base price

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118402715#Comment_118402715

It could and probably will.

I've seven heifer calves (Feb/Mar born) still out on about twelve acres and the grass is still growing. They are getting 0.5kg of maize meal with about a kg of rolled oats. Our old pet cow Daisy is on a four acre field along with her three month old bull calf and they have plenty of grass although I've giving her a few forkfuls of hay and a bucket of rolled oats every night. I've a neighbour that has a couple of yearling/year and a half old continental heifers rotational grazing one acre paddocks and the paddocks are greening up within days of her moving them.

SuperTortoise

All cover is doing well, there was a few fields that i could'nt graze before housing because they would plough it, with the price of fert the way it is i'll be grazing the silage ground this year before taking it up, going for 1st cut by mid May is out this year, i plan to move cattle more often and keep grass grazed tight, light dashes of slurry to substitute for fertilizer.

As i do every year i plan to turnout cattle 1st week in May, anything before that is a welcome bonus.

That's the plan anyway

893bet

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118403200#Comment_118403200

Similar heavy land here. With a similar plan. Never graze silage ground here as it’s usually too wet. Hoping to graze this year and then get slurry on for a bulky first cut mid June.

But it’s all about the weather. Plans be damned.

Easten

Still have a few stragglers out. I don't think they'll see the inside of a shed this winter as it is so mild

I had everyplace grazed nice and tight. I had a walk of the land yesterday after the New years Turkey and couldn't believe the amount of grass growth. Places are rich green

memorystick

There’s as many threads as grass!

Easten

Last of the cattle let out today bar 6 cows left to calf. I had some morning with Calves flying through the electric fence. I had a pair of strong calves that took off straight into the neighbours and nothing could get the fuckers back out so I left them and just checked a while ago and they had made there own way back tf.

Short winter for me and I can save the rest of the feeding for next winter. I've no fertilizer out but there is still some amount of growth these days even without it. Any other year and I could be dusting the fields with a light shake, it'd would put the grass out over the walls. But what can you do with the year that's in it

Say my name

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118823842#Comment_118823842

You must be lowly stocked or have super land?

Haven't spread any bagged n, p or k yet here either. The weanling heifers are out full time and cows still day only.

Yesterday and today are really driving on growth. At foliar yesterday without any N included and even today you'd see where you were. At dirty water and dairy washings spreading today. Back at foliar again tomorrow to get it all kicking off proper.

Dinzee Conlee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118824960#Comment_118824960

What’s in the foliar Say?

seaweed extract mix, or a homegrown concoction?

Say my name

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118825645#Comment_118825645

Seaweed, fulvic, molasses. Then that special water.

Humic acid will be added to the mix in the future.

funkey_monkey

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118823842#Comment_118823842

How is grass growth with you currently? Nothing worthwhile happening up here yet. So ours will be in until mid April at earliest.

Packrat

I'd love to know what climate these lads with loads of grass are living in....

Today was the first day I saw growth since January.

Fields are green but nothing in them.

Im in the extreme southwest but those horrible easterly winds over the last couple of weeks were too cold for anything to grow.

Before that we were flooded out of it with rain which also doesn't allow growth.

Hungry enough spring down here unless ground is closed since October or November.

Cavanjack

Letting them out bit by bit but the start of April is looking very cold so they’ll be no burst of growth anytime soon.

Good loser

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118826729#Comment_118826729

Was there not big growth the last three days?

memorystick

Nothing out yet but hoping to at the weekend. Is it safe to inject bullocks with copper on the morning of turnout or do lads wait a few days.

wrangler

Ground temperature here is nine degrees, and with that sunshine grass has to grow.

My father used to say that grass won't grow until the daffodil wilts , so I see them dying back now this morning.

Nitrogen out ten days here and a paddock that I took the ewes off two days ago is visibly growing, so all good.......for now

Dunedin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118826428#Comment_118826428

Same as that here. I’m hearing all winter about the mighty grass growth. Fields are green but feck all on them and I’m in good ground and stripped all winter.

cows and calves out, weanlings out and 2 year old bullocks let out to wbc today with round feeder. Will keep them there for a a week anyways to let the grass come on a bit and hopefully it’ll stay ahead of them then. For a while anyways.

weatherbyfoxer

last of the cattle weighted,copper bolused and let out today,serious weather for March in fairness

Cavanjack

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118826998#Comment_118826998

Ah maybe a bit yesterday but a cold east wind for the last week too. Wouldn’t call it growthy weather.

Danzy

Glad of the hot days, growth picking up a bit, might be wanted in April.

Easten

We have a blocking high again over Ireland. This dry weather could hold for a long time yet. There's growth alright, some fields better than others. The smaller more sheltered ones are best, anything exposed wouldn't be as good. I noticed the poorer ground is really struggling without fertilizer, and could be an issue on farms yet

Packrat

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118832029#Comment_118832029

Thats always the way with small sheltered gairdíns - they grow at double the pace of a bigger colder field.

With or without fertilizer.

I'm going with nothing but granlime this year and I'll report back.

Nothing only a colour yet on the fields I'll have sheep lambing in around The 15th. That has happened before other years even with fertilizer spread anything from Feb 25th to Paddy's Day. The length of the day beats it in the end and it always grows.

I'm not worried yet but if I had gone for lambing 20th March onwards like other years I'd be in **** street now.

k mac

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118832298#Comment_118832298

Would the gran lime improve growth immediately this year, i thought it was more a long term improvement.

Jb1989

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118832875#Comment_118832875

Granular should be noticeable if ground is sour.

But no point spreading lime if ground isn't in need of it, its not an instant magic potion.

Packrat

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118832875#Comment_118832875

Granlime will work almost immediately. The little prills are composed of very fine dust and once melted it's almost all available to the grass.

Ground lime contains bigger and smaller particles and the bigger ones take years to break down in the soil if ever.

That's why ground lime works for up to 5 years.

Easten

How much a ton for Granlime? last time I checked it was heading for €200.

I find Granlime works well on heavy muddy land (brown soil)

If you have land that always was well fertilized or got plenty Slurry then Granlime will release locked up fertilizer that has remained in the soil

I found it useless on boggy ground, -> it worked but not as well as other land type and needed more to make a difference

You need a bit of Moisture with granlime, I seen it sitting on the ground for the whole summer during a dry spell so imho get it out before mid May

Biggest negative for me is it makes the skin on the soil very soft, it'll make the top 6 inchs very fluffy

DBK1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118833116#Comment_118833116

I was quoted €205 a ton on Wednesday for it. Soils samples came back Thursday at 6.4 so it’s not needed thankfully, one less expense.

Easten

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118833147#Comment_118833147

Still a cheap alternative to fertilizer if the ground is rich. idk how it would perform on sandy soils or soils with a higher ph

wrangler

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118833163#Comment_118833163

You'd get no advantage in spreading lime on soils with a PH of 6.4 and could even lock up minerals.

I know someone that used some new fertiliser and got horrendous trouble with mineral deficiencies, it actually pushed his PH to 7+

Easten

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118837440#Comment_118837440

What new fertilizer was that?

wrangler

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118837642#Comment_118837642

I can't remember butI wouldn't have a lot of interest,

He's a prolific poster on discussion forums and doesn't mention the mistakes he makes which I think iis very misleading, I know he had losses due to whatever he was using. He comes across as norhing ever goes wrong

Say my name

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118837988#Comment_118837988

Kieserite?

It's out a few years now. The tillage side have been using it to balance up.

I had the chance to use it here but it didn't suit my soil tests. There's sodium and chloride in it and as I was high in those before it didn't suit. High in magnesium and sulphur.

Easten

I must add that I got very mixed result when I used protected Urea on ground that had got gran lime after. The granlime had always worked well for me when using the compound fertilizers.

Another savage day today, cattle panned out as if it was the 14th of June. Met has forecast up to 17°C Tomorrow in places. Mad weather for the 26th of March

Danzy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118838087#Comment_118838087

The mad weather bit is that there is a good chance of a big snowfall this time next week.

Injuryprone

And -5 next Friday night in some places maybe....

whelan2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118838094#Comment_118838094

Nothing worse than having to bring cattle back in

Dunedin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118838711#Comment_118838711

That’s for sure.

Easten

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118838711#Comment_118838711

Except having cattle in Sheds when we've had a dry fortnight and it's blue sky 17°C outside

Dunedin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118837988#Comment_118837988

Oh Jesus. You must be mistaken. The elite on here never make a mistake!!!

wrangler

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118839510#Comment_118839510

don't think he's on here

Packrat

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118837440#Comment_118837440

But surely anyone in a naturally high PH soil type or who has already addressed their PH with ground lime wouldn't be using granlime anyway.

@Easten ground lime is way way worse for softening the sod than granlime.

I suppose the answer (like everything else) is 'it depends'

Down here on old red sandstone rock with boulder clay (blue til) soils we get a great response to any type of lime - moreso on a poor field which hasn't had fertilizer in a long time. It softens and greens up a field gone stale and dry or full of moss.

For wetter boggy type soil, (but not pure bog) the ould lads used to use rock phosphate with good results. I think it's available in granular form now, but mad dear/tonne.

Anyone know of gran lime in 1/2 ton bags? I've ever only seen in those small backbreakers around here.

Dunedin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118840500#Comment_118840500

Aye gran lime is freely available in half ton bags.

dairy1982

Im in my first year of a 5 year lease with a 14 acre field, I have 50 cows at present hope to go to 60 in the next couple of years. I have to fence this field thinking of splitting in 4 it's not far off square bumpy enough.. roughly 255m width, sides 190m, 260m, opposite end 200m width, putting in two water troughs.. would this make sense any advice would be a help. Thanks

Siamsa Sessions

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118963049#Comment_118963049

The pic attached is what I did. Square enough field, divided into 4 permanent paddocks, with 2 water troughs (in blue) placed as shown. I can split each permanent paddock into 2 with reels so there’s 8 paddocks really and all have access to water. Grey boxes are gates in and out

endainoz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118964438#Comment_118964438

Would that be a mob grazing type system? Seems to be much more efficient.

Siamsa Sessions

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118965071#Comment_118965071

I don’t think so but depends on what you call mob grazing. I put 30 yearlings on it, approx 2 days in each of the 8 paddocks. Very easy to step them from one to the next as I left a gap between each permanent paddock

endainoz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118965440#Comment_118965440

It would be a version of mob grazing yeah, makes better use of the grass for sure.

Danzy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118965767#Comment_118965767

Without the grass volume of mob grazing.