Impossible to get graze outs with buffer feeding and nice grass starts to move imo
they just won’t do it cause they know there’s feed waiting for them in the yard
you end up topping then to improve grass quality which is wasted feed
I like to make sure cows are well fed too but for the majority of herds good quality grazed grass and nuts will be good enough. A lot of lads doing 600 plus kgs of ms with spring calving herds that aren’t buffering year round
Don’t kid yourself- there’s no lads doing 600kg ms from spring calving without buffer feeding- the lads that are are fiddling the figures- always ask to see may and June milk recording along with all pages of co op report- you’d be surprised how many cows seem to miraculously disappear
Big drop in meal price quotes, thankfully
Depends on your cow type and stocking rate on MP. Never top here, but would take out the occasional paddock for bales now and again. Dont do on of grazing and would never let cows do any poaching.
A neighbour cut all his farm for bales this week, only lets cows out to aftergrass. Some operator, turning out serious amounts of milk, has big holstein cows.
Your neighbour has loads of milk but has more work and investment and has no more out of it than the rest of us.
My stocking rate is too low here for buffer feeding I think but I guess I could cut more bales off the MP.
I like the idea of buffering to keep the cows stomachs and everything right. I think I have a bit of acidosis here now on the 2nd rotation. I've lost out on alot of milk this spring and I don't know if I'll be able to claw it back. I have bought an outside block and I think I'll grow maize there next year. Sure what have I got to lose.
Don't need buffer feeding to get cows in calf, unless they are very high yielding altogether. Agree re high N grass but doubt anybody would have put out 80 units with the amount of rain falling. 60 units here, and only follow cows from April on with fert, no blanket spreading. Focused hard on grazing this year and certainly some places should have been better minded but have experienced plenty of years where there was as much poaching done in summer. Some places say they can't get cows out at different times but the tractor be in the same day, each to their own.
2 herds I know very well are doing 2.5 kgs atm
mine a friend is managing. No messing with cow numbers goes on with either herds and they do either side of 600 kgs depending on the year
Would they be up for a visit- would they disclose all data- calving reports etc
What exactly are you sowing maize and wholecrop silage for if your not going to buffer your milking cows with it throughout the year, only having it for the shoulders of the year and as drought insurance is crazy given what you'll be spending to grow it, even more so on the back of falling milk/ grain prices making the figures growing it with land prices and high fertilizer prices probably not even viable for the 2024 season
Maize expensive to grow this year. Maize man said seed up 30%, sprays up 60% plastic up 70 Euros and acre.
Are they jersey cross.
What kind of money for 14 percent decent spec
Around 335 I’m hearing
Grennans and glanbia are circa a 100 euro dearer present day prices and no signs of any major drops maybe 20 euro come May
Glanbia dropped 90 to 350
Shop around. We got a quote until end of Sept
Not buying of either of them, with another crowd that are alot better value, they've a new price list coming for May so will see then re switching
They haven't changed their online prices? Exact same as last week was quoted 465 for the premium 16% after discount, is still 500 retail like it was last week, I'd say their 14% nut at 365 would basically be floor-sweepings
No one should be paying over 500 euro a tonne for dairy nuts that's crazy stuff. I'd say they're laughing at lads buying at that price
You will see bubbles in the dung if they have acidosis. Feed "actisaf" is the best cure. Can have it put in the parlour nut.
Is that for everyone ?
Yeah I think they’re dropping 90 for everyone
Dungs are actually ok. Feeding actisaf and acid buffer but a share of cows are just off their nuts and leaving them after them. They just don't seem to have the appetite.
Why didn’t you go to Tom Walsh’s farm walk last summer ?
Im not saying buffering doesn’t work, I’m saying it comes at the detriment of graze outs
We were buying in maize and silage as it was and that wasn’t going to work with the new banding plus the N value in exported slurry being halved so had to do something
I’d hope we wouldn’t be reliant on nuts in the parlour with having the wholecrop and maize
Got the hand outs- selected pages only
Alot of lies being told at these farm walks.
You don't have to go to farm walks for lies.....
Too much grass, go in with silage and they'll eat the nuts!
Disagree there …..I’ve been buffering last 2 years if u keep on top off pregrazing covers 14/1500 max there’s no issue with clean outs
