What's your slurry/fodder situation?

Tough fortnight ahead as the weather is promised sh1te until the 15th of April. Even if the weather was to clear that day you'd need another few days drying before cattle could go out. I'm feeding rolled barley to the cows now to spare the silage, but thats not free nor a long term solution. I think there's room for more to be culled this year

more than likely enough til end of April and realistically cattle could be in til then.
Land is saturated.,

cattle as fed up as myself,

They broke out of the yard last week when I was agitating. They ran up the road, turned around and went back into the shed.
just hardship at the moment.

Have cows out as they calved (calved all indoors except first one this year) and was worried would run out of grass on fields grazed first. ( had to move them around quicker than normal due to wet ground) but more optimistic this morning as can see bit of growth coming. Beef cattle still in because they go to outside blocks and while it's possible to bring them back they will stay out when put out! Had cows out for month of Feb on "saved grass" which saves a lot of silage, but wetter winters have me considering not doing this in future even though I find it great to get cows fit for calving compared to being couped up in shed

serious drying today. No rain and the sun is out . Much better than predicted. Some amount of bales on the move on. Roads this morning though.

Very wet day here again all cattle still in never as late getting stock out. Buying silage also, its a costly winter.

you should raise that with farmers journal or agri land . Show the absolute nonsense the dept are at. Saying they will support farmers and then act like that.

What part of the country are you? looking like it might be a bit drier in the south and east next week

There’s a good chance of high pressure for the second half of next week imo, hopefully it happens, badly needed now.

Is that action by the Department even legal ?
If you have never had a reactor, had a clear test in November and yet you are restricted ? It’s the same as they insisting on two clear tests after a reactor .Why would one clear test not be enough? Especially in a year like this.
The Department of Agriculture needs to be pulled into line badly and if the farm organisations don’t have the balls for it, it will be up to individual farmers.

I have about a month of silage left and a foot or two left in the slurry tanks. Had to travel with the tank a few times in slippy conditions and did damage.

I had 200 bales of silage for sale earlier on the winter but there was no interest. I think it was @Mooooo on here that said to me, he never depends on spring arriving until May 1st anymore. (Or something not that effect).

Lesson learnt for me anyway is to sell nothing. I just thought I had way too much and wouldn't be able to use up my pit enough before I cut silage.

I don't know is it in conjuction with the support scheme or not buy I heard kerry supplying pit silage at 50p/tn

fecking serious rain again this afternoon and evening here again.

I asked the lad in my local Kerry store Wednesday if they were going to be be sourcing stuff and making it available locally. Said he would find out for me but it's tumbleweeds from him since. A neighbour has since got in contact and said he can see me out with what I'll need. Hopefully if there's an improvement in the weather a couple of weeks will get some of them out on the drier ground. One of the tanks is looking like it will need a few loads taken from it early next week again.

Need to find a lad with a quad and weed licker to give a run to a few meadows as the rushes are starting to creep up but they're hard got now too.

None of those things will be bad problems to have if they happen. All farmers would love those things to be happening on their farms today.

There will be demand for bales between fear of a repeat next year and low reserves on farms.

I've had a big surplus of grass last year and probably will again this year due to changing systems and selling the cows. Will scale up a bit more in calf rearing next year so will get back on top of it.

I've my own baler / wrapper and had no issues selling the surplus bales before the end of September. In the good weather early last year hay sold out of the field within hours of putting on DD, silage later was a bit slower from the yard. None of it traveled too far either.