Grazing 2021

Bass Reeves · 08-03-2021 9:23pm

Dunedin wrote: »

You must have serious dry land to let out cattle with 100mm rain forecast

10mm a day sorry

I says · 09-03-2021 12:01am

Bass Reeves wrote: »

Too much grass is as bad as too little. Have good covers on 18-20 of the 25 acres of silage ground. Must graze it off before April. Left another 26 off today I have nearly 40 out now. Two year old bullocks about 4-500 kgs. Forecast is 6mm of rain both Wednesday and Thursday and 10m Friday and Saturday. I opened up the gates between the pens 3 weeks ago and cattle not as lively as normally going out. In very good condition considering that they were on silage only for the winter.

Will bring 6-8 to the field around the house later in the week and let the rest off as well. It was the 26th of March last year at turn out.

The last few years when I let them out this early I work from the ends in by strip grazing and meet in the middle. Grass in coming but I’m in no rush another fortnight will be grand. I never graze the silage ground in the spring I find if I do the cattle don’t thrive on the silage( my own observation).

Good loser · 09-03-2021 12:38am

I says wrote: »

The last few years when I let them out this early I work from the ends in by strip grazing and meet in the middle. Grass in coming but I’m in no rush another fortnight will be grand. I never graze the silage ground in the spring I find if I do the cattle don’t thrive on the silage( my own observation).

Grazing in Spring before stopping for silage is supposed to increase the digestibility of that silage by 3 units. Say from 68 to 71.

Bass Reeves · 09-03-2021 1:04am

I says wrote: »

The last few years when I let them out this early I work from the ends in by strip grazing and meet in the middle. Grass in coming but I’m in no rush another fortnight will be grand. I never graze the silage ground in the spring I find if I do the cattle don’t thrive on the silage( my own observation).

Grazing silage ground should improve quality without severely hitting quantity. I try to avoid strip grazing as it crucifies regrowth. I paddock graze as much as possible. Expect to have silage ground grazed by April 1st and will fertlize with Slurry and N. I try to cut as soon aroubd May 25 th

whelan2 · 09-03-2021 9:51pm

How's the grazing going now? There's a gale blowing here atm and rain

DBK1 · 09-03-2021 11:05pm

whelan2 wrote: »

How's the grazing going now? There's a gale blowing here atm and rain

Still going anyway! Very windy here as well. A bit of heavy rain for about 2 hours this eve. I done the herding in the middle of the rain at about 5 expecting them to be huddled under the ditch and they were all out in the middle of the field grazing away and happy out.

I’ll see how they go over the next few days. If the weather deteriorates too much they can be brought back to the shed.

memorystick · 09-03-2021 11:09pm

Weather to improve after the weekend so out for Paddy’s Day.

Bass Reeves · 09-03-2021 11:15pm

whelan2 wrote: »

How's the grazing going now? There's a gale blowing here atm and rain

It too cold and wet to look at them☺️

lakill Farm · 10-03-2021 1:09pm

what sort of quality would that silage be ?

24 acres of grass offered to me. Got fertiliser and slurry mid march 2020 and never touched then

Its not fenced for sheep and owner doesn't want cattle

Option is take it for silage soon or may hay but run the risk of a second growth coming through it

DBK1 wrote: »

It was third or maybe 4th cut that should have been cut last September but weather didn’t allow. Far too heavy for grazing now and a lot of it probably dying off after the winter.

I think he done the right thing, at least when he fertilises it now he’ll have good quality silage around the middle of May. If all this rain comes during the week it could be another few weeks before it’s be dry enough again to get into so at least it’s out of the way now.

endainoz · 10-03-2021 1:22pm

whelan2 wrote: »

How's the grazing going now? There's a gale blowing here atm and rain

Going grand, cattle are smart enough to find sheltered areas. No animal will be joining them untill next week though.

DBK1 · 10-03-2021 2:58pm

lakill Farm wrote: »

what sort of quality would that silage be ?

24 acres of grass offered to me. Got fertiliser and slurry mid march 2020 and never touched then

Its not fenced for sheep and owner doesn't want cattle

Option is take it for silage soon or may hay but run the risk of a second growth coming through it

The silage cut last weekend would only be average quality I’d say. DM would be low and there’d probably be a certain amount of dead grass on it after the winter. It will probably feed out ok but you wouldn’t be giving it to your prime stock. It would have been cut for silage last July so would only be growing since then.

What you’ve been offered is a totally different product. If nothing has been done since it was fertilised last March then it’s probably growing since October 2019. Feed value in that would be very poor, about the same as newspaper I’d say!! You mentioned about second growth, that would have happened last July, it’s a third or fourth growth that would be coming through that now and the first and second growth are probably standing tall as a dead white grass.

The only way I would accept that type of grass would be if I was getting it for nothing and getting the field for the rest of the year for small money in return for taking that mess off it. The only animal I’d consider feeding it to would be a dry cow and at that i would only feed it along with better stuff.

Mooooo · 10-03-2021 3:01pm

lakill Farm wrote: »

what sort of quality would that silage be ?

24 acres of grass offered to me. Got fertiliser and slurry mid march 2020 and never touched then

Its not fenced for sheep and owner doesn't want cattle

Option is take it for silage soon or may hay but run the risk of a second growth coming through it

Growing for over 12 months, wouldn't touch it tbh

Bass Reeves · 10-03-2021 3:41pm

lakill Farm wrote: »

what sort of quality would that silage be ?

24 acres of grass offered to me. Got fertiliser and slurry mid march 2020 and never touched then

Its not fenced for sheep and owner doesn't want cattle

Option is take it for silage soon or may hay but run the risk of a second growth coming through it

TBH it worth nothing. Ideally it would want to be cut and dumped cattle would lose weight either eating it as is or making it into hay or silage. If you cut it you will end up with 12-15 bales per acre or over 350 bales of sh!the.

If you had a lad with a mulcher it would be the job it would act as a fertlizer and keep it grazed then for this year

I says · 10-03-2021 3:54pm

lakill Farm wrote: »

what sort of quality would that silage be ?

24 acres of grass offered to me. Got fertiliser and slurry mid march 2020 and never touched then

Its not fenced for sheep and owner doesn't want cattle

Option is take it for silage soon or may hay but run the risk of a second growth coming through it

Sour scutter that not even goats would eat. That needs to be cleaned off as was mentioned earlier mulch it.

Bass Reeves · 10-03-2021 3:56pm

whelan2 wrote: »

How's the grazing going now? There's a gale blowing here atm and rain

They are happy out. Plenty of grass and have stopped running around. Cattle are good to go for shelter if it is available. O e Friesian bullock has nearly coated. Can even see the thrive on a few of them.

Will let the rest out when the weather clears

Green farmer · 11-03-2021 1:59pm

Just had a peak at the weather forecast. Seems to be turning a little milder next week. Daytime temperatures creeping up to 13 degrees on occasions and evening stretching out bit by bit. Place turns a bit greener every day. Cannt come fast enough to leave winter behind.

lakill Farm · 12-03-2021 11:14am

7 heifers ran on the ground till early Feb 2020 . Silage cut on some of it and hay on other parts in 2019. uncle died heifers sold no one had any plan it seemed

I was asked to sort it and it would suit me to keep it on lease if im honest

So although some lads are saying mulching im not going to the expense of that and neither will she and kick on me

Strongly thinking of mowing it and baling it up and selling it even at cost and clearing the place off for this year . Its clear it soon or a bigger mess

DBK1 wrote: »

The silage cut last weekend would only be average quality I’d say. DM would be low and there’d probably be a certain amount of dead grass on it after the winter. It will probably feed out ok but you wouldn’t be giving it to your prime stock. It would have been cut for silage last July so would only be growing since then.

What you’ve been offered is a totally different product. If nothing has been done since it was fertilised last March then it’s probably growing since October 2019. Feed value in that would be very poor, about the same as newspaper I’d say!! You mentioned about second growth, that would have happened last July, it’s a third or fourth growth that would be coming through that now and the first and second growth are probably standing tall as a dead white grass.

The only way I would accept that type of grass would be if I was getting it for nothing and getting the field for the rest of the year for small money in return for taking that mess off it. The only animal I’d consider feeding it to would be a dry cow and at that i would only feed it along with better stuff.

Mooooo · 12-03-2021 11:23am

Fair enough but if selling on you'd want to be saying what's in the bales or twud be bad form

lakill Farm · 12-03-2021 11:26am

Mooooo wrote: »

Fair enough but if selling on you'd want to be saying what's in the bales or twud be bad form

Oh I would. I might double wrap them and that way I would have a longer shelf life.

I would be fit to do all the work on them myself so I wouldn't be massive out of pocket I hope

cute geoge · 12-03-2021 11:35am

That ****e in silage would only be slow poison ,10 bales of it would be too much no one will buy it unless there is starvation .What I would do is chance hay the first chance you get .If weather does not play ball gather it up and let it rot in corner of field .Even the feeding value of rhe hay would only be so so but at least it would maintain cattle with a bit of meal

lakill Farm · 12-03-2021 11:38am

oh and that was my other option was to try make hay and if it didn't work bale it and corner of a field

cute geoge wrote: »

That ****e in silage would only be slow poison ,10 bales of it would be too much no one will buy it unless there is starvation .What I would do is chance hay the first chance you get .If weather does not play ball gather it up and let it rot in corner of field .Even the feeding value of rhe hay would only be so so but at least it would maintain cattle with a bit of meal

DBK1 · 12-03-2021 11:49am

cute geoge wrote: »

That ****e in silage would only be slow poison ,10 bales of it would be too much no one will buy it unless there is starvation .What I would do is chance hay the first chance you get .If weather does not play ball gather it up and let it rot in corner of field .Even the feeding value of rhe hay would only be so so but at least it would maintain cattle with a bit of meal

I actually done the very same thing for a proper rooter last year. We baled the hay on the 16th April. Not man or beast was in the field for about 18 months before that.

There was a right good spell of weather in April last year and the type of stuff it was it saved very quick after cutting. It was plenty dry being baled and while feed value would be very poor I think making hay from it was a much better option than silage.

Funnily enough the bales are still in the field and not man or beast was in the field since either but that’s more a story for the rooter thread I think!!

DBK1 · 12-03-2021 11:51am

lakill Farm wrote: »

Oh I would. I might double wrap them and that way I would have a longer shelf life.

I would be fit to do all the work on them myself so I wouldn't be massive out of pocket I hope

I’d say double wrapping them would be only wasting money. If it’s sh**e going into the bale it’ll be sh**e coming out no matter how much wrap is on it.

Say my name · 12-03-2021 12:35pm

DBK1 wrote: »

I’d say double wrapping them would be only wasting money. If it’s sh**e going into the bale it’ll be sh**e coming out no matter how much wrap is on it.

You'd have to run over the sward with a molasses dribbler before baling to make anything of it.

Say my name · 12-03-2021 12:40pm

Lakill have you no topper yourself to start off the sward yourself?

I'd be with others and just get it mulched someway.

I've often went into fields at this time of year with the topper to get the swards set for silage in May.
Feck what the neighbours think.:p

endainoz · 12-03-2021 12:47pm

Say my name wrote: »

Lakill have you no topper yourself to start off the sward yourself?

I'd be with others and just get it mulched someway.

I've often went into fields at this time of year with the topper to get the swards set for silage in May.
Feck what the neighbours think.:p

I've done it myself, aul lads would think it's a mortal sin to do something that's so seemingly counter productive. Never seen it negativity affect growth though.

Mulchers can be expensive to get in but if you know someone with a major cyclone, they can run off a smaller tractor and not nearly as severe on diesel.

Dickie10 · 12-03-2021 12:51pm

just go in and top it low now and might rot away and actually help the humus of the soil maybe

lakill Farm · 12-03-2021 1:07pm

The hay option probably looks the way forward so

If weather is good ill aim for hay, if weather breaks ill find a big corner in one of the fields.

Its so sad to see the land sitting there at nothing at the moment the uncle would never have allowed it

DBK1 wrote: »

I actually done the very same thing for a proper rooter last year. We baled the hay on the 16th April. Not man or beast was in the field for about 18 months before that.

There was a right good spell of weather in April last year and the type of stuff it was it saved very quick after cutting. It was plenty dry being baled and while feed value would be very poor I think making hay from it was a much better option than silage.

Funnily enough the bales are still in the field and not man or beast was in the field since either but that’s more a story for the rooter thread I think!!

cute geoge · 12-03-2021 1:17pm

Say my name wrote: »

You'd have to run over the sward with a molasses dribbler before baling to make anything of it.

Where could see or how would you make a molasses drible bar for silage swards .I have some marshy ground away from house mostly make hay and graze later in year .But get caught to make silage any wet summer .The dry cows eat it but slowly and you could almost see them losing condition .The hay would always be better .I was thinking molasses on the rows of silage like years ago would be the job before baling

farawaygrass · 12-03-2021 2:13pm

I know a farmer near me who let the grass go to maybe august, sept before cutting, and he could skip a year too. Never fertilised and it would be horrible looking stuff. He always gets a buyer for it, and I think the same lad is buying it for a few years. I’d assume it’s very cheap but don’t know he price. There’s always someone out there that will buy it

Say my name · 12-03-2021 2:40pm

cute geoge wrote: »

Where could see or how would you make a molasses drible bar for silage swards .I have some marshy ground away from house mostly make hay and graze later in year .But get caught to make silage any wet summer .The dry cows eat it but slowly and you could almost see them losing condition .The hay would always be better .I was thinking molasses on the rows of silage like years ago would be the job before baling

I saw one on fb before of a barrel with a dribble bar type thing on a 3 point linkage. I think it was a homemade job. Don't know if it's something commercially available.
Have no pictures or plans. I think it was just flowing into a pipe and holes drilled in the pipe to dribble on the sward.

Cavanjack · 12-03-2021 3:19pm

There were fellows feeding rushes to fattening bulls in 2018. All they needed was some form of roughage. This would do the same job if someone was stuck but there is plenty of feeding in the country this year.

minerleague · 12-03-2021 3:25pm

lakill Farm wrote: »

what sort of quality would that silage be ?

24 acres of grass offered to me. Got fertiliser and slurry mid march 2020 and never touched then

Its not fenced for sheep and owner doesn't want cattle

Option is take it for silage soon or may hay but run the risk of a second growth coming through it

Pity you cant convince owner to allow cattle, I am strip grazing similiar ( not growing quite as long ) with dry sucklers since Feb 1 and they' re thriving. Cows removed as they spring up

lakill Farm · 12-03-2021 3:52pm

minerleague wrote: »

Pity you cant convince owner to allow cattle, I am strip grazing similiar ( not growing quite as long ) with dry sucklers since Feb 1 and they' re thriving. Cows removed as they spring up

she doesn't want cattle , it would have been a better job I think but unfortunately im not the king of the cattle.

14 months ago I had a buyer for the silage . ended up giving it away over the winter to clear the corner

jimmy G M · 12-03-2021 4:01pm

lakill Farm wrote: »

The hay option probably looks the way forward so

If weather is good ill aim for hay, if weather breaks ill find a big corner in one of the fields.

Its so sad to see the land sitting there at nothing at the moment the uncle would never have allowed it

If you could get it dry enough for hay it could do as bedding as well..... we sometimes bed some cows with old hay mixed in with straw around calving time, soakage not as good granted, but they eat some of it, lie on the rest.... cheaper than paying €25/ bale for straw.... might be an option.... no matter how bad the quality I wouldn't let it rot in the corner of a field

Bass Reeves · 12-03-2021 4:04pm

lakill Farm wrote: »

Oh I would. I might double wrap them and that way I would have a longer shelf life.

I would be fit to do all the work on them myself so I wouldn't be massive out of pocket I hope

lakill Farm wrote: »

oh and that was my other option was to try make hay and if it didn't work bale it and corner of a field

Either of these choices the silage especially you are taking s lot of nutrients off the land for no apparent value. In the case of silage even if doing the contracting part yourself it's still costing 5-7/ bale. Nutrient value is 10/ bale. While mulching might seem expensive you are returning a lot of nutrients back into the ground.

Throwing bales in the corners achieving the same thing. If there was a lat with a straw shredder you could cut it if we get a good spell of weather and shred it when it had reduced down. Even giving it a turn it two after shredding will stop it lying dead on the ground and stopping growth

DBK1 · 12-03-2021 4:27pm

jimmy G M wrote: »

If you could get it dry enough for hay it could do as bedding as well..... we sometimes bed some cows with old hay mixed in with straw around calving time, soakage not as good granted, but they eat some of it, lie on the rest.... cheaper than paying €25/ bale for straw.... might be an option.... no matter how bad the quality I wouldn't let it rot in the corner of a field

I got caught with a field of hay about 3 years ago. The rain came a day earlier than forecast and rained for a week on it. There was no way I was wrapping it and forcing something to eat it just to get it off the field so i left it there during all the rain. 2 or 3 dry and real windy days came after that, I turned it twice to get it dry. It was pure black on the ground, thank god it was down a lane and not near the road where anyone could see me turning it!! I chopped it when baling and used it all for bedding mixed in with straw over the next few winters.

While not as good as straw it was better than the other options of wrapping it or dumping it and a current prices it would certainly be better than paying €25+ a bale for straw so as long as you get it dry you do have options.

memorystick · 15-03-2021 9:32am

Was fencing yesterday morning and couldn’t believe how wet it had got. This week is to be good so it’ll be all forgotten about next Sunday.

Timmaay · 15-03-2021 12:37pm

65% grazed but enough damage done to get to that. Very lucky with the weather the 2weeks, nowhere near what many you's got down the country. Cow's out day and night but some night's that was because of not enough cubicles for milkers, I'm at the point now where the idea that teagasc tell me I'm a good dry farm who gets to graze fulltime for 300days of the year, nope not a hope anymore, I may the clubicles in and be done with it.

memorystick · 17-03-2021 11:53pm

Land after soaking great. I didn’t need the 4wd on at the gaps. Progress

endainoz · 18-03-2021 12:22pm

Gotten noticably milder over the last few days. Have been having some fog over night too, perfect growth conditions one might say.

farawaygrass · 18-03-2021 2:15pm

endainoz wrote: »

Gotten noticably milder over the last few days. Have been having some fog over night too, perfect growth conditions one might say.

Heard on the radio earlier that this time 3 years ago we had the big snow imagine

whelan2 · 18-03-2021 2:22pm

Cows back out here today

endainoz · 18-03-2021 4:16pm

farawaygrass wrote: »

Heard on the radio earlier that this time 3 years ago we had the big snow imagine

1st March 2018, few weeks after that we had one of the best summers in living memory. Some difference in a few weeks.

lab man · 18-03-2021 6:26pm

memorystick wrote: »

Land after soaking great. I didn’t need the 4wd on at the gaps. Progress

You'll need it next week wait n see maybe 10 days

Dinzee Conlee · 18-03-2021 6:35pm

lab man wrote: »

You'll need it next week wait n see maybe 10 days

Where did you see this labman, or what are you basing it on?

Jb1989 · 18-03-2021 8:47pm

Dinzee Conlee wrote: »

Where did you see this labman, or what are you basing it on?

Mt cranium and carlow weather predicting it, amongst others I imagine.

endainoz · 18-03-2021 9:17pm

Jb1989 wrote: »

Mt cranium and carlow weather predicting it, amongst others I imagine.

https://www.met.ie/forecasts/monthly-forecast

Met eireann seem to be saying it'll be settled in the long term though. They just started doing long term forecasting, will be interesting to see how accurate they are with it.

Say my name · 18-03-2021 9:28pm

endainoz wrote: »

https://www.met.ie/forecasts/monthly-forecast

Met eireann seem to be saying it'll be settled in the long term though. They just started doing long term forecasting, will be interesting to see how accurate they are with it.

That's worth nothing.

Forecast is giving a breakdown middle of next week (Tuesday, Wednesday).
With cooler for a time and milder again the following Sunday, Monday.

If there's any land work to be done, get it done. Don't rely on that met eireann forecast.

Maiden heifers went out full time yesterday.

Castlekeeper · 18-03-2021 10:39pm

Say my name wrote: »

That's worth nothing.

Forecast is giving a breakdown middle of next week (Tuesday, Wednesday).
With cooler for a time and milder again the following Sunday, Monday.

If there's any land work to be done, get it done. Don't rely on that met eireann forecast.

Maiden heifers went out full time yesterday.

Cows just went out again today, there's no great drying in this cool drizzly weather now compared to the last dry spell. It's supposed to stay cool too so I'm not expecting much growth, I'd say it'll be slow 'til May. We're due a bad year, I might sell a few extra cows while prices are good...

Grazing 2021

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