Forage for Knowledge

Soil moisture is a key driver of this variation. Overall, the national average is above both last year and the long-term average.

The recent heat is likely to have slowed growth. As temperatures fall back to the low twenties, grass growth should recover.

Reflect on recent heat

It’s worth taking 30 minutes to reflect on how you coped during the recent hot weather while it’s still fresh in your mind.

Heat events like this are likely to become more common and more intense.

Consider:

• What went well
• What didn’t go so well
• What you can put in place in the next week
• What you can improve over the next month
• What longer term changes are needed

Doing nothing isn’t an option if you want to protect both animal welfare and farm profitability.

Manage grass quality after heading

As we move beyond heading, grass energy is returning to typical levels of 12 ME and above.

If you’ve not already done so, now is the time to clear up paddocks by:

• Grazing out rejection areas
• Removing seed heads
• Using pre or post mowing
• Taking out surplus paddocks

There are still four to five months left in the grazing season. A small investment of time now will pay big dividends going forward.

Focus on covers and utilisation

Check your soil moisture and use previous years’ growth data to help predict grass supply for the next round.

Aim to:

• Enter covers at 2,800 to 2,900 kg DM/ha
• Hit residuals
• Maintain average cover of 2,100 to 2,200 kg DM/ha

If you achieve this, you can challenge cows to produce their potential milk from grass and reduce the impact of lower milk returns.

The more efficiently you use grass, within good management limits, the more it will return.