Impact of the Weather on Farming - Report No.3

Grass

Due to the much improved weather conditions, August has been one of the best months of the year for grass growth. Grass growth and quantity is back to normal and actually well above average in the dry land areas and in good perennial pastures. Where grass growth is running into surplus on good soils, extra baled silage is being made..

Grass growth is still below average in the heavier wetland areas where there is a lot of old pastures and where heavy poaching damage had been caused earlier in the season. Quality is particularly poor in the wetter areas where rotations were skipped and a residual mat of grass had built up and/or where there was no topping. Grass utilisation in these heavier wetland areas is still below average

Very little reseeding has been done to date due to grass shortage and poor trafficability on low-lying land. Some reseeding of damaged land is planned for September, weather permitting

It is very important to maximise the potential from grass for the rest of the autumn period. In general, nitrogen can be applied up to about mid September and still give a good economic response. Paddock grazing systems will require careful management.

Land poached earlier in the dry land areas is showing a good recovery but major problems still exist in the wetland areas. Poached wetlands are suffering from an increase in weed grasses and much reduced output.

Silage

Due to the late first cuts and the grass shortage, between 30% and 90% of the normal area was closed for second cut silage this year. In the very worst affected areas, as low as 10% of the normal area for second cut was closed. In some areas, land closed for second cut silage was subsequently grazed due to a grass shortage.

The amount of second cut silage areas harvested varied from about 40% to 80% at the end of August. The lowest percentage was made in the wetland areas, where some of the silage will not be made until early - mid September. The yields achieved for second cut silage are satisfactory in the range 12 to 19 tonnes/ha. The quality is generally good and better than first cut, which as stated in previous reports was up to 10 units of digestibility lower than normal. Digestibility of second cut is in the range 63-67% DMD compared to 55-65% for first cut.

Hay

Most of the hay crop has been saved except in the wet heavy land areas where 10-20% of the crop remains to be cut. Hay quality is generally poor to average, at about 55-63 DMD digestibility units. There are reports of secondary heating of some hay in storage.

Straw

Harvest reports suggest that straw yields and quality to date are better than expected for this difficult year but still somewhat below average. An increase of about 7% or 19,000 hectares in total cereals area will help keep up straw output. However, the main increase is in wheat straw, which is less suitable for animal feeding and more suitable for bedding purposes. Barley and oaten straw is more suitable for animal feeding but the area of these crops is down by 5,000 hectares. Also, the yield of straw from late sown spring barley crops will be down. Straw prices are close to average but are higher in the areas more distant from the tillage counties, due to extra transport costs.

Fodder Supply

The total quantity of silage produced is close to normal levels overall, as the higher yields of first cut silage will compensate for the reduced areas of second cut. The overall quantity of forage from hay and straw may also be close to normal. Also, almost all forage reserves carried over from last winter were used up during the bad weather. The main areas where shortfalls in quantity of forage persist are the wet heavy land areas. The main problem to be faced is the lower quality of the main forage crops, except for second cut silage and straw. Also yield and quality of forage maize will be down.

Dairying

Milk yields were close to normal at the end of August except for the most difficult heavy wetland soils where yields are up to 20% below normal. There is considerable variation and fluctuations in milk constituents, due to weather and variations in grass and supplementation feed levels and quality.

Milk production levels have been maintained with costly meal feeding. Many dairy farmers are still feeding supplements in the range 1-2 kgs per cow per day and up to 4-5 kgs/cow/day in the worst affected areas. With the big improvement in grass supplies and quality in late August, some farmers should be able to reduce meal supplementation further and thus reduce costs. They may also now be able to conserve extra surplus grass on some farms. However, some farms cut down on supplements too quickly and this reduced milk yields and quality.

The dairy breeding programme is now completed. There are some worries about breeding and fertility performance. Bulls were left with the herds longer than normal and there are some reports of late repeats and lower conception rates. Scanning the dairy herd for pregnancy status will help identify problem cows.

Beef

Daily liveweight gain has improved over the last three weeks and currently is satisfactory to normal. However, overall performance at grass this summer is back by 15% to 20%. Weanlings and store cattle are 20kg to 40kg lighter than normal.

The percentage of farmers feeding concentrates to cattle ranges from 10%-20% up to 50%-80% in the worst affected areas. Weanlings are getting 0.5 to 1.5kgs of meal per head per day, finishing cattle are receiving from 2.0 to 6.0kgs / head / day. The expected lower silage quality will have implications for wintering costs.

An extra 1.0 to 2.0 kgs of meal will be required to maintain performance in both weanlings and finishing cattle at a cost of 16 - 35 cent / animal / day.

The overall breeding performance of the suckler cow herd is expected to be reduced with evidence of slightly lower conception rates. There is also a risk of a higher level of animal health problems in the autumn and winter (liver fluke, hoose and worms) and this will require relevant preventative treatments.

Sheep

Lamb thrive has improved in the last three weeks in all but the most severely affected areas and daily liveweight gain is generally back to normal for the time of year. However, in the worst affected areas and particularly where meals are not being fed, daily live weight gain is still below normal at 0.1 to 0.15 kgs / head / day.

Overall lamb performance at grass this summer is down by about 15%. Lamb sales to date as a % of a normal year sales are running at 70% to 90%. Concentrate supplementation to lambs is now widespread, with the proportion of sheep farmers feeding supplements ranging from around 30% to 80%. Typical supplementation rates range from 0.25kgs to 0.5kgs / lamb / day. Given that lamb prices have increased in recent weeks, it is too early to assess the final impact of the additional cost / losses incurred by sheep farmers.

Liver fluke is showing up in lambs following slaughter and is becoming a serious problem in susceptible areas. Lameness has been a significant problem on the heavier, wetter soils..

Potatoes

Growth in the main potato crop has improved during August but later sown crops are still backward. Blight pressures were high due to the warm humid weather and more spraying was required than normal, which will add to production costs.

There is a risk of increased slug damage to maincrop potatoes, especially in heavy soils, from August to October and control measures are required.

Main crop potato yields are predicted to be down by 10% to 30% on average, depending on location but hopefully prices will hold firm.

Maize

Growth in the maize crop has improved considerably in the last 3-4 weeks but the estimated yield and quality of winter feed from the crop is still predicted to be well down on average. An estimated 20,000 hectares of maize was sown on eligible land this year which is up 1,500 to 2,000 hectares on 2001.

Maize growers already hit by poor crops due to the bad weather now also face a significant cut in area aid payments on the crop due to an expected substantial overshoot in the National Base Area in 2002. The level of any area aid payment reduction will not be known for some time.

Maize crops grown under plastic are ahead of uncovered crops. There are some crop failures in parts of some fields and in marginal land areas.

Sugar Beet

Growth in the sugar beet crop has improved substantially during August with many crops now only one to two weeks behind normal, except for late sown crops. If the weather stays good from now on, the crop has the capacity to produce nearer its potential. While yields are expected to be down, it should be possible to fill the sugar beet quota required by Greencore. Weed problems in the crop have been greater than normal.

Horticulture

Vegetable crops have progressed well during August. However, there have been some shortages and supply gaps because of the poor planting and growing conditions in the May to July period. Also some imports have still continued even though Irish supplies are gradually increasing. Weed growth and control has been a problem. Growers of brassica crops, such as broccoli and cauliflower, have already suffered substantial losses with the earlier crops.

Fruit farmers in Wexford, Dublin and Meath have been badly affected. The main outdoor, uncovered strawberry crop has suffered severe losses with yields down 50%-75%. Yield losses were lower, at 20%-30%, for the protected strawberry crop grown in plastic tunnels. The quality of the fruit was also variable. There were less problems with the blackcurrant crop, where yields were closer to average.

The apple crop has been severely affected, with the lowest yields predicted for many years. While some apple growers escaped with modest weather damage, many growers face losses of up to 50%-80%, with quality also reduced. Growers producing apples for the cider industry are not as badly affected but yields will also be down.

Many nurseries reported big drops in the sale of summer bedding plants and perennial plants normally sold in the May/June/July period. Large quantities of unsold plants were discarded, as the season had passed.