Teagasc/Dairygold Monitor Farm Updates 2024

4th October

Farm walk on Mark Lonergan's Farm, Thursday 10th October

We are holding a farm walk on Mark Lonergan's Farm, Rathmacarthy, Rosegreen, Cashel, Co. Tipperary, E25 N42, on Thursday 10th October, 11 AM - 12.30 PM, where we will look at his current situation and how the farm has performed over the last few years.

We will discuss what management decisions he is taking to set himself up for next Spring, such as autumn grazing, fodder budgets & culling empty cows. We will also take a look at his cost structure & his planned stocking rate/cow numbers for 2025.

27th September

Visit to Teagasc Johnstown Castle Research Centre

The group had the opportunity to meet with the researchers & technicians involved in some of the research being carried out.

Multi Species Swards

Multi Species Swards are being trialled since 2019 & they are currently measuring methane from the group on MMS versus Ryegrass/clover swards. GHG emissions are being recorded from different fertiliser compounds.

Dairy Calf to Beef Herd

The dairy calf to beef herd are aiming to finish heifers off grass before the second winter.

They also have the longest running flux tower measuring carbon sequestration in the soil.

20th September

Joe Morrissey Reseed

The photo shows a paddock that Joe reseeded in early August. It had been performing poorly all year, so he went ahead & sprayed it off despite the lack of grass at the time. It got its post-emergence spray on Monday which may have been a little early for some of the weeds to have germinated, but Joe took the opportunity while the weather was suitable for spraying. He's hoping to get it grazed in 2 weeks time & to have it grazed twice in total before the winter. 

13th September

Raymond Goggin-oversowing clover

The photo shows a paddock which Raymond oversowed with 2kgs of white clover (Buddy) per acre on the 20th May 2024. It had been planned for earlier but ground conditions were too poor after grazing in late April.

The paddock was reseeded in 2019 & had zero clover content last year. He used the grass harrow/seeder in the photo that he owns himself. It got the regular rate of chemical Nitrogen for a non clover paddock and was grazed at covers of no greater than 1000kgs/DM/ha until mid August. The lack of moisture has led to a mixed result. Currently (pic on right) there is not enough clover in the paddock to completely reduce chemical Nitrogen. Raymond feels that for the low cost involved its worth trying the same paddock again next year.

6th September

29th August

Sean Moher Update 

Although Sean has had rain over the summer, lack of moisture is still holding growth rates back with 52kgs/DM/ha this week. Average farm cover is only at 678, so Sean has had to go back in with 5 kgs DM of zero grazing to hold the rotation. Non-clover paddocks have got a bag of 18-6-12. The farm is growing very well in the last few days so hopefully he will build some cover in the next few weeks, but its hard to see him reaching target peak covers at this stage.

Sean scanned last week with 11 out of 86 (12%) of cows empty after 11.5 weeks of breeding.  All of the heifers are incalf. They are milk recording today and any empty cows that arent milking well will be culled ASAP. Pictures show a paddock that was reseeded with a multispecies mix on the 24th April. It established very well & has performed well all summer.

9th August

2nd August

Joe Morrissey Update

Lack of moisture has dropped growth rates back again, from 56 last week to 42kgs/DM/ha this week. Average farm cover is back to 591, so Joe has had to go back in with 4kgs DM of silage to hold the rotation. Joe is planning to spray off a paddock on Tuesday to reseed. This won't help with building grass but the paddock is performing poorly all year & is only adding 2 grazings per rotation currently, so Joe feels it is more of a priority to get it reseeded. Picture on the right shows a paddock that was reseeded last year with good clover established & seems to be performing well in the dry conditions

Friday 5th July

Friday 21st June

Friday 14th June

Tom O'Connell update

Tom's growth was back from 67 last week to 55 this week so he had increased the ration to 5 kgs, but with the rain Wednesday night he's expecting growth to improve & has reduced ration back down to 4kg. He'll do another grass walk the weekend and re-assess then.  Breeding in both the heifers & cows seems to be going well so far. Clover paddocks got Sulphate of Potash (SOP)  the 1st of June to ensure they have enough Sulphur & Potassium, where there isn't a Phosphorus allowance. Pictured on the right is a Multispecies reseed, sown in early May.

Friday 7th June

Clover workshops

The Teagasc Grass10 team & Dairygold are holding a number of clover workshops over the coming weeks, kicking off on the farm of Pat Cronin in Kilnamartyra on Wednesday 12th June 7.30 -8.30 pm.  Anyone who is finding it difficult to manage clover this year should come along & get some tips on how to retain clover that has previously been established and how to establish clover in reseeds.

Friday 31st May

Friday 24th May

Friday 17th May

Sean Moher Update

Grass was tight last week but with the high growth rates Sean is back on track this week & will have surpluses to mow next week. Multispecies reseed sown the 24th April has had excellent conditions to establish. 100 % of cows will be bred after 24 days so breeding is going very well so far. 4 cows that had irregular cycles showing on the heat detection collars got a shot of Prostaglandin and were AI'd. Two cows that didn't respond to PG have been synchronised by the vet. Depending on the level of clover in clover paddocks they will either get 0 chemical Nitrogen or 1/2 rate, after this round. The other 1/3 will be fertilised based on farm cover and conditions at the time.

Friday 10th May

Tom O'Connell Update

Growth, at 93 has finally taken off. Unfortunatly surplus grass is too light yet to bale but will have to come out next week. A grass walk again Tuesday will allow him decide which ones to take. 66% of cows are bred after 2 weeks so breeding is going very well so far. Heifers got sexed straws to FTAI & will be watched next week to ensure the 2 young AA bulls with 45 heifers aren't overworked. All the catch-up & machine work is being done at the moment. Spur road being put in to improve access to the back of these 2 paddocks for next autumn & spring.

Friday 3rd May

Comment

Unfortunately weather is making things difficult again. Growth just isn't where you'd expect for May. Some of the Demo farmers have had to increase the ration and graze ground that was closed for silage in order to slow the rotation a little. This won't help in building silage reserves back up. It's worth doing a fodder budget in the next few weeks so you can put a plan in place in time. Sean Barry may have to go back inside for a few nights due to poor ground conditions - picture taken Thursday May 2nd.

It smportant to walk the farm again after the weekend to see how things are going.

Breeding

On the positive side Breeding seems to be going well so far. Farmers with automatic heat detection are seeing plenty of heats.

Friday 12th April

Conditions are still very difficult onfarm with the heavier ground still unaccessable. A number of the demo farmers are juggling between the 1st & 2nd rotation.

The photo on right, Walsh's farm, shows paddock in foreground that got no chemical Nitrogen versus the one in the background that did. Grazed 10 days  apart.

Teagasc/Dairygold Joint Programme Farm Walks

Friday 29th March 202

As cows are nearly at peak milk their energy requirement is high. The Demo farms are increasing the ration in the parlour when cows are not getting out to grass. Advice from Dr. Joe Patten at yesterday's event in Corrin Mart is to feed the cows extra ration where required but to keep it as simple as possible. Where cows are not getting grass or silage is getting tight a third feed may be required during the day eg. soya hulls. Hopefully this won't last long as there is a lot of grass on farms provided it can be grazed.

Where silage ground won't get slurry ensure that you use a compound fertiliser product to supply required P, K & Sulphur. Check your allowances and remember if you don't have a Phosphorus allowance you still need to apply potash and sulphur.

Friday 15th March 2024

Mark Lonergan Update

• Milk recorded 9th March, 7 cows over 200,000 followed up by checking these individual cows-one lady was high 3 times last year & high again so she will be culled
• 23 units of N or slurry gone out on the grass paddocks
• Clover paddocks will get 3,000 gals of slurry as soon as possible after grazing
• Dairy straws have been ordered-Team has an average fertility of €140, 30kgs of solids with 0.35% fat, 0.22% protein, €16 Maintence & health €13

Friday 1st March

Monitor Farms Update

Calving is generally going well with 75% of cows calved on average. Huge variation in grazing conditions, with no grazing done yet on the heavy farms. The dry farms have managed to get 30% grazed by pushing hard to get cows out onto drier paddocks, that have good access, for short periods either morning or evening. The number of cows calved means there is high demand allowing them to get through more area in the last week.

Photos: Red and white clover grazing paddock that got 2500 gals/ac of slurry, to be grazed this weekend.
Ground conditions in Sean Barry's today.

Monday 19th February

Raymond Goggin Update

Average Farm Cover is good so Raymond is pushing on to try and get ground grazed, despite the challenging weather conditions. This means regularly walking the farm to pick the driest paddocks with a low enough cover. He has a milk recording scheduled for next week to ensure he picks up any problem cases early.

Friday 2nd February

Demo Farmers Update

The farms were walked the last week in January to assess opening farm cover. Closing average farm cover was lower than planned on some farms & opening farm cover is now lower than target on those farms. Slurry & the first Nitrogen application are being applied (where ground conditions and weather forecast are suitable). This will help to push on grass growth over the spring which will help reduce meal inputs.

Friday June 28th 

26th July

Mark Lonergan Update

Grass growth has averaged 61 kgs DM/ha/day during June and July which is the same as last year. Litres are back a little this week after holding steady all month while fat & protein are rising.

Second cut that was taken last week is coming back very well and the rest of the second cut is being mown today. We did a fodder budget last week and it's tight enough, even though Mark took the opportunity to purchase some dry cow silage. He will update the budget after all the second cut is in and assess the options at that stage.

Photo shows work Mark has done in the last few weeks, on channels & holding tanks in the yard to ensure clean water is diverted properly.

19th July

Tom O'Connell Farm Walk

We had a great turnout for Tom's farm walk on Wednesday evening, which shows that he's not the only one questioning if his stocking rate is still maximising profitability on farm. Factors influencing Stocking rate decisions which were discussed on the night included;

Cow genetic potential & total dry mater intakes, Calving pattern, opportunities to reseed, average grass growth over a 3 year period, area of outblocks available & their grass growth capacity, facilites in place and most importantly of all profitability.

11th October

Tim Leader Farm Update

An extension to a shed has just been completed, which will provide additional cubicles & feed space plus improved ventilation.

The 2024 reseed which will be prioritised for closing with a low cover to ensure the clover gets light over the winter. This will give the clover which has established well, the best chance for survival into next spring.

Tim has a whiteboard in the parlour for recording results of CMT test. Huge focus has been placed on identifying & treating high SCC cows this year. Milk recording has been booked for next week to ensure there is up to date information before drying off. Currently SCC is at 159 versus 247 this time last year

18th October

Mark Lonergan Farm Walk: Key Messages

Know your costs of production and benchmark to identify any possible improvements. Mark's fat & protein % were were worth €200 per cow above the dairygold average milk price in 2023.

Complete an autumn grass budget and ensure you have sufficient closing cover on farm on the 1st of December for your expected grass demand next spring. Mark targets 650-700 cover on his farm. A lot of silage has been fed to date so update your fodder budget also. 

Take opportunities if weather & ground conditions allow in the next few weeks to spread Lime & potash where required. Mark's focus on soil fertility is having a big impact on grass & clover grown and utilised on farm, keeping control of costs.

Friday 25th October

Walsh Family Farm Update

Congratulations to John and Brendan who won the 2024 Teagasc / FBD Environmentally Sustainable Farmer of the Year award earlier in the month.

While their focus is on running an efficient and profitable dairy farm, they are also passionate about looking after the environment. Chemical Nitrogen use has halved since 2020. The Nitrogen surplus on the farm is 91 kilogrammes of N per hectare, compared to the national average of 159 kg N / ha.  A low N surplus significantly reduces the risk of nitrate leaching into waterways on the farm. Picture on the right shows a paddock fully reseeded in 2021 which received zero chemical N this year (2024).

Native trees are planted every year on the farm and hedges are allowed to grow up, and out, to provide shelter for stock, maximise their value for biodiversity plus capture carbon.

4th November

Tom O'Connell Farm Update

Tom is keeping a close eye on grass this week. Grazing conditions are excellent so cows are still out day & night, but it is critical that there is enough grass on farm on the 1st of December for his demand next spring. The grass budgeting tool on PBI is a quick tool to predict farm cover, based on weekly stock numbers & predicted growth rates, Tom plans out the paddocks to be grazed in the week. Some culls went to the factory this week making more grass available for the remaining cows. He has also spent a bit of time planning which cows will get Dry cow tubes and those that will get sealer only based on milk recordings throughout the year.

8th November 2024

Joe Morrissey Farm Update

The grass is looking very good, but growth over the last two weeks was only 18 kg DM/ha, which is positive but no better than average for late October/early November. After completing a grass walk, Joe estimates he has grazing available by day until the 16th of November. Using the PBI grass budget, we estimate this will leave him with a closing cover of 730 kg DM/ha (AFC) on the 1st of December.

Joe's breeding season went excellently this year, with less than 3% empty. There are 76 cows due to calve next February, so an opening farm cover (OFC) target of 1,100 kg DM/ha is reasonable for Joe on a dry farm. The first of his cows were dried off this week, and he will continue to dry them off based on calving dates from now on. In-calf heifers will be sealed in the coming weeks, as this approach worked very well last year.

The photograph shows a paddock that was reseeded last year. To maintain good clover content, it is important not to carry too heavy a cover over the winter. This paddock should be ideal with a cover of 400 kg DM/ha today, as it is a dry paddock that Joe can usually graze early.

15th November

Farm Updates

A Paddock on Tim Leader's farm was limed recently. Tim has spread over 200 tons of lime this year.

Jimmy Cotters cows are out grazing. He had planned to have this paddock closed but regrowth was too good! He is still planning to have 650 to 700 AFC on 1st December & hoping to grow 5kgs/DM/ha/day for the winter.