Dairy Newsletter - May 2023

Download Publication (PDF)

In this month's edition:

• Top five tips for May
  1. Milk production costs have risen significantly in the last 24 months. Examine your cost base and complete a cash budget for the remainder of the year.
  2. Keep pre-grazing grass covers at the optimal three leaf stage (1,400kg per ha covers). This will drive milk solids.
  3. Will you have enough silage for next winter? Do an early budget.
  4. Deal with any non-cycling cows immediately, including any cow calved more than 30 days.
  5. Peak spring work has now passed and while farms remain busy, daily routines are more easily planned.
• Grazing management and white clover swards
  Best practice grazing management is similar for grass-white clover swards and grass-only swards. Flexibility and willingness to adapt to the conditions are important when managing grass-white clover swards. Good grazing management is also important for increased persistence and production of white clover in grazed swards.
• Correct paddock size
  With weather and ground conditions improving, there is an opportunity to remove the strip wire. Twelve-hour allocations (two grazing allowances offered per day) still occur on many farms throughout the summer months. However, there are many benefits to making the change to 24-/36-hour paddocks.
• Breeding – deal with problem cows early
  Breeding season is now in full swing and the majority of eligible cows will be submitted by mid May on most farms. It is important to focus on those cows not bred to date, i.e., late calvers (cows that have calved after March 20) and problem cows (cows with issues since calving, such as retained placenta, milk fever, ketosis, displaced abomasum, mastitis or even lameness).
• Health and Safety - Safety this breeding season
  May is a very active farming month, particularly with machinery work, including spraying, silage harvesting, and fertiliser and slurry spreading. May is also one of the main breeding months on many farms. Health and Safety Authority (HSA) figures show that bulls were involved in over 16% of livestock-related deaths on Irish farms in the last 10 years. It is important that facilities for cattle handling are present, appropriate, well designed and maintained, and that tasks with animals are properly planned and organised.