The Season as it Unfolds
GRASS VALUE!
(Up to mid-May)
Grazing
Throughout the first half of May the grazing quality of grass has been high. Dry matters were consistently over 20%, protein approaching 22% and energy over 12 MJ, so the grass consumed was definitely nutritious. However due to the severe frosts at night and the lack of rain, the grass on offer was generally limited and milk yields from grazing was on average only 5.8 litres.
The last week has seen soaring temperatures but still no rain. The value of grazing has therefore not much improved and high yielding cows still need good levels of buffer feeding with many still being housed at night.
Pre cut Grass
Grass tested prior to cutting for silage gives some clues to the winter feed we can expect. On a number of farms cutting is currently being delayed as grass growth has been poor and there is concern that stocks well be low.
However the grass in the pit already should be well preserved as it was cut nice and dry, low in nitrates and sugars were good. In addition conditions allowed a good wilt.
On the downside, the protein content of the grass was low on some units, with an average 14.8% Considering these are early silages, the protein level is likely to be lower as the season progresses.