August can be an opportune time in the farming calendar to carry out grassland reseeding or sward rejuvenation if weather conditions permit.
However, if fodder stocks are low it might be best to hold off on reseeding this year – despite the good weather – or otherwise consider min-till methods to shorten the time before the paddock returns to production.
A recent newsletter from the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) has outlined that if farmers can afford to take out paddocks or fields, they should be identified for reseeding based on the amount of grass grown over the past five years (Kg: dry matter (DM)/ha) and the proportion of perennial ryegrass remaining in the sward.
According to CAFRE, before reseeding, soil structure and the levels of compaction should be accessed to determine the optimal method of reseeding to be used.
Soil pH and nutrient levels should be corrected ahead of reseeding, based on soil analysis results.
Concluding, the CAFRE newsletter advised farmers to select grass varieties from recommended lists that have been produced under conditions close to your own farm’s environment.
Liming grassland
With markets having taken a turn for the better this year, some farmers, after a number of difficult years, are considering spending a bit of money and reinvesting back into improving their farms – and what better place to start than spreading lime to improve soil pH.
Many farmers may have taken soil samples in recent years and never got a chance to take action on the results.
Speaking at a Teagasc beef farm walk in Camolin, Co. Wexford, Teagasc drystock advisor Jack Murphy said: “From now on, to the back end of the year, is an ideal time to spread lime on grassland.”
He outlined that lime is “a good value-for-money investment” in soil fertility, costing approximately €25t, delivered and spread.
“If you don’t have soil pH right, you can spread all the phosphorus (P), potassium (K) and nitrogen (N) you like but you won’t get the proper return on it.”
He stressed that soil fertility is the foundation of all types of grass-based farming systems in Ireland and suggested that all farmers should take a look at their soil test results and see what their farm needs.
“No two farms are the same; your farm may need more lime, phosphorus or potassium than a neighbouring farm.”