Silage pits on many farms have now been open for a numbers of months in most cases, and it is now time to ensure that there is enough fodder in the pit.
2023 will be remembered as a challenging year for farms, particularly when it comes to grazing and the harvesting of fodder.
With fodder having to be introduced much earlier than planned in many cases, it is important to check that there is adequate supplies for the winter ahead.
Knowing that supplies may run short now allows for measures to be put in place, rather than waiting until it is too late.
Fodder budget
To complete a fodder budget, measure all silage pits (length x width x average height in metres), and include any silage bales that may be present.
Once this has been completed, you need to determine the silage requirement of animals housed on the farm.
Typical dry matter (DM) intakes requirements/day:
- Dry dairy cows: 11-12kg of DM;
- Dairy cows: 16-21kg of DM (depending on yield/stage of lactation);
- Weanlings: 4-5kg of DM.
You should add on an additional month to ensure that fodder supplies on the farm are sufficient for the farm, as a precaution for potential weather delays in spring.
If fodder supplies are sufficient, you must ensure that there is no excessive loss.
Management of the silage pit during the winter can impact on the amount of waste that is produced from the pit.
Shortage
There are a couple of solutions for farms that have a fodder shortage:
The first option is to look at purchasing additional fodder from a farm that has a surplus of supply.
Straw is generally another good option, but limited supplies of high-quality straw might make it difficult to access this year.
Concentrates in some situations can help stretch feed reserves, according to Tirlán a good rule of thumb is for every kilo of concentrates or soya hulls fed, it will save 4-5kg of silage/head/day.
This option is expensive and will likely not be suitable for many.
Another option, is looking at reducing stock numbers on the farm or getting some animals out to grass earlier.
Keeping excess stock on farm will eat into fodder reserves, and with many farms potentially facing issues with nitrates they should be moved off farm.
There is also the option of looking to get stock out to grass earlier in the year – weanling heifers could potentially be turned out to grass earlier in the year.
It is important that you explore all options that are available, and determine what is going to work best for you.