It has been a tough finish to the grazing year, as consistent rainfall in most parts of the country over the last few weeks has driven a lot of cows indoors.

With shorter days and less sunlight, ground which has reached saturation point will not be drying out any time soon either, meaning the housing season is well and truly upon us.

Despite this, farmers in drier areas of the country are still managing to get cows out by day in hopes of finishing out the rotation.

However, these farmers need to be extra careful not to cause unnecessary damage to their ground ahead of the spring, when grass is far more valuable.

Grazing

It is always tempting to keep grass in the diet especially if winter milking, but it should only be done so when suitable.

Ideally, farms should be closing the platform out with an average farm cover (AFC) of 600-700kg DM/ha, depending on their soil type and stocking rate, to have good quality grass next spring.

However, according to Pasturebase, 25% of farms are still above 800kg DM/ha AFC, meaning they will be aiming to graze as much as possible over the next two weeks.

If the weather stays poor and conditions begin to deteriorate even further, farmers should try and get cows out for two or three hours in the morning, utilising strip fencing and spur roadways to achieve their targets.

On the other side of the target, 28% of farms have an AFC below 600kg DM/ha according to Pasturebase.

These farms should ideally begin full-time housing, as their grass growth has dropped to around 23kg DM/ha, meaning no more grass is available and they are just negatively impacting spring covers.

A lot of farmers in heavy soil areas may still be trying to drive on if possible, with the idea they may not be able to get cows out until March and grazing now will make no odds.

Every farmer knows their own land best, but it is still important not to damage ground or severely overgraze, as this will negatively impact paddocks and cost you money if there is a good spring.

These farmers need to remember that each week delayed in closing reduces spring grass supply by over 100kg DM/ha.

Considering that spring grass is worth up to €4/cow/day, it is important to try and maximise that rather than autumn grass.