Heavily rainfall over the recent days has seen grass growth rates greatly reduce on farms.
As winter-like weather conditions begin to set in, there has been a significant drop in predicated growth rates in all parts of the country.
The colder nights, shorter days and heavy rainfall have resulted in reduced growth rates for all parts of the country. However, this weather and subsequent reduction is not surprising, considering it is now mid/late-October.
Grass growth
Current grass growth rates, based on figures from PastureBase Ireland, are 33kg of dry matter (DM)/ha in Leinster; 32kg of DM/ha in Munster; 34kg of DM/ha in Connacht; and 28kg of DM/ha in Ulster.
The predicated growth rates are 23kg of DM/ha for Leinster; 19kg of DM/ha for Munster; 17kg of DM/ha for Connacht; and 20kg of DM/ha for Ulster.
This prediction is quite a drop from last week’s growth rates, which were 38kg of DM/ha in Leinster; 38kg of DM/ha in Munster; 38kg of DM/ha in Connacht; and 35kg of DM/ha in Ulster.
Taking Leinster as an example, these latest predictions mean that there has been a reduced growth rate of 15kg of DM/ha in seven days.
The largest reduction however can be seen in Connacht, where there has been a reduction in growth of 21kg of DM/ha.
Grazing conditions
The recent heavy rainfall experienced in many parts of the country has made grazing conditions much more challenging.
To ensure that cows can still go out to grass, farmers need to make use of their grazing infrastructure.
Cows should be entering and exiting from different entrances and if necessary, using spur roadways on farms.
To obtain the best grass utilisation and protect land that has already been grazed, a strip wire should be used.
If ground conditions worsen, farmers should also make use of on/off grazing to allow cows to continue to have access to grass.