Grass growth is many parts of the country is severely depressed, due to a lack of rain and soil moisture deficits.
Many parts of the country have seen very little or no rain for a number of weeks, which has placed them in a difficult position as they look to build covers for the autumn.
Soil moisture deficits are now quite significant, with as high as 70mm in the south and east of the country as drought-like conditions take hold.
There is very little rain forecast and if rain was to come, it would now take a number of weeks for farms with significant soil moisture deficits to recover.
Grass growth
Current growth rates, based on figures from PastureBase Ireland, are 33kg dry matter (DM)/ha in Leinster; 35kg DM/ha in Munster; 50kg DM/ha in Connacht; and 47kg DM/ha in Ulster.
The predicated growth rates are positive for some and negative for others, with predicated growth rates of 30kg DM/ha for Leinster; 43kg DM/ha for Munster; 52kg DM/ha for Connacht; and 54kg DM/ha for Ulster.
Soil moisture deficits
The western part of the country, in general, is dealing with the dry weather reasonably well, while the east and south are suffering.
Many of these farms have now burnt up and growth rates have reduced massively.
In contrast, the western counties and farms on heavier soil types are coping quite well in the current conditions, with growth rates holding steady.
But again, it really depends on soil type, with Kerry having growth rates of 51kg dry matter (DM)/ha, while Cork has an average growth of 33kg DM/ha.
Farms in west Cork have a similar growth to the Kerry average, while many areas in north Cork are below the county average.
This trend is repeated in Leinster with Longford having a growth of 50kg DM/ha, while Dublin has a growth 18kg DM/ha and Wexford has a growth of 28kg DM/ha.