Tomorrow (September 14) will be the last day farmers can apply fertiliser to their ground, which means any last minute spreading has to be done now.
The slightly cooler conditions during the last number of days have not been ideal for spreading fertiliser, which has seen grass growth go stagnant in the last week.
Grass growth last week on dairy farms was recorded on Pasturebase Ireland as 49kg dry matter (DM)/ha, with a demand remaining at 43kg DM/ha.
The drier weather we have been experiencing has improved grazing conditions on farms, particularly in the north of the country, which received heavy rainfall during August.
Cows around the country seem to be holding their milk, and with milk price on the rise in the last few months, cash flow and mood among farmers seems to be slowly getting better.
In order to see out this tough year and finish it off on a high, farmers need to do all they can to extend the grazing season and build covers to start off spring next year on a high.
Fertiliser
Considering tomorrow is the last day of the chemical fertiliser spreading year, farmers should make the most out of it, in order to get the most of the grass and cows.
For some farmers, there is going to be fertiliser in the yard and soil on the farm that may need it to grow grass and build covers.
For the last remaining paddocks on your farm to receive nitrogen (N), you should be spreading at a rate of 20 to 23 units which equates to 25kg N/ha as per Teagasc.
The advice is to not panic just because the deadline is looming, but to be sensible with your application, and only apply if your ground needs it.
Just because the chemical fertiliser closing date is September 15, it does not mean that your ground is not going to receive nutrients from now until the end of the grazing season.
The organic fertiliser closing date is not until October 1, which means that your soiled water/collecting yard tank will come into play at the latter end of September for application on the grazing ground.
If you have fertiliser stocks retained on the farm after the deadline comes to pass, they must be recorded on the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s (DAFM) National Fertiliser Database as ‘closing stocks’.