Grass growth continues to be in a strong position as we enter into mid-September, which continues to be a welcome sign for farmers.
Although grass growth is in a positive position, the shorter days and colder night-time temperatures are starting to be felt.
By now, growth rates would usually start to tail-off, however, they appear to be holding.
Although they are continuing to hold strong for now, caution is advised and you should still be focusing on building average farm cover (AFC).
Grass
The latest figures from PastureBase Ireland show current growth rates of 55kg of dry matter (DM)/ha for Leinster, 56kg of DM/ha for Munster, 55kg of DM/ha for Connacht and 50kg of DM/ha for Ulster.
Around half of the country is due to experience heavy rain over the coming days which may slow down growth and hamper grazing conditions.
The outlook for the days ahead is again positive with predicted growth rates for the coming days being 55kg of DM/ha for Leinster, 52kg of DM/ha for Munster, 54kg of DM/ha for Connacht and 52kg of DM/ha for Ulster.
Management
Many farms that are building AFC are finding themselves in the position where some covers are getting too strong.
Grazing very high covers in early autumn can prove difficult to graze out unless the weather is exceptional.
For now, if a surplus is present, there is no need to do anything drastic. However, if the surplus continues to grow and becomes too high, it should be taken out as baled silage before weather/ground conditions deteriorate.
These surpluses should only be taken out if you are sure there is enough grass ahead of cows and it is not going to impact on your autumn grazing plan.
The approach to managing grass this year will have to be done on a farm-by-farm basis and you will have to determine what is going to work best for your farm.