forage r · forage of concentrate quality forage minerals role of grass in flood mitigation chewing...

New entrant benefits from grass-based system

ForagerHelping dairy, beef and sheep farmers profit from forage

Winter 2015/16

Forager

Also in this issueof

TRACKING FORFEED EFFICIENCY

BRASSICAS OFFER MULTIPLEGRAZINGS

CONCENTRATEQUALITY FORAGE

In this issue ofFORAGER

We welcome feedback, suggestions forarticles and contributions.

Editor: Aly BalsomTel: 07912 344 219Email: [email protected]

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Forage Bites

Balancing winter rations

New model shows profit from forage

Grazing best option for new entrant

Hybrid brassica for finishing potential

Beef benefit from grass rotation

Thinking about feeder efficiency

Feeder wagon tracker

Grazing strategies for performance

Forage of concentrate quality

Forage minerals

Role of grass in flood mitigation

Chewing the Cud

The challenging market environmentmeans 2015 is a year most livestockfarmers will wish to forget, but ifthere’s one positive to be take from it, it’s how it’s focused the mind onefficiencies, and most notably forage.The idea of using homegrown forageto reduce costs may not be a newone, but it appears there has been anotable phase shift in the number offarmers actively embracing the green stuff.Kingshay’s Dairy Costings are a good illustration of how things arechanging. Having consistently seen a reduction in milk from forage yearon year, 2015 had bucked the trend.Rolling milk from forage levels are2.3% higher than last year and for the month of September, milk from forage was 28% higher thanSeptember 2014. This puts milk from forage figures at 8.2 litres a cow a day, compared to 6.4 litres the previous year. The Andersons Centre hasdemonstrated that this emphasis on forage can benefit the bottom line.Their modelling work shows thatsystems that place greater emphasison forage use can still turn a profit,even at the current depressed milk price (p8).There’s no doubt, 2015 has been acracking year for growing forage,which has helped achieve milk fromforage improvements, but it’s cleareconomics are also driving change.This means more producers arelooking at ways to feed more forageand reduce bought in feed costs.More and more beef and sheepfarmers are also actively working tofine tune systems to make better use

of farm resources and reducefinishing costs (p16 and p22).With forage stocks bursting at theseams on many farms, there’s bigpotential to continue to maximiseproduction from forage in the yearahead. However, as the saying goes;‘knowledge is power’. Only bytesting silage for quality andminerals will you be able to rationeffectively. This will also highlightwhere you can make potentialsavings in purchased minerals (p26). Taking the time to train staff so theyunderstand the importance ofproducing quality forage, as well asthe need for accurate feed mixingand presentation (p19), will also helpdrive efficiencies. At the same time,embracing technologies to fine tuneforage management (p20) can further aid performance.With low prices for meat and milk set to continue for some time yet,these small tweaks will go some wayto improving your business’s abilityto ride out the tough times. The keyis to ensure all the lessons learnt inthe bad times are carried throughinto the good times - when they do eventually come.

From the editor4 – 5

6 – 7

8 – 9

10 – 12

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16 – 17

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Profit per hectare should be the primary measure of businessperformance for beef sucklerproducers, rather than widely used parameters such as individualweaning weights, weight of finishedanimals or sale revenue per head.This was the view of Colorado cattlebreeder Lee Leachman, speaking at the Beef Improvement Groupconference at Askham Bryan Collegein November. He added that a fertileand efficient suckler cow was agreater determinant of success than fast growth rates or high finishing weights.“The common approach in the UK isto aim for higher and higher outputs,but I do not believe this is the routeto greater profitability,” he said. “The industry is breeding bigger andbigger cows, by design or as aconsequence of selecting bulls withthe highest growth rate EBVs, andthis is counter-productive. He said itwas a fact that smaller cows weaneda higher proportion of their bodyweight in live calves, allowing higher

stocking rates and reduced feedcosts, and had higher reproductionrates. As a result, bigger cows simplyreduced profit per hectare.”Mr Leachman’s cattle breedingenterprise in Colorado, USA, hasbeen instrumental in thedevelopment of the Stabiliser breed, a composite designed to deliver the

benefits of hybrid vigour in a highlyefficient suckler cow.“As a beef suckler producer the focusmust be on the maternal traits andthe growth traits, but with emphasison maternal traits,” he added. “It’s abalancing act and in the UK theemphasis has gone too far on growthand leanness traits in many breeds.”

Most livestock farmers couldrealistically double grasssilage dry matter productionand make more of low costgrass, according to Germinalmanaging director WilliamGilbert.Speaking as Germinallaunched its new brandidentity, Mr Gilbert visuallydisplayed the lost potentialfrom UK grassland using twotrailer loads of silage bales.Germinal’s new identity willherald a number ofinitiatives from the company,

all aimed at improvingefficiency across the livestocksector through maximisingproduction from forage.“Germinal’s role extends along way beyond the supplyof quality forage seeds,” hesaid. “Innovation, expertiseand the sharing of essentialknowledge will feature moreand more in our futuresupport of the farmingindustry. Grasslandproduction is the area wherewe expect to make thebiggest difference.”

4

Profit per hectare best measure for sucklers

Doubling grassland output achievable for many

Digestible knowledge on all things forageFor more information visit www.foragermagazine.co.uk

FORAGER – WINTER 2015/16

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Sheep producers are being warned to watch out for gut worms inlambs during winter, as research shows that internal parasitesremain a common cause of deaths at this time.Data from the AHDB Beef & Lamb-funded fallen stock project, based on results of post-mortems from April 2014 – June 2015, shows that guts worms are responsible for 12% of lamb deaths, with a peak in November and December.Lesley Stubbings, of the Sustainable Control of Parasites in Sheep(SCOPS) industry group, said: “Given the mild conditions so far this autumn, it is vital sheep producers keep monitoring lambs withFECs and make sure they use an effective treatment when necessary.“Even lambs that have been put on to forage crops or aftermaths can be at risk, because the worms have continued to reproduce andlevels can rise very quickly.”

Watch out for worms over winter

Feed-borne mycotoxins willpresent a growing threat tocattle health, partly as a result ofglobal climate change, accordingto Dr Johanna Fink-Gremmels,Professor of VeterinaryPharmacology and Toxicology atUtrecht University.Speaking at a meeting for cattlevets organised by animal healthand nutrition business Alltech,she said mycotoxins cause avariety of problems in cattle, butare often the most neglectedcausative issue on any list of pathogenic suspects.

Dr Fink-Gremmels explained that natural toxins producedby diverse fungal species are proliferating worldwide, dueto global climate change and also because of changingagronomic practices in developed countries. She said: “Total mixed rations often now contain more thanone fungal species, contributing to a complex mycotoxinpicture and unresolved health issues in a herd as a result.Cow signals such as reduced feed intake, reproductivedisorders, laminitis, mastitis, impaired liver function, a poor response to vaccination programmes and evenincreased susceptibility to bacterial and viral diseases canall be attributed to ingesting mycotoxin contaminated feed.”According to Dr Fink-Gremmels, the biggest challenge for UK dairy farmers is now multiple mycotoxincontamination of grass and maize silage.

Mycotoxins present threat to cattle health

Figure: Seasonal distribution of lamb mortality.

109876543210

Gut wormsNumber of lambs

Apr-14

May-14

Jun-14

Jul-14

Aug-14

Sept-14

Oct-14

Nov-14

Dec-14

Jan-15

Feb-15

Mar-15

Apr-15

May-15

Jun-15

Nematodirus

of it. It should be chopped to halfa cigarette length and wellincorporated into the ration so it’s not sorted,” she says.

Diana recommends using a PennState separator every few days at thestart of the winter to assess theration, and regularly through thewinter. This sieves the ration intodifferent particle sizes.

“Also, walk the length of the troughand make sure the ration looks thesame and is evenly distributed…Tomake the most of the ration, youmust get rumen function right, notoverdo the starch and balance with protein and good fibre,” explains Diana.

Beef and sheepAlthough first cut grass silage MEmay be looking rosy across themajority of samples, independentbeef and sheep consultant, DavidHendy says those farmers who cutlater in the spring may be seeing a different picture.“There’s some good samples outthere, but those who left grass longerin the spring, because grass didn’tget away quickly, have higher drymatter and low energy densitycrops,” he says.

This means regularly analysingforages to establish what they candeliver is a must to avoid potentialdips in production. David says thiswill be particularly important forsheep farmers ahead of lambing.He explains: “If ewes are notprovided with adequate energy asthey approach lambing, you couldget problems with twin lamb diseaseso it’s important to balance foragewith an appropriate energy source.”For beef producers, even thoughthere’s plentiful supply of quality,cost effective feed around, accurateration formulation and regularanalysis of forages will be important

to deliver what finishing andgrowing cattle require, whilemaximising feed conversion.MaizeCharlie also reminds producers ofthe importance of regularly testingsilages through the winter to ensurethe ration is balanced effectively. This is particularly important inwetter maize silages."As the winter goes on, the lactic acidlevels will get higher, so later on inthe winter, get maize silage testedagain as there may be a higheracidosis risk on wetter silages," he stresses.

6

Plentiful stocks of quality foragecould offer farmers the potential toslash production costs over thewinter and create a much neededbuffer against falling prices.Results from 4,200 grass samplestaken by Trouw Nutrition suggestfirst cuts combine high dry matterwith better nutrient content andintake potential than 2014 (see table).Together these add up to a potentialtwo litres a cow a day more milkthan the 2014 average.

High sugar content is an attractive trait of this year's crop,demonstrating that most farmershave been able to cut and managegrass well during silaging. Howeverwith silages also showing low fibrelevels of greater digestibility, higherrapidly fermentable carbohydrate

content will mean rations will needto be balanced effectively to prevent acidosis.

With wholecrop silage also high instarch and low in fibre and somemaize crops low in dry matter andwith reasonable starch, nutritionistCharlie King of CKA says carefulration balance will be crucial tomaintain rumen health.

“The high acidosis risk from forage,plus the temptation to use more, lowcost grain means there is a potential‘whole ration risk’ this year,” he explains.

With this in mind, he recommendscaustic treating grain. This willincrease pH levels and help naturallybuffer the rumen. He also believesit’s worth considering whether

concentrate feeding levels can be reduced.“This is the year to make the most offorages and see if you can reduceconcentrates. With currenteconomics, it doesn’t pay to chasemarginal litres…Over feedingconcentrates is also the last thing youwant to do with potentially acidoticforage. I would rather feed lessconcentrate, keep the rumen healthyand rely on forage, than feed highlignin straw,” he says. Fibre

However where long fibre is needed,nutritionist Diana Allen of QualityNutrition Management, says strawcould have a role.

“There should be plenty of cheapstraw around, so make the most

Balance rations to make mostof good winter forage stocksLivestock farmers have a real opportunity to make the most of this year’s quality foragesupplies, but only if rations are balanced effectively this winter, reports Aly Balsom

7FORAGER – WINTER 2015/16FORAGER – WINTER 2015/16

Simon Bainbridge, Morpeth, Northumberland. 140 sucklers

and 1,400 ewes

“Forage stocks are looking good. Our grass yields have increased

year on year. We’ve got an extra 800t off the same acreage this

year due to putting on more P and K and lime, reseeding and

having a good growing season. As we’ve got plenty of silage and

we don’t feed concentrates, I may feed ewes silage earlier so I

hope we will carry ewes over in better nick. We’ve also put up a

new shed and have 42 heifers coming in as we’ve got more feed

and can carry more cows.”

Barry Coombes, Wedmore, Somerset. 215 Holsteins yielding

11,400litres/cow/year

“Grass is plentiful and a good quality at 11.2ME for first cut.

We’re getting fodder beet out the ground now (13 October) and

it’s a hell of a crop. Yields are so high we’ve run out of space to

put them. We’re generally struggling with space as maize and

grass yields were also high…Our costs are right down anyway, but

the more you can feed of your own forage, the better. The fact

we’re now milking three times a day has helped as we’re feeding

the same and getting 1,000litres more a day.”

Crosby Cleland, County Down. 750 mostly Lleyn ewes

and 250 followers

“It’s been a terrific year for grazing and quantity of silage.

Grass growth through the year has been very good, especially at

the end. We should be able to keep ewes out about two weeks

longer than usual as there’s still lots of grass (12 November). That

will help reduce feed costs. Forage is really important to our

system. We have the last of our lambs on baled silage taken from

paddocks that got ahead of us, and concentrate. That costs us £1

per head per week in concentrate plus 20p a week in silage.”

How are forage stocks looking on your farm?

With the ever present challenge of falling prices, production of good forage stocks can help hard-pressedfarmers keep production costs down. First Second Wholecropcut grass cut grass

Samples 4200 1400 400Dry matter (%) 30.1 32.9 40.8pH 4.0 4.2 4.1NH3-N of total N (%) 2.5 2.3 5.0Crude protein (%) 13.6 13.9 8.5D Value (%) 68.0 66.1 65.2ME (MJ/kgDM) 10.9 10.6 10.2Sugars (%) 3.4 3.8NDF (%) 46.2 47.0 43.8Starch (%) 23.0Rapidly fermented 204.6 187.6 231.4carbohydrate (g/kg)

Acid load (g/kg) 43.4 41.0 45.4Fibre index (g/kg) 188.7 191.9 120.5

Source: Trouw Nutrition

Grass and wholecrop analysis

Placing a greater emphasis onutilising quality grass silage couldhelp dairy farmers make a profiteven at current depressed milk pricelevels, according to recent farmmodelling.The modelling work, which wascarried out by Yara in conjunctionwith The Andersons Centre, showsthat high yielding systems producingmilk primarily from concentratescould move from loss to profit bygetting more milk from forage. Although the more forage focusedsystem was slightly lower yielding(see table), this type of system turneda small profit of 0.53ppl versus a lossof 1.45ppl on the concentrate system,at a milk price of 23ppl.Richard King from the AndersonsCentre says the biggest reason for thevariation was due to a reduction inpurchased feed.

“Concentrate feeding per litre is the biggest driver of the financialdifference. The forage-based systemhad slightly higher machinery andfertiliser costs from producing silage,but they fed less purchased feed per litre,” he explains.Yara carried out the modelling as an extension of their Grass Prixcompetition where 13 farms competeto produce the highest value grasssilage based on its energy andprotein yields.This year, Yara agronomist Jez Wardman decided to take thecompetition one step further andlook at the effect on businessperformance.“We have always known that grass isthe cheapest source of feed. In thesechallenging times for livestockfarmers we wanted to work thisthrough and look at how it affects

farm profitability,” he says.To do so, forage, grazing andconcentrate-based systems weremodelled using the AndersonsCentre’s Friesian Farm Model. Thismodel is based on an ‘average’ allyear round calving dairy, yielding7,800 litres a cow a year and usesfigures from actual, comparable farm businesses.The ‘concentrate-system’ maximisedyield from concentrate. The ‘forage-system’ was still relatively highyielding, but substituted aproportion of concentrates withconserved forage. This systemmatched more closely with farmsparticipating in this year’s Grass Prixcompetition and used the winner’ssilage quality results (see table). The‘grazing system’ was an extensivegrazing-focused farm with loweryields. The model included a range

8

New model shows profit from forageAll dairy farmers know grass is the cheapest way to feed cows, but a new farm model hasquantified the benefits using the current low milk price, as Aly Balsom reports

Farm modelling shows high yielding systems producing milk primarily fromconcentrates could move from loss to profit by getting more milk from forage.

of parameters including vet med costs,slurry and machinery use.

As expected, the grazing-focusedsystem produced the highest profitdue to reduced costs. However,because not all farms lend themselvesto extensive grazing systems, Richardsays the forage-system provides agood approach for higher yielding set-ups.

“These systems can replace someconcentrate with very good, conservedforage…This forage-based model isstill fairly high output (8,800 litres),but with minimum concentrate use,” he says.

Without BPS and ELS payments, allsystems made a loss at current milkprice, but both forage-systems made asmaller loss. If milk price increased by3ppl, without subsidies, both thegrazing and forage systems were setup to make a bigger profit (3.12ppl and 1.86ppl) versus the concentratesystem (1.35ppl).


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1 1 11:10:51

£ per ha ppl £ per ha ppl £/ha ppl

Milk output 3,209 23.00 3,036 23.00 2,223 22.80

Culls and calves 469 3.29 469 3.55 393 4.03

Total Output 3,678 26.36 3,505 26.55 2,616 26.83

Cost production 4,068 29.16 3,623 27.45 2,605 26.72

Farming Margin -390 -2.80 -118 -0.90 11 0.12

Basic Payment188 1.32 188 1.43 188 1.93and ELS

Business surplus-202 -1.45 70 0.53 199 2.05(with BPS and ELS)

Yield per cow (litres)

Yield from forage (litres)

Feed use (kg/litre)

9,300 8,800 6,500

2,450 5,091 4,052

0.36 0.20 0.18

Concentrate-based Forage-based Grazing-based

Concentrate system: Silage quality (based on national average):21t/ha FW, 29%DM, 10.5ME, 13.6% protein.

Forage based system: Silage quality (based on Grass Prix winner’sfigures): 23.1t/ha FW, 39.9%DM, 10.9ME, 13.6% protein.

Grazing based: Silage quality (based on average Grass Prix results):22.5t/ha FW, 30%DM, 10.7ME, 13.8% protein.

10

Matthew Jackson admits that if his15 year old self had seen where hewas today, he wouldn’t havethought it possible.Having grown up in the heart ofManchester and with only a yearlytrip to a farm campsite in Waleslinking him to agriculture, you cansee why his current position owning670 dairy cattle in a share farmingagreement, may have appeared littlemore than a pipe dream.It was at the age of 15 that Matthewtook his first step into farming. Afterleaving school a year early hedecided to head back to the Welshfarm campsite where he hadholidayed to help out on the farm’s

40 cow dairy farm. “It was the area that attracted me andthe freedom of being outside. I didn’tlike school as I didn’t enjoy beinginside,” he explains.From what started as a four monthspell, he gradually built up variousfarmer contacts and held downseveral jobs lambing, wool wrapping,fencing, milking and working on abeef farm. Through networking healso secured a three month job in asheering gang in New Zealand. However, the true turning pointcame when he asked for a full timeposition on Rhys William’s andDavid Wynne-Finch’s 1,200 cow,

grass-based dairy near Abersoch,where he had been relief milking. “I didn’t have enough experience,but Rhys said if I went to NewZealand and milked cows inInvercargill I could work for him. So I jumped back on a plane,”explains Matthew. Building experienceUp until that point, Matthew hadbeen purely focused on milking, butthe job in New Zealand gave him hisfirst taste of whole systemmanagement. It was this experienceon a rotationally grazing, springblock calving system that ultimatelylaid the foundations to his career in

With no farming background, 27 year old Matthew Jackson now runs 350 cows in a sharefarming agreement. Aly Balsom finds out how he’s done it and why a grass based systemgets his vote.

Grazing system offers best option for new entrant

agriculture and cemented hiscommitment to forage focusedfarming.“I arrived just as calving began. I was chucked in at the deep endand basically learnt all about agrass-based system and how tomeasure and monitor grass andmanage grazing in wet and drypaddocks,” Matthew explains. “It was the efficiency that stood outto me,” he says. “It was definitelyless labour intensive than the 40cow unit I’d worked on and I likedthe idea of cows being out 10-12months of the year. And stock werevery healthy. There were no issueswith pneumonia or calvingdifficulties. All the little thingsadded up.”On returning to Wales in the winterof 2007 he put all he had learnt intopractice as junior herdsman on the1,200 cow, spring calving unit. “Cows were out-wintered on kale,fodder beet and bales and calved onwoodchip corals. They then wentout to grass and were block grazed.I thought it worked well and wasvery efficient,” he says.Keen to have his own stock as well,Matthew then bought his first batchof 20 Jersey cross heifer calveswhich he out-wintered on deferredgrazing and bales on a 3.2ha (8 acre)patch of rented ground. They werethen sold as bulling heifers, with themoney used to rent more land andbuy more heifers. Grazing managementMatthew says applying the basicprinciples of grazing managementto his own land helped improvegrass quality, enabling him to upstock numbers. “By heavily stocking and rotationalgrazing I was able to improve theland I had. It was about 15%perennial ryegrass when I took it onand I had no money to improve it.Just through management and asmall amount of fertiliser, little andoften, PRG increased to 75% in threeyears,” he explains.By 2011, Matthew had built his own

stock numbers to 82 heifers, whilst also working full time. It was then that he decided to look into potential businessexpansion options.“I had the stock, but I didn’t knowwhat I wanted to do with them. I then got a Richard John Memorialbursary from ‘The Grass Hoppers’grazing group in Pembrokeshire, to travel to New Zealand andAustralia. I wanted to learn aboutcontract heifer rearing, lease hireand share milking,” Matthew explains.After returning to the UK, Matthewwas again keen to put his learninginto practice and sold 32 heifers andleased 50 in-calf heifers out. Thismeant he would still receive anincome from them, whilst retainingequity. The £32,000 income from thesale of the batch of 32 was then usedto buy 110 heifer calves and secure abank loan. Share farmingBy 2013 Matthew had alsoprogressed to herd manager on the1,200 cow unit. It was then thatDavid Wynne-Finch approached

him with the offer of going into ashare farming agreement on anearby 100ha (247 acres) block ofground. Matthew accepted and inthe autumn of 2013, work began toconvert the farm. A parlour, tracksand water troughs were installed.Milking began in the spring of 2014,with herd numbers built up usingMatthew’s stock and bought in,Irish heifers. The share farmingarrangement means David owns the land and has invested ininfrastructure, while Matthew ownsthe stock. Inputs and profits arethen split 50:50.The 350 cow herd now calves inside in a ten week block startingon 1 February. They are thenrotationally grazed and are outsidefor 10 months of the year stocked at4 cows/ha. This year, a 350 cowshed has also been put up.“We use the shed as a tool at theshoulders of the year and if it’sseriously wet we do on-off grazing.In winter 2013 we out-winteredeverything and it was a horrendouswinter so that was the decision


Matthew Jackson believes grass-based systems are the most efficient way to milk cows.

The farm was converted to a low cost dairy system in autumn 2013 withmilking starting in spring 2014.

continued overleaf

11FORAGER – WINTER 2015/16

maker,” says Matthew.For Matthew, running a grass-based,spring calving system was the onlytype of arrangement he wanted toget involved in.“A high yielding, housed system isnot for me. There’s no cheaper sourceof feed than grass. You can growgrass in most places and it’s easy tomanage. It’s a very efficient way tomilk cows in my opinion…it’s allabout keeping things simple,monitoring grass growth, allocatingwhat’s required, soil sampling andregular reseeding,” he says. On thenew farm, Matthew reseeds using amix of intermediate and late headingPRG. This includes a selection ofAber High Sugar grasses and Aberwhite clovers.New entrantsMathew’s share farming partnerDavid Wynne-Fynch believes springblock calving, grass-based systemsoffer a good opportunity for youngpeople starting out in the industry.“There’s a pre-set way of doingthings, where everything ismeasured and managed, so itprobably could be viewed as a good

way for people to learn a simplesystem and skills that aretransferable,” he says. David owns three farms, totalling1,700 cows. All farms follow a similargrass-based, block calving templateand most are run in some kind ofshare farming agreement.David says the nature of low input,grazing system means there isgreater potential for share farmingarrangements to work well.“On grass-based systems you needgood grazing, forage, finances andpeople. It’s about profitability at theend of the day. Share farming is builtaround a system both partiesunderstand and this system makesshare farming agreements easier…Done well, it’s also profitable, whichis important as in the nature of thistype of agreement everyone needs a ‘share’.”AttitudeIn terms of his attitude to workingwith young people with noexperience in farming, David holdsthe view that as long as people arehard working, coming with nopreconceived ideas can actually

be an advantage.“Matthew was a clean sheet whichmeant he had no preconceptions andcould adopt our kind of systemquickly and easily,” he says.Matthew says learning from the rightpeople is key to success for youngpeople starting out.“I always thought a farmer was atype of person and no one else coulddo it…I’ve shown it is doable, but thepeople I associate with and look upto are a massive part of this,” he says.

• Keep in touch with like-minded,positive people.

• Make the most of allopportunities presented to you.

• Go travelling and try differentfarming systems so you knowwhat you enjoy.

• Join a discussion group withpeople interested in the type ofsystem you are interested in.

Matthew Jackson’stips on starting outin the industry

Matthew Jackson views grass monitoring and allocation as key to success.

12 FORAGER – WINTER 2015/16

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are essential to remain profitable.”The brassicas are used to finishcommercial lambs and pedigree ramlambs not retained for breeding.Up to 300 continental type bulls arealso finished each year. These arebought as weaned calves fromsuckler herds and finished within 13 months so that they can be soldbefore 24 months old to ABP. Fortyacres of winter barley and springwheat is grown and crimped,predominantly for feeding to the cattle.As part of the crop rotation, cerealsmay be followed with forage rapebefore going back to cereals.Alternatively, brassicas may beviewed as an opportunity to renewgrassland and get weeds undercontrol. This has traditionallyinvolved following cereals withturnips under sown with a new 5-7year grass ley, before going back intocereals. However, this year, Williamchose to use the newly developedhybrid brassica, Redstart for the first time.The hybrid was sown in a 5.3ha (13acre) field in which he had a dockproblem. As a result, this year hedecided not to undersow the fieldwith grass, but he will be putting itinto spring wheat next year.The field received a 18.6.12 NPKcompound applied at 150kg/acre. Itwas ploughed and power harrowedbefore the Redstart was sown in early May. The field also received50kg/acre of 27.5% N with calciumammonium nitrate when the cropwas around six inches high.GrazingThe first to graze the field were 500commercial ram lambs at weaning atthe end of June. The 5.3ha was sub-divided by electric netting into sixplots each of about 0.8ha (2 acres).Each plot was grazed by all thelambs. Lambs were moved betweenplots after about seven days, leavingthe crop stalk to help promote re-growth. The plots were then re-grazed after around four weeks.The lambs were weighed at weaningand pre-sale and averaged 280g daily

liveweight gain. William was draftinglambs for slaughter every 10 to 14days and says performance in growthrate and killing out percentage wassimilar to the turnips. The first batch of 74 lambs were solddeadweight to Irish Country Meats,part of the Linden Foods group, inCamolin, Co Wexford, on July 20.They had an average carcass weightof 20kg. Another 148 went on August4 and a further 91 on August 21, with both batches averaging21kg deadweight.All in all William believes brassicasoffer an effective finishing crop. “Thisweek (23 November), we slaughteredthe last 5-10% of lambs. They had adeadweight of 20.46kg and a killingout percentage of 50%. If they werefinished on grass that would be about43%, so there is an increase in killingout percentage on brassicas. Lambsalso finish quicker on brassicas. Dailyliveweight gain is about 25% morethan on grass,” he says.

Costs and stocking ratesFinishing lambs on brassicas alsoallows grass fields to be shut up forthe in-lamb ewes - a practice whichwas also carried out with the turnips.This helps keep costs down and alsomaintains grass quality through thewinter. Using brassicas as a means ofintroducing new grass leys alsoenables the introduction of new, highyielding grasses which boosts grassquality and carrying capacity andenables a reduction in concentrate feed. William explains: “To boostprofitability and reduce inputs, wehave in recent years moved back toout-wintering on grass with noconcentrate feeding. We are evenlambing twin ewes outdoors ifweather conditions allow.“I can also increase the stocking rateon farm as we are producing a hightonnage of feed material from forage crops.”

14

County Kilkenny farmer, WilliamHutchinson views brassicas as theperfect accompaniment to his mixedsystem, enabling him to boost soilfertility, stocking rates and lambweight gains.High energy brassicas have formed akey component of his system for thelast 15 years, primarily as a means offinishing lambs, but also as a usefulnurse crop for new grass leys. “We have a mixed farm so therotation lends itself to brassicas. Wedo 1-2 years of cereals and then a yearof brassicas before going back tocereals. The brassicas leave the fields

very fertile and have a good rootsystem which is good for soilstructure which results in asignificant boost in the followingcereal crop,” he explains. The Hutchinson family farm atChapelizod, Kells, and currently run700 commercial and pedigree ewes.The current breeding flock comprises500 commercial ewes which includeEasy Care x Belclares, 80 pedigreeTexels, 35 pedigree Suffolks and 35 pedigree Ile de France. Pedigree flocks, which areperformance recorded with SheepIreland, have been kept on the farm

for the last two decades with the aimof breeding top quality, hardy ramssold mainly as shearlings which havenot been overfed and will work incommercial flocks. All pedigree ramsare sold from the farm, with manyenquiries generated by the farm’sown website: www.pedigreesheep.com

SystemWilliam says: “All our pedigree eweslamb in March and are managed withour commercial flock with no specialtreatment. This allows us to producerams which perform well on ourcustomers’ farms where low inputs

Hybrid brassica proves finishing potentialFinishing lambs on brassicas has allowed one Irish farm to increase weight gains by 25%, while alsofreeing up grassland for out-wintering ewes without concentrates, as Jennifer Mackenzie reports

William Hutchinson has allocated a 13acre plot to the hybrid brassicaRedstart and lambs are moved from each plot after about seven days.

15FORAGER – WINTER 2015/16FORAGER – WINTER 2015/16

Germinal’s Dermot Campion (right) inspects the Redstart crop withWilliam Hutchinson.

16

Reaching for the cake bag is a rarityat Treveddw Farm nearAbergavenny, where Mark Egertonfinishes all of his cattle on grazedgrass and high energy buckets.The focus is very much on growingand utilising the best possible grassand clover through reseeding androtational grazing, while alsoproducing his own supply ofhomegrown forage protein.“Grass is everything to me,” saysMark, who believes rotationalgrazing in 24 hour feeds is the mainreason he is able to cost effectivelyfinish cattle from grass alone. It hasalso helped increase grass output by 20-40%.“We used to rotationally block grazeon 4-5 acre areas. That meant we’dget two days of fantastic grazing,three days of reluctant feeding andfour days of waiting at the gate. Ondaily feeds, they get a good feed ofgrass every day and a few hours totidy up,” he comments.Mark runs 75 Aberdeen Angus cross

and Hereford cross cows and finisheseverything at about 18-21 months oldat 320kg for Dovecote Park. Cowscalve from February to April. Theaim is to get stock out as early aspossible around mid-March withcattle housed again in November.In order to maintain grass qualityand cattle growth rates, Mark saysgrazing effectively is a must.“The key is getting grass grazed tightto the floor so you’ve got a good feedon the next round. I monitor by eye,but I try to follow the three leaf ruleand go in at about 5 inches in Mayand 6-7 inches in September andgraze down to 1.5-2 inches,” he says.Calves are housed at weaning andreceive red clover and Aber HighSugar perennial ryegrass (PRG)silage plus a pea and barleywholecrop. Last year Mark decidedto plant 3.4ha (8.5 acres) of the longerterm red clover, AberClaret withPRG, which is designed to last 4-5years. This is planted in rotation with the peas and barley.

“We only buy a small amount of cakeand if calves are under 300kg atweaning we’ll separate them andgive them 2kg of cake on top of their ration. They’re the only onesthat get cake and housing in thefirst year is the only time stock get silage,” says Mark.Store cattle then go out in the springand are rotationally paddock grazedaround a 6.9ha (17 acre) block, split into three. They are run lessintensively than the cows due to field locations and a large number offootpaths. To maintain performance,grazing ground is reseeded every 7-8years.“We always use Aber High Sugarvarieties as they seem to performwell on the ground here and they arehighly palatable,” says Mark. Cheshire beef farmer Graham Parkshas a similar attitude to grazing andbelieves adopting a rotationalgrazing system has helped him boost efficiencies by 50%.“I used to work for a local dairy farm

Rotational grazing is helping two beef producers to finish cattle off grass and reduce costs,as Aly Balsom reports

Rotation boosts beef grass output

that changed to a New Zealand stylespring block calving system. Theyhad quality grass in front of the cowsfor the whole season and it made merealise I could grow more grass,”Graham explains.As a result, he transferred theprinciples to his own beef systemand has since been able to reduceconcentrate feeding by 50%.“As I’ve grown more grass byrotational grazing I’ve been able toreduce concentrate use and I’m alsocarrying 33-50% more stock acrossthe same acreage,” says Graham,who farms at Pastures Farm,Gawsworth.Graham buys 2-3 week old AberdeenAngus cross calves and finishes 180-200 head a year across variouspockets of rented land. 150 calves are bought in the spring and 50 in the autumn and finished at anaverage 27 months old for Scotbeef.Autumn calves are housed and then rotationally grazed from Marchonwards. After weaning, springcalves will be set stocked at grass for one month, whilst receiving someconcentrates, and then rotationallyblock grazed. When Graham started rotationalgrazing in 2003, he used a grass platemeter to create a grazing wedge, buthe now goes by eye. Stock enterfields at around 2,800kgDM/ha andgraze down to 1,700kgDM/ha. Theywill be managed in such a way untilaround November and will thenmove onto maize stubbles wherethey will receive maize silage, bigbaled haylage and brewers grains.

All stock will then be back on grassat the start of April.“It’s very important to get as muchgrowth from forage as possible as it’smuch more cost efficient and lesslabour intensive,” says Graham.Graham believes all beef farmerscould benefit from taking a similarapproach to forage and as a resulthas chosen to be one of four grass

“mentors’ involved in a new beefgroup (see box). “I’m a huge believer in grassdiscussion groups. I want to shareknowledge and continue to learn.When the population doubles, grainwill be needed to feed thepopulation, rather than cattle, so wewill need to make more use of foragefor livestock feed,” he says.


AHDB Beef & Lamb are launching a new “Beef for Grassand Forage” group to help farmers benefit from improvedgrassland management.

The project includes three beef and one dairy farmer‘mentor’ who will be linked with four beef producerswishing to significantly improve their performance from grass.

The aim is to ‘upskill’ farmers and encourage measuringand monitoring of grass growth and improved utilisation,with the ultimate aim of:

• Reducing the days cattle are housed by 20%.

• Increasing stocking rate across the grazing platform by 20%.

• Increasing growth rate from grazing, forage and silageby 10%.

The project will also review grassland monitoring tools andwill validate performance indicators for grass and foragebased systems. The project will then produce an updatedblueprint for beef production from grass and forage.

New “Beef for Grass and Forage” group launched


Mark Egerton believes rotational grazing in 24 hour feeds is the mainreason he is able to cost effectively finish cattle from grass alone.

At Treveddw Farm, cattle are rotationally grazed on 24 hour feeds.

Many hours can be spent formulating the perfect TMR, but the ration is ultimately only as good as the mixer wagons and operators that deliver them, warns Hefin Richards of Profeed Nutrition Consultancy

Maximising the benefits associatedwith a TMR comes down to anumber of factors includingindividual ingredient quality, rationconsistency, delivery and operatorcompetency. If any of theseelements fail, the effectiveness ofthe ration will be hindered.Using a mixer wagon can shortcutthe process of feeding cattle, but caremust be taken to ensure that eachand every wagonload is thoroughlymixed and that it contains all thenecessary dietary componentsneeded to provide a balanced ration.The rumen of an adult dairy cow isessentially a 200-litre anaerobicfermentation vat in which the targetpH is 6 or above. As feed enters therumen it quickly ferments and canbecome highly acidic. If the pH fallsbelow 5.8, the rumen will bedetrimentally affected by the onset of subclinical acidosis.The natural process of regurgitatingand ‘cud balling’ the fibrous elementof the ration produces saliva toneutralise this acid. It is thereforeessential all cows within the herdreceive a balanced and consistentration to ensure that adequatefibrous material is supplied foradequate cud chewing to occur.Typically, there are three mainchallenges to bear in mind whenfeeding a TMR:

1. Is the ration mixed thoroughly andevenly? If not, cows will be able toselect or reject ingredients accordingto taste and preference.2. Have you avoided over processingthe fibrous element of the ration? Arange of fibre lengths is needed, fromlong fibres to powdery or liquid elements.3. Has the ration been fed out evenlyalong the length of the feed barrier?Essentially, the aim is to deliver a‘perfect mixture’ of ingredients asspecified within the herd’s pre-formulated recipe. However, onmany farms there is often somedeviation from the perfect mixture,with the ration delivered, and thatwhich is subsequently eaten, oftendiffering significantly from theformulated ration. Essentially the three rations; 1) theformulated ration, 2) the deliveredration and 3) the eaten ration, shouldall be identical, but often, they are not.This departure from the formulatedration might come about because thefarmer decides to substitute aspecified ingredient with a cheaperalternative, or because the operatorloading the mixer wagon has notconfigured the ration correctly.Inaccurate weighing of the ration –either through operator or machineerror – and ineffective mixing willalso reduce the consistency and

balance of the ration. This can resultin cows being able to pick andchoose between the palatable andnon-palatable ingredients put infront of them.The mixer wagon and its operatortherefore play a key role insafeguarding feeding efficiency. Yetthe mixer wagon is often one of thefarm’s least maintained machines,and its operator often lacks thenecessary training or understandingof the importance of dietary consistency.Feed tracking software – whichreplaces the scrap of paper on whichmany rations are scribbled – caneradicate an element of operatorerror, while proper training andmixer wagon maintenance canreduce machine errors.Greater emphasis should be placedon the importance of how the mixerwagon is used. After all, the annualfeed bill (forages & concentrates), fora 300 cow dairy herd could be inexcess of £300,000 per year. Ittherefore makes sense to protect thisinvestment by ensuring that everystep in the feeding-out process isproperly controlled and monitored.

Feeder operation critical torationing accuracy

To find out how mixerwagon technology canimprove ration efficiencies,turn to next page


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20

All farmers can make an educatedguess of feed stocks and usage, buthow confident are you that yourestimates fit with what’s actuallyhappening on a day to day basis?With the current milk market, beingout by just a few percent can equateto significant additional costs fromover feeding, or less milk productionfrom under feeding.For Denhay Farms’ manager, DavidPettitt, keeping an inventory of feedand forage stocks has always beenpart and parcel to ensuring effectiveforward planning and efficientrationing. However, by pairing visualestimates of supplies with in-builtmixer wagon monitoring software,feed management has been taken tothe next level. The use of TMR Tracker technologyhas meant feed stock estimates canbe cross referenced with what’s fedthrough the wagon. This has allowedbetter understanding on feed andforage wastage which has been usedto justify management changes.

It has also helped improve feedingconsistency across the farm’s fourdairies and additional youngstockunit (see box), as well as minimisingthe risk of over or under feeding.As part of the TMR Tracker system, anumber of different rations can bepre-programmed into the software.The person loading the wagon canthen see which component they needto add next with a display unitcounting down the weight of eachfeed. The unit logs who is mixingand what they are mixing and theinformation can then be downloadedonto a USB drive to be transferredonto the farm’s computer.Denhay Farms has three mixerwagons running across the fivefarms, all of which are fitted with theTMR Tracker system. A KuhnEuromix I wagon is shared betweenthe 200 cow unit at Lower BeerlandsDairy and the 450 cow Denhay Dairy.Monitoring stocksDavid says the ability to monitor

feed stocks by looking at datadownloaded from the mixer wagonhas been one of the biggest benefitsof the system. “At the end of each month, I do astocktake and estimate forage stocks,straights and minerals. Data is thendownloaded from the machine andmatched with stocks. It’s very easy tohave a 10% difference betweenestimates and what’s fed,” he says.This provides a discipline to adjustestimates based on natural drymatter changes and also instigates aconversation with the feeder as towhere the feed has gone.“You can build up a goodconversation with the feeder. All ofour team are conscientious peopleand are proud of doing a good joband getting as close to the figures aspossible. It promotes friendly rivalry,rather than being a tool to beat peopleover the head with,” stresses David.Maximising milk from forage as ameans of improving efficiencies and

A programmable feed weighing and tracking system is proving a valuable tool in helping oneDorset dairy to improve feed and forage management and ration efficiencies, reports Aly Balsom

profit is a key focus across all units.The aim is for the three Holstein herdsto achieve 8,500-9,000litres a cow ayear with about 3,500litres of thatfrom forage. On the newly establishedautumn block calving herd of crossbred cows, the hope is to hit about4,000litres from forage.Forage lossesWith this in mind, producing andutilising quality conserved silage is a must. However, cross referencingfeed usage with stocks highlightedhigher than desirable clamp and straight losses.David explains: “We spend a lot oftime growing forage at an averagecost of about £95/t/DM. On a drymatter basis we make 4,000-4,500t, so if we’re losing 10%, that’s a lot ofmoney. Once you’ve got that figure inyour mind, you can do somethingabout it, such as splitting the clamp,using a cling film sheet or improvingstraight storage.”Quantifying losses has also justifiedinvestment in a wall to split a 20m by60m grass silage clamp at DenhayDairy. At about 6m high in themiddle, getting across the face quickenough was causing a problem withheating and wastage. By putting adividing wall in, the hope is to reducewaste from 10% to 5% which should

pay for the wall within 18 months.With a large proportion of straightskept in open storage, minimisinglosses from stocks becoming wet andmouldy has always been a challenge.However, the TMR Tracker has beenable to quantify losses as high as 10%.As a result, David has been able tobalance the cost of losses against thedepreciation on feed bins to justify investment.With the four farms spread over 25miles and two or three people mixingon each unit, the feed monitoringsystem also promotes feedingconsistency by providing varying staffwith a step by step process to followduring the mixing process. It alsoreduces the risk of what’s mixedvarying from what’s rationed. Davidbelieves this helps avoid under or over feeding.“There doesn’t have to be a bigdifference in what’s fed and rationedfor you to lose one litre/head/day.Worse case scenario, that’s £240/dayacross all the herds at 24ppl,” he says.“Without the tracker it’s also easy to over feed by 10% and for us, that equates to about £34,000-£35,000/year…I wouldn’t use a mixerwagon without a tracker, particularlyon a farm like this that’s spread outwith different people mixing.”

The TMR Tracker has helped monitor forage stocks and losses in the clampwhich has been used to justify management changes.

Feeder wagon tracker improvesforage and feed efficiencies


Denhay Farms• 809ha (2,000 acres).

• 450 cows at Denhay Dairy, 200

cows at Lower Beerland Dairy,

220 cows at Northfield Dairy,

200 cows at Meerhay Dairy.

• All Holstein, all year round

calving systems except Meerhay

which has moved to an autumn

block calving herd of cross breds.

• Separate youngstock unit at

Boarsbarrow.

• Grass plate metering and

rotational grazing across all

units.

• Cows buffered according to

grass growth.

• Ration: grass, wholecrop and

maize silage, crimped wheat,

soya, rape and maize distillers.

• Regular grass reseeding across

grazing and silage ground using

Aber High Sugar varieties with

cows showing preferences for

these types of leys.


The in-built mixer wagon TMR tracker helps promote feed consistencies across Denhay Farms’ four dairies.

Whether it’s improving land, stockgenetics or grazing management,John and Sarah Yeomans are alwayslooking at ways to drive their sheepand beef business forward.Over the years, stock numbers haveincreased at Llwyn Y Brain, withtheir Beulah flock currently standingat 495 ewes plus 160 ewe lambreplacements. The farm also runs 73pedigree Limousins and crossbredLimousin suckler cows, plusreplacements (see box).Recently forage use has come underthe spotlight with the ultimate aim ofmaking more of the farm’s resourcesby utilising specific grazingstrategies and different finishingcrops. John says it was thechallenging spring of 2013 that reallyfocused their minds on making more from forage.“We spent over £20,000 extra on feedin that snowy year. We knew we hadto do something to reduce costs asthe farm is also facing a huge drop in subsidy income due to changes in Wales,” he says.

With the 115ha (285 acre) farm splitacross seven blocks over about fivemile - including 53ha (132 acres) ofhill land running up to 1,420ft -utilising all land effectively hasalways been a challenge.Consequently, the Yeomans haveworked hard to improve ground.ForagesLast year in particular, they took thestep to help get lambs away quickerby trialling a rotational grazingsystem. Stubble turnips were alsointroduced as a finishing crop as partof their Glastir environmentalscheme. 4.8ha (12 acres) of plantain,AberClaret red clover and an Aberwhite clover mix has also beenplanted on hill ground. John started rotational grazing in2014 as part of an arrangement withKiwiKit, where he uses their solarpanel charged electric fencingsystem. As part of the three yearproject, lambs are grazed on differentsystems (see table). On the rotationalsystem, lambs enter blocks whengrass is 12cm high and graze

down to 4.5-5cm.John says the benefits were markedfrom year one: “The added grassgrowth (from rotational grazing) wasphenomenal. We got about 20% moregrowth, so for a 100 acre farm, it’slike grazing 120 acres,” he explains. As a result, stocking rates per acrecould be increased, which doubleddaily liveweight gain per acre andenabled more lambs to be finishedquicker. Draft ewes and sucklers can then be used to ‘mop up’ behind the lambs. Yield boost“Historically, we would have just setstocked, so this has really focused themind. We are now finishing lambswithout feeding concentrates andmuch earlier than in previous years,”says John. The trial has continued this year,although unfortunately a wormchallenge meant growth rates duringthe initial period after weaning werenot as good as they could have been.However, John says the effect of this

22

Grazing strategies and finishing cropshelp boost performanceOne Welsh farm is cutting costs and finishing lambs quicker by rotationally grazing grassand plantain and feeding turnips, reports Aly Balsom

kind of management on grass yieldshas been marked this season.“We haven’t done a second cut since2000, but this year we’ve cut an extra112 bales off the rotation as grass wasrunning away from us. We often runout of fodder, so this will make a bigdifference to us,” he says.Having recognised the benefits ofrotational grazing, the plan is togrow lambs on rotationally grazedgrass and then finish them onplantain and turnips. This year, the heaviest and lightestlambs have been selected for grazingthe plantain. The plantain is dividedin an X shape with a water trough inthe middle. Each area is thenrotationally grazed. Next year theplan is to grow an additional 5.6ha(14 acres) of plantain and clover. FinishingLast year, before the plantain wasplanted, the turnips proved anattractive finishing crop for theheavier lambs, with more lambsfinished at a fraction of the cost. Due to the fact turnips cannot begrazed until 15 October underGlastir, the aim moving forward isfor the plantain to finish lambsearlier on in the season. This year theplantain was planted in June and180-190 lambs and a few cull ewesbegan grazing it at the end ofAugust. By 20 September one quarter of the lambs were ready for slaughter.John says he hopes the turnips andplantain will significantly lowerfinishing costs. “Historically whenewes came off the hill in the autumnto be put to the tup we’d house themale lambs and give them ad libsilage plus 1kg per head of

concentrate, so we are saving onthis,” says John who aims to finishlambs at 21kg DW to Dunbia.Turnips are followed by an arablesilage and Aber High Sugar grassmix which is baled and fed to cows post-calving.

To boost soil fertility and organicmatter, FYM and fertiliser have alsobeen applied to hill land. Soils aretested every four years and theappropriate fertilisers selected to meetrequirements. Some regeneration ofpastures by scratching in Aber HighSugar grasses with clover is on-going.


Rotational grazing has boosted grass yields, stocking rates and lamb finishing times at Llwyn y Brain.

Farm Facts• Lamb inside March to April.• 300 ewes put to Beulah, remaining put to Bluefaced Leicester to produce Welsh Mule ewe lambs.• Ewe lambs put to Blue Faced Leicester, Charollais, Roussin and South Down.• All male lambs finished and 15-20 lambs sold direct to consumers.• Sell Beulah rams and surplus ewe lambs and Mule ewe lambs for breeding.• 73 pedigree spring calving Limousin, Limousin X, Belgian Blue X.• Store cattle sold at 7-13 month with handful finished and sold direct to the consumer.• All cattle and sheep performance recorded to improve genetics.

1. Control – 100 male Mules, Beulah and Continental crosses, set stocked and moved when grass ran out;

2. Creep – Mule ewe lambs and younger lambs, set stocked with ad lib creep; 3. Rotational – All remaining lambs grazed from 12cm down to 4.5-5cm, moved round grass wedge.Field sizes ranged from 0.4-4.8ha (1-12 acres), rotational blocks within these fields were around0.8-1.2ha (2-3 acres).

Rotational grazing benefits (2014)

Number of lambs DLWG (kg/d) DLWG/acre (kg/acre)from 28/7-31/08

Rotational 468 0.18 0.49Creep 174 0.32 0.35Control 102 0.32 0.23Average 744 0.27 0.35

John Yeomans has placed particular emphasis on grazing strategies and differentfinishing crops in recent years to try and reduce costs.

24

In 1987, shortly after leavingagricultural college, Mike Powleytook over Elm House Farm at GreenHammerton near Ripon, quicklyrealising there was much work to be done, not least to restore soils to a more healthy state.Not only were layers of compactionan issue on the heavy clay land thatpredominates, but soil nutrientindices were so low – mostly below 1– that the laboratory receivingsamples did not believe the resultsand insisted on re-sampling.“Continuous cropping with sugarbeet and heavy trafficking had left thesoils seriously depleted, so we haveworked hard since we took over tobuild and maintain soil structure and fertility,” recalls Mike. “This has involved applying plenty of farmyard manure, minimisingtrafficking through use of low groundpressure tyres and adoptingcultivation methods that avoid the creation of clods.”

It is also about growing crops that,where possible, put into the soil atleast as much as they take out, andred clover certainly fits the bill as faras Mike Powley is concerned.“We grow red clover with lateheading perennial ryegrass as a highquality forage crop within our arablerotation,” he explains. Mike will typically take three or fourcuts a year, producing 40–50 bigsquare D10 bales per acre of foragewith a D-value over 70, protein of 17–18% and an ME of around12MJ/kgDM. “It is forage of concentrate quality and I believe is very underrated; red clover silage has the potential to be playing a big role in dairy cow diets in my view,” he says.At Elm House Farm, the red cloversilage is primarily reserved forgrowing and fattening cattle withinthe beef suckler enterprise, thoughMike does have longer term plans tomake bales for sale. He is careful to

categorise crops of different quality,using different coloured wrap in somecases to ensure the right forage goesto the right class of stock.The best quality silage is fed to theyounger growing heifers, with firstcalved heifers receiving the secondtier bales. The lowest quality goes tocows, mainly to settle them after weaning.“We are also using red clover silage in the bull beef finishing ration,”comments Mike. “We have found thatthe bulls eat as much silage as they dobarley on a freshweight basis whenoffered both on an ad lib basis. Underthis system, liveweight gain drops byabout 0.2kg/head/day compared witha cereal-only diet, but the cost offeeding is approximately halved.”The suckler herd comprises around100 South Devon x Limousin springcalving cows, a cross that Mike hasdeveloped as the Elm House Red.Heifers are calved at two years, to anAngus, and thereafter the terminalsire of choice is usually a Blue.

Growing forage of concentrate quality For Yorkshire beef and arable farmer Mike Powley, red clover silage crops are a crucial component of hisintegrated farming approach, providing high quality fodder whilst enhancing soils. David James reports.

Red clover silage has the potential to be playinga big role in dairy cow diets say Mike Powley.

FORAGER – WINTER 2015/16 25FORAGER – WINTER 2015/16

Everything is bred to AI, with sexed semen used to produce replacement females.Everything calves inside in a 12 weekperiod from mid-March, with cowsand calves then turned out ontoquality grass and white clover leysthat are rotationally grazed. Mike says high quality grazing is animportant part of the system. “Ouraim is for the cows to milk well, getback in calf, and also be in the bestcondition possible by the time calvesare weaned in the autumn. The cowswill then spend the winter mainly ona straw diet, so will lose conditionand are then in the best state to calvethe following spring.”Grass and clover leys are maintainedin the best possible condition, beingreseeded when a drop in performancedictates, which is usually somewherebetween five and eight years. Thisgrazing platform extends to about60ha (150 acres), with a further 73ha(180 acres) in the arable rotation,which includes three year red cloverand ryegrass leys.

“Red clover follows winter barley inthe rotation, which provides an earlyentry for establishment,” Mike explains.“We aim to drill in late August or earlySeptember, including 3kg/acre of redclover in a 15kg/acre seeds mixture.”The aim is to create a light tilth, idealfor shallow drilling. Ground isploughed with a slatted mouldboard,and pressed using dual wheels. Thiswill then usually be followed withtwo quick passes with a powerharrow. Ground is then Cambridgerolled and drilled, to a depth of abouthalf an inch, passing over twice indifferent directions.“We apply phosphate and potashafter ploughing, with the phosphatebeing particularly important for root development,” says Mike.One of the main advantages of redclover is its ability to fix nitrogen, sothe crop receives no artificial nitrogenat all, throughout the three yearduration of the ley. Despite this, itleaves a fertile soil, with goodstructure, allowing following crops to thrive.“We grow a first wheat after red

clover, which typically yields 5t/acrewith about half the nitrogen inputsthat would normally be used,” adds Mike.In the first production year, the redclover crops at Elm House Farm willbe cut three times, with a first cut atthe end of May. In subsequent years,the first of four cuts will be taken inearly May. Crops are cut leaving along stubble, of around four inches, asthis avoids any damage to the crownof the red clover plants but also helpsthe drying process. A mower is usedwith a low intensity conditioner, tominimise leaf loss, and crops arewilted for 24 hours before rowing up.This achieves a dry matter of 30–40%and an additive is applied at the point of baling, and bales are then double-wrapped.

Five-year red cloverMike Powley has been one of thefirst farmers to try new longer-lasting red clover varieties bred atIBERS Aberystwyth University. Twovarieties, AberClaret andAberChianti, are now on the officialDescriptive List, and others offeringcomparable longevity – with furtherdisease resistance benefits – are setto follow.

Leys including AberClaret havebeen cut at Elm House Farm for thefourth year in 2015, producingcrops comparable with their goodperformance in years two andthree.

Mike says: “As we go into thewinter, the crop certainly looksstrong enough to perform well for afifth year. We usually expect our redclover leys to do three years, butthe AberClaret certainly has greaterlongevity. It is adding another optionthat we’ll certainly be using again.”

One of the main advantages of red clover is its ability to fixnitrogen, so the crop receives no artificial nitrogen at all.

Elm House Farm eight year arable rotation

Winter barley3 years red cloverFirst wheatSecond wheatCover crop (e.g. stubble turnips/ spring beans)First wheat

26

It may be tempting to use a setpackage of supplementary mineralson farm, but failure to take intoaccount all mineral sources,including forage, could bedetrimental to livestock health and your back pocket.

Ruminant nutritionist, Rosie Millerfrom Trouw Nutrition, says it can beeasy to ignore less obvious sources of minerals such as forage, water,compounds and boluses, and urgesfarmers to look at the whole mineral picture.

“In some cases, it may be thatminerals are being overfed so therecould be the potential for costsavings,” she says.

She recommends all livestock farmstest each clamp of forage a minimumof twice a year, by taking a facesample. An individual forage testwill cost about £28.

“In the short term these forage results

can be used as a basis to balancemineral supplementation. But in thelong term it’s important to look atsoils too and address anyimbalances,” explains Rosie.

Forage testing is especially importantas forage mineral levels can be hugelyvariable, especially in grass silage.The level of ‘antagonists’, such aspotassium, molybdenum, iron andaluminium are particularly crucial, as these can reduce the availability of favourable minerals and traceelements. As a result, this mayinfluence the level of additionalmineral supplementation, compoundmineral levels or type of mineral used.

In fact, grass silage mineral analysisresults from over 700 samples takenso far this year by Trouw, suggestlower levels of antagonists comparedto last year. Rosie says this couldcreate opportunities for some farmersto save on certain minerals.

“Lower antagonists means certainforage minerals will be moreavailable. For example aluminium can bind phosphorus, but this yearforage aluminium levels are lower(258.65mg/kg) compared to last year (348.43kg/kg). This means some farmers may be able to reducemineral phosphate levels which could reduce the price of a mineral by £20-£60,” explains Rosie.

This is particularly relevant in highfeed rate dairy herds, as blends andcompounds can typically be higher inphosphate levels. Phosphorus isneeded for metabolic processes, butgetting the balance right is crucial as alot can be lost into the environment.

Although the average levels of theantagonists molybdenum (1.31mg/kg)and sulphur (2.1g/kg) are at anacceptable level in silages tested thisyear, there is a big range betweenfarms (Mo: 0.03 to 17.59mg/kg, S: 0.8to 5.3g/kg). At high levels, these can

Forage minerals form basefor balancingRoutinely testing forages for mineral levels should be given the same importance as testing for qualityand could help farmers save costs and maximise livestock performance, reports Aly Balsom


reduce copper availability which can lead to copper deficiency.

Vet Phil Elkins from Westpoint Vets, says copperdeficiency can cause ill thrift and reduced reproduction.However, he explains that in general, farmers tend tooverfeed copper at certain stages of lactation.

“Over supply isn’t necessarily toxic, but the liver carriesmore than it needs which may affect how it performs andcan reduce feed efficiency, which is costly. However whenfed at toxic levels, it can be fatal,” he says.

An AHDB Dairy survey carried out by Harper Adamsbacks up Phil’s observations of overfeeding copper. All ofthe 50 farmers surveyed were found to be feeding over therecommended level of 11-12mg/kgDM of copper. Therewas also no link between how much farmers fed and thelevel of forage mineral antagonists on that farm.

Liam Sinclair, Professor of Animal Science at HarperAdams, then carried out further research to see if feedinghigh levels of copper (18-19mg/kg DM total) was justifiedon different rations. He compared a 75:25 grass maizesilage ration with a 25:75 alternative, with or withoutmolybdenum and sulphur antagonists, and looked atblood and liver copper levels.

“On the high maize ration, when provided withantagonists, cows were not depositing or mobilisingcopper in the liver. On the high grass ration, withantagonists, the cows mobilised 0.6mg/kgDM of liver, soalthough we were feeding high levels of copper, they werestill deficient,” he explains.

Liam says this shows that there is only ever justification infeeding higher than recommended levels of copper inhigh grass diets, with high levels of antagonists. Thisagain shows the importance of getting forages, andparticularly grass silages, tested.

Phil also recommends routinely blood testing for selenium status and carrying out liver biopsies for copper.

“Every farm should considerliver biopsying about sixadult cows, at least every2-3 years, primarily tolook at copper levels.Doing a foragemineral analysis, liverbiopsy and blood test means youknow where youare at and what theforage is going tobe providing,” he says.

Key mineral considerations

• When balancing minerals, consider all sources, includingforage, water, compounds, blends, boluses, buckets andblocks etc.

• A shift in forage minerals can be due to fertiliser, manure,weather and crop type.

• Flooded land can increase silage spoilage and increaselevels of heavy metal antagonists like aluminium and ironwhich can effect availability of some essential minerals.

• In maize and wholecrop, the level of antagonists aregenerally lower than in grass silage.

• Potash will generally be higher on land with high slurryapplication. This can bind magnesium and make itunavailable which can increase risk of milk fever if fed todry cows.

• Test brassicas for minerals once the crop is mature andensure appropriate minerals are provided to bridgepossible shortfalls which can cause weak or dead calves at birth.

• Grass silage alone will not deliver adequate minerals forcattle - ensure appropriate mineral supplementation tomaintain growth rates and production.

• Overfeeding minerals can be a risk in high feed rate dairy herds.

Rosie Miller recommends all livestock farms test each clamp of forage aminimum of twice a year, by taking a face sample


The way in which new grass andclover varieties could be used tohelp alleviate flood risk is under thespotlight as part of a five yearresearch project.The SureRoot project is building onprevious research findings that havedemonstrated a 50% reduction inwater run-off from pasture plantedwith a festulolium – a hybrid offescue and ryegrass.By identifying grasses and cloversthat aid soil water retention, it ishoped they can then be used to helphold water in areas such as rivercatchments and prevent floodingdownstream. These grasses couldthen be used as “green engineering”as part of a larger tool box to reduceflooding risk. SureRoot is combining the use ofstate-of-the-art facilities at the newNational Phenomics Centre, IBERSAberystwyth University, and theNorth Wyke Farm Platform atRothamsted Research in Devon. The BBSRC-funded LINK project issupported by key industry partnersincluding Germinal Holdings Ltd,Waitrose, AHDB Dairy, AHDB Beefand Lamb, HCC and Mole Valley Farmers.

Mike Humphreys from IBERSexplains how his previous workfound that use of the festuloliumvariety, Prior, lead to improvedhydrology and soil structure.“Prior produced large, strong roots athuge depth that quickly died off,”explains Dr Humphreys. “When theroots died, this created a porous andmore absorbent soil. As a resultwater run off was halved comparedwith ground planted with a modernperennial ryegrass.”ProductivityWhilst Prior was found tosignificantly reduce flood risk, itdidn’t compare well to modern dayperennial ryegrasses in terms ofproductivity. The SureRoot projectwill see whether other new grassvarieties can combine these positivehydrological traits with goodperformance. It will also developnew productive varieties withcapability for flood mitigation.“Not all festuloliums will behave thesame. There are more than 500species of fescue and those thathybridise with perennial ryegrassmay behave very differently when in combination,”explains Dr Humphreys.

“Along with Germinal, we havealready developed the festulolium,AberNiche, which is on the UKNational Recommended List. This isvery high yielding and is one of thevarieties we are exploring as part ofthe SureRoot project.” Paul Billings from Germinal says asthe UK experiences greater weatherextremes, grass and clover varietieswith good root structures are goingto be even more relevant. “So far, all grass breeding work hasbeen done on what’s above ground,but the roots are equally as importantfor plant development,” hecomments. “Roots are also crucial inhow a plant deals with stresses,whether drought or severe flooding.”TrialsSureRoot is looking at new grass andclover varieties from individual plantlevel up to field scale. It is comparingfestuloliums with the bestperforming ryegrasses and ryegrassand clover mixes.The National Phenomics Centre isfocused on the individual plant stage and is assessing how rootingstructure affects water balancingproperties. This will determine howplants cope in both drought andflood conditions.

Flood mitigation bonus for modern grassland “Green engineering” using specific grass and clover varieties could reduce flood risk, whilstmaintaining grassland productivity, as Aly Balsom reports

28 FORAGER – WINTER 2015/16

The next stage will be to look at yields and rooting depthsin small plots at both IBERS and North Wyke. The bestperforming varieties will then be pulled through into farmscale trials at North Wyke. There will also be farm levelinvestigations on Waitrose demonstration farms.Professor Phil Murray from Rothamsted explains how theNorth Wyke platform is ideal for the project thanks to itsposition and unique testing and monitoring facilities. The 68ha (168 acres) farm platform is separated into threeseparate farmlets. One is permanent pasture, the other is alow nitrogen system, reliant on legumes and the third isfocused on innovation looking at new varieties. “The North Wyke Farm Platform is globally unique in thatit can monitor the volume and chemistry of field run-off,every 15 minutes,” explains Prof Murray.“In addition, there are regular measurements of soilparameters such as soil nitrogen, pH and bulk density.Liveweight gain of each animal, and farm operations, arealso recorded as part of the core information.”As part of the SureRoot project, two fields of about 1.5ha(3.7 acres) each of the straight festulolium variety Priorand Prior and white clover mix have been established. As a comparison, the high sugar perennial ryegrassAberMagic has also been planted both on its own andwith white clover. Nutrient lossesAs well as water runoff, the project will also monitornutrient losses to see which plants are more efficient atstripping out and using nitrogen and phosphorous.“We hope there will be less water and nutrient dischargefrom soils planted with festuloliums compared topermanent pastures or the other fields,” says Prof Murray.“Where I see these types of grasses being useful is inmodifying waterflow through a system. If you can slowwater flow or hold water further upstream, you reduceflooding downstream. In the future we may get subsidiesto help manage catchments and these grasses could beused in green engineering solutions.”


Development of deep rooted grasses at IBERS' National Phenomics Centre will help mitigateagainst drought and will have environmental and performance benefits.

Water run-off and nutrient losses can be measured withnew facilities at the North Wyke Farm Platform.

30

PW: All five are block-calving, forage-baseddairy units aiming for as long a grazingperiod as possible. We aim to keep cows atgrass from early February until Christmas,graze fodder beet from October to March anduse forage rye to even out the shoulders inthe winter months. Ideally, we will begrazing a crop all year round, but it doesdepend on the soil type and rainfall at eachsite and in each season. Herd size at eachfarm is between 240 and 350 cows as wethink that is enough for one person to lookafter and each unit has a 24/48 swing overparlour which is again designed as a one-person system.

KGB: Do you grow any silage at all?

PW: We clamp a first cut of grass silage whenwe generate a grass surplus at the peak ofthe growing season and cut some grass forbig bales in any field where the grass getsahead of the cows. We also grow some maizesilage on contract with arable farmingneighbours who include it as a break crop intheir cereal rotations.

KGB: How regularly do you have to go inwith the plough to keep your leys in topproduction?

PW: We try to get 6-8 years out of each ley,but decisions are based on production levelsnot timing and if a ley was not performingafter just 2-3 years then it would come out.We are plate metering weekly, so know theyield of forage dry matter per hectare forevery paddock and field. At the end of theyear, we use this to identify the fields to beploughed. We reseed with late headingperennial ryegrass and add 1.5-2kg/ha oflarge leaf white clover to get the maximumbenefit of free N. Plus it helps us to extendthe grazing rotation during a dry summer.White clover adds quality to the sward.

KGB: Much of your land comes under NVZrestrictions, does that give you much of aheadache?

PW: We soil test regularly, apply somenitrogen and phosphate early with follow upapplications only when it looks like a farm isheading for a forage shortage. With the cowsout most of the time we don’t have anyslurry issues and muck spreading costs arelow, but it can limit stocking rates. Outsidethe NVZ we are looking for 2.5 cows/haaveraging 5,500 litres per head.

KGB: Does it take a special breed of cow tomake the best use of all that forage?

PW: Actually we are running three breedtypes; New Zealand and Irish bred Friesianscrossed with Scandinavian Red, with Jerseyor Jersey crosses used on the heifers. We arebreeding for health traits not productiontraits. Feet and legs are very important, butwe also select on mastitis and ease of calving.It is paramount on a block-calving systemthat animals get back in calf at the right timeand with one person looking after 250 cows,semi-single handed, we need to build thatrobustness into our animals. If we were inthe equine world you could say we arebreeding Cobs not race horses.

KGB: Good morning Peter. The OtterValley is one of my favourite places, soit is a particular pleasure to welcomeyou to Forager. But it is not theoutstanding beauty of the area that isdrawing a steady stream of aspiringfarmers through your open door. Whatis it that makes the way you farm soattractive to new entrants?

PW: Hello Karen. Yes East Devon is abeautiful place to farm and, thankfullyfor us, a great grass growing area withboth warmth and moisture. A grazing-based system provides the lowest costper unit of feed and, especially for newentrants, the lowest level of capitaloverhead. When cows spend most ofthe year outside grazing in the fields, you don’t haveto invest heavily in slurry, housing and feedingsystems.

KGB: You’ve welcomed quite a few visitors over theyears, what are the most useful lessons they arelearning?

PW: People do come regularly to the farm and then goback and look at their own systems, but it is a two wayprocess as the visits open up a discussion that we arealways learning from too. Often, we have beenthrough things that others are going through now,whether it is about growing grass, where to placewhich farm crops, parlour design or cow flow, we allhave masses to learn from each other. Since the start ofour discussion group, we’ve had open accounts so wecan scrutinise each other’s costings.

KGB: You must see a lot of business plans for new andexpanding units. What are the most common mistakes?

PW: I think the main point to remember is that cash isking. We suggest reviewing the initial spend andsplitting it between what is “essential” and “the nice to

haves”, which can come later, thus ensuring that cashcontinues to flow in the early stages. This is ever moreimportant in this growing world market where we willsee more volatility in prices. Ultimately we have to beable to survive the lows and profit in the highs.

KGB: We certainly seem to be in one of the lows at the moment, is there a future for UK dairying atcurrent prices?

PW: Obviously it is pretty difficult at the moment. Wecan survive at this level for a limited period, butwouldn’t want to be here long term. What we arestriving to create is an insulated system that is able tosurvive and generally forage systems are better able toadapt due to their lower cost. Particularly where theyare grazing-based which have the lowest level ofcapital infrastructure.

KGB: With up to 100 miles between sites, a heightrange from sea level to 400m and a wide variation ofsoil type and rainfall, the challenges must differ fromfarm to farm. Do you take a separate approach to eachunit or is there a single management philosophy that isapplied across the board?

Chewing the cudwith Karen Brewer

Karen ruminates with Farmers Weekly Farmers of the Year Peter and Di Wastenage on the open door policy they operate acrossfive farms managed between Exeter and Budleigh Salterton, and thecost advantages their forage-based systems offer a new generation of milk producers.


A grazing-based system provides the lowest cost per unit of feed,especially for new entrants says Peter.

Peter and Di Wastenage collect their ‘Farmer of the Year’ awardat the ceremony in London.

New entrant benefits from grass-based system

ForagerHelping dairy, beef and sheep farmers profit from forage

Winter 2015/16

Forager

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