18/10/2021

Week ending 18-10-21 farm notes:

FARM PERFORMANCE

This week Average Pasture Cover (APC) dropped to 2301 kg DM/ha as daily demand was greater than the Pasture Growth Rate (PGR) of 65 kg DM/ha/day. We are on a 23-day rotation grazing 5.7 ha/day. Just over 13ha (10%) of the grazeable area is earmarked for silage (shown as red on the feed wedge).

Although we have received 506 mm of rain season to date (STD) compared with 343 mm STD last year, our soil moisture levels are fairly similar as this time last year throughout the profile. This means that periods without rainfall will create stressed plants quicker than normal, which usually causes them to go to seed and lose feed quality.

Cows are being offered as much pasture as they can eat while endeavouring to leave tidy residuals: approximately 20 kg DM/cow/day. We use occasional pre-graze mowing only to tidy up paddocks that have had multiple wet weather grazing in an effort to reset the residual for the next 6 weeks.

Our very dense new pastures are being grazed prior to 2-leaf stage in order to prevent canopy closure and ensure plantain and clover survive, along with daughter tillers.

Cows have just dropped below 2 kg MS in their 15^th week of lactation.  Cows are producing less than this time last season but our lactation profile is similar to the 2019 season. In the 2020 season the cows calved 0.7 BCS higher and dropped below 2 kg MS at the end of October. However, with low variable pasture growth rates we were feeding 2-4 kg PK/cow/day last year.

Mating continues to go well, with all cows mated getting red tailpaint and a fresh Heat Patch Plus applied. Cows still to be mated have blue tailpaint. We budget on 2.7 inseminations per cow and the same number of heat patches. 95.4% of the herd has been mated after 27 days. We have 14 late calvers that haven’t cycled yet, and five cows that we recorded as having a pre-mating heat that have not yet been mated.

All 182 sexed semen straws have been used, plus 152 Forward Pack and 153 Wagyu so far. All Wagyu mating starts tomorrow for two weeks, and Short Gestation Length Dairy Kiwi Cross starts 3^rd November. Only 64 days of mating to go!

Continued slug monitoring shows less than one slug found under carpet, and only rare occurrence of slug damage at the outer perimeters. We have not added our second slug bait yet. Our PGG Wrightson Seeds agronomist Greg will be out this week to have a closer look at pest pressure to advise on spraying and further baiting.

ANIMAL WELL-BEING

Calves are being weighed this week to identify those ready for weaning.  They are still on 4 L/calf/day milk replacer fed OAD, eating 2 kg meal/PK.  We are working through our 2^nd tonne of milk replacer.

Cows are receiving Copper, Cobalt, Selenium, Iodine and Zinc through the dosatron, along with bloat oil. So far there have been minimal signs of bloat in the herd.

Cows are still receiving MgCl (5g Mag/cow) via the dosatron and night paddocks get dusted with 50 g/cow MgO (13-15g Mag/cow) ahead of the cows.

Unfortunately we had our first death of the season this week, a cow suspected with Theileria. This has highlighted the need to be vigilant with cows, using the F.A.N.I card for diagnosis. Theileria is a disease caused by a blood-borne parasite that only affects cattle, and is primarily caused by ticks. https://www.dairynz.co.nz/animal/cow-health/theileria/

We have already identified half a dozen cows to check out and will be reducing their milking frequency and walking distances. We are in discussion with our vet on treatment plans for further suspect cows.

BUSINESS HEALTH

Nothing to report this week.

ENVIRONMENT

We have invested $12,600 on effluent extension to another 20 ha of the farm. This now gives us 42% of the farm available for effluent irrigation (loading less than 43 kg N/ha via effluent). We have used Halo monitoring of effluent for the last three years, which gives us GPS positioning, and mobile phone alerts along with pump cut-outs when the irrigator stops moving. 

We are grateful to Karapiro School who kindly donated 280 plants from their Trees for Survival programme.  We have found homes for them alongside a drain near the cycleway where the students can see them in the new year when the cycleway opens.

QUALITY WORKPLACE

The team have been busy tidying the sheds and farm dairy – cleaning out calf sheds, hosing down the underpass, water-blasting the dairy etc. Together they worked 134 hours this week, with total hours worked/person/week averaging 50.2 since 1^st June.

COMMUNITY

We have been spending more time during the school holidays and lockdown to develop the content for the new Owl Farm website.  With better access to information and a focus on the wagon wheel KPI approach, we are looking to offer greater access to knowledge for the farming community, students and the wider public. Watch this space…..!

PLANNING FOR THE MONTH AHEAD:

• Spring fertiliser due on next week
• Weaning calves as they reach liveweight targets

 Cheers from Jo + Tom