Although it seems almost too early to admit, and it doesn’t appear to have been that long since ‘winter mode’ ended, but Winter 2024 is approaching, and a little bit of preparation over the next few weeks will help to set ourselves up and make informed decisions around management.

Year-on-Year grass silages can be extremely variable in nutritional qualities, and after a difficult growing season, large variation in quality between cuts may also be seen. Testing what silage is available in the yard is crucial to plan accordingly.

For dry cows, silage quality will dictate the condition of cows at calving, and dilution/corrective feeding may be required. Stretching silage with dry cows may also be required where deficits occur in feed budgets, and knowing silage nutritional analysis is a must in these cases.

Target BS at dry off is typically 2.75 – 3.0 and at calving is 3.0 – 3.25 – therefore we are aiming for a maintenance type diet over the 60-day dry period; 68-70% DMD silage will suffice here.

For thin cows, drying off early is the preferred option. If dried off early (e.g. 10-12-week dry period), cows fed average quality silage (68-70% DMD) should have an increase in BCS of approx. 0.5 units before calving.

For youngstock, feeding rates will also be dependent on silage quality results. If we take the same silage used for dry cows above with our youngstock, offering a

silage-only diet, a weight gain of only 0.3kg/day can be expected over the winter from a 70% DMD silage. Some

1.5 -2 kg of concentrate would be needed here to achieve target winter growth rates. Is their higher quality forage available for youngstock7

Fodder Budgeting

After the delayed spring, silage reserves have been depleted in many yards. Coupled with poor growth over the summer, refilling that reserve has proven a constant challenge for some. Conducting a quick fodder budget to highlight sufficient reserves or a deficit is crucial, and the sooner this is completed the more options that are available to help bridge the gap.

For more information contact your local Agritech Sales Advisor.