"Improving Our Lot" - Planned Holistic Grazing, for starters..

holwellcourtfarm · Jun 2, 2018

Samcowman said:
Update on this field. Shifted them out of it this morning. Planned to do it yesterday but ran out of time. Here is a picture of what's left. They were telling me they were ready to shift. Despite them being there for longer than expected there is still a good amount left but most of it stalky stuff. They have even eaten the tops off of most of the socks unfortunately there still thistles standing.

This was the first move in the next field for us yesterday

I spent 2 half days last week finding our incoming water main across the field and adding another drinking tough in the middle of the field to facilitate better mob action

holwellcourtfarm · Jun 2, 2018

Today's move and it's the first time I've seen cows eat docks off.

Henarar · Jun 2, 2018

holwellcourtfarm said:
the first time I've seen cows eat docks off.

your starving them

Agrispeed · Jun 2, 2018

For some reason I didn't get updates and just went through 10 or so pages. Fascinating stuff as always

Summer is coming and covers are increasing nicely now.

This is the milkers break.

This is the same field that I put pictures up of at the beginning of the thread, the composition changes radically in summer.

This is the 'after' shot. I'm keeping the residuals quite low as I find chicory can be a bit of an arse if you let it get ideas.

Notice the back fence and cow track leading out the field. This is CTF grazing

back fencing is absolutely key to this type of management, in my opinion.

Samcowman · Jun 2, 2018

Agrispeed said:
For some reason I didn't get updates and just went through 10 or so pages. Fascinating stuff as always

Summer is coming and covers are increasing nicely now.

This is the milkers break.
View attachment 678036
View attachment 678038
This is the same field that I put pictures up of at the beginning of the thread, the composition changes radically in summer.
View attachment 678042

This is the 'after' shot. I'm keeping the residuals quite low as I find chicory can be a bit of an arse if you let it get ideas.
View attachment 678046
Notice the back fence and cow track leading out the field. This is CTF grazing back fencing is absolutely key to this type of management, in my opinion.

What are the problems you have found with the chicory. Considering using it as part of an overseed which will then be used for finishing cattle on next summer

Great In Grass · Jun 2, 2018

I've found Chicory to be not very successful when trying to establish as a overseed the established grasses have always been too strong for it.

Agrispeed · Jun 2, 2018

Samcowman said:
What are the problems you have found with the chicory. Considering using it as part of an overseed which will then be used for finishing cattle on next summer

Not really a problem, but it can get very tall and stemmy if left too long and can be quite challenging to trample properly, so you end up with very woody stalks and no real greenery, which if you do trample sits for ages rather than breaking down. It can poke cows in the eye and short fences but the main issue is quality and quantity.

Youngstock grazing a couple of days ago.

I've got several different kiwi tech troughs, but for small groups and young stock these are absolutely ace, very little water wasted and very portable and comparatively cheap. I use the big drag troughs for the dairy cows and they work well for lactating cows. Portable troughs saved me tens of thousands over big concrete troughs and these are perfect for moving to each break and are never in the same place twice so you don't get damaged areas.

Farmer Roy · Jun 3, 2018

http://www.soilsforlife.org.au/_blog/SoilsforLife-Blog/post/animals-can-be-very-selective/

CornishTone · Jun 3, 2018

If chicory is allowed to run up to head and the stalk is then trampled or knocked about it can damage the crown and the chicory never really recovers. It needs to be managed to keep it vegetative and not go reproductive.

As an aside, our trial plots with chicory and Lucerne were allowed to set seed last year and, although the Lucerne seedlings obviously won’t come to anything, there’s a cracking chicory strike!

Samcowman · Jun 3, 2018

Samcowman said:
What are the problems you have found with the chicory. Considering using it as part of an overseed which will then be used for finishing cattle on next summer

What do the collective think would be good to use instead of chicory. The rye grass seems to have run out of steam a bit this year but the clover is doing well. I wanted something deeper rooting and to add a bit more variety. I was also going to have Timothy and a nz grass in with it.

CornishTone · Jun 3, 2018

If you want deep rooting, Lucerne goes as deep as Chicory, or deeper but it’s a bit more fussy. What sort of ground are you on?

Kiwi Pete · Jun 3, 2018

Sainfoin I cannot comment on because I can't get it here to try out.
Possibly lucerne, if you can select the right winter dormancy for your system...?
Bit of red clover is worth putting in, trefoil/lotus
Sow thistle/puha is incredibly nutritious, but easily grazed out.
Docks

about the best of the lot, persistent, cheap to eatablish, and full of tannins to reduce bloating when they are on leguminous forages

full of minerals and stock eat them quite happily, so long as you graze right.
Yarrow is another beaut, also sheep's parsley?

Always love a good "what to do with docks" thread

- make the most of them

the price is right, when you need more of them, cultivate

CornishTone · Jun 3, 2018

Sainfoin is a nice option. Not sure how deep rooted it is compared to Chicory but I like the idea.

Treg · Jun 3, 2018

Samcowman said:
What do the collective think would be good to use instead of chicory. The rye grass seems to have run out of steam a bit this year but the clover is doing well. I wanted something deeper rooting and to add a bit more variety. I was also going to have Timothy and a nz grass in with it.

Plantain is good for bringing up minerals & I think is a natural wormer. I usually include it in a mix with chicory.

Kiwi Pete · Jun 3, 2018

Don't be shy to put veggies in with your seed mixes either.
Not hard to work out if stock will like carrots parsnips beet etc etc
Or a light rate of turnips swedes or other root crops

As I have alluded to before farmers massively shortchange themselves by planting one species only, at least those if us with animals don't have to worry about harvesting techniques in a polyculture, the more the merrier - wandering around this afternoon I see hundreds of little silverbeet seedlings in the fields I threw seeds at a few weeks back.

Seed is very cheap.

Henarar · Jun 3, 2018

We use to put a few sweed or turnip seeds in with a reseed wasn't to bothered if the cows ate them as we could do that

Kiwi Pete · Jun 3, 2018

Treg said:
Plantain is good for bringing up minerals & I think is a natural wormer. I usually include it in a mix with chicory.

Plantain has a huge root system - not unlike a ragwort but more fibrous.

As my kids will tell you it is a native of South Africa and related to the banana - amazing what they will hear, and what they never will..

I would consider sorrel and salad burnet and maybe meadowsweet if I could find decent seed sources

There really are few bad choices IMO some will just provide bulk feed and others will really provide the icing on the cake - a cake that has, for a long time, had it's icing well and truly licked clean by the salesfolk.

We still need them, but we need them much less with diversity and good mineral cycling.

Kiwi Pete · Jun 3, 2018

Henarar said:
We use to put a few sweed or turnip seeds in with a reseed wasn't to bothered if the cows ate them as we could do that

Pumpkin is a very underrated crop too
I remember just as a wee wee lad dad poking pumpkin seeds into the rips made by the moleplough and FMD if it didn't grow a lot of feed.
He just used to chop them up with a grubber or axe once the ewes had eaten all the vine in autumn, and we kept all the seed out of the decent ones that made it home.
To be fair plenty went a bit naff where they touched the ground... I grow some in my tunnel house and they are as good as a bale for my little mob of sheep.

hendrebc · Jun 3, 2018

Samcowman said:
What do the collective think would be good to use instead of chicory. The rye grass seems to have run out of steam a bit this year but the clover is doing well. I wanted something deeper rooting and to add a bit more variety. I was also going to have Timothy and a nz grass in with it.

You and everyone else might think im mad but try dandelions? They grow really well here in permanant pasture especially in dry. Deep rooting full of minerals and stock love them. Newman Turner put them in new leys so im not the only crazy person

Farmer Roy · Jun 3, 2018

"Improving Our Lot" - Planned Holistic Grazing, for starters..

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