Can you have too much clover ?

Kiwi Pete

Member
Livestock Farmer
I was worried about my cattle bloating on the first field. Last year I had too many cattle in the dry year, this time the opposite .
It can depend what your cattle are adapted to - we have tons of clover here too and we did run into trouble with what's best translated to "inbye cattle" - we had a couple develop waterbelly which is usually only a grain-fed cattle issue.
Just so much nitrogen that they developed stones, which then blocked the urethra (or punctured it). Either way their belly swelled up with fluid, between the hide and the peritoneum, typically; one also filled his entire abdominal cavity with fluid which the local vets had never seen... he dropped dead in my yards as the vet was scrubbing up

This was with both bulls and steers - no problems since then though.
 
Red and white clover have been exceptional here too this year with one undersown spring barley field outgrown by the red clover by harvest time and its almost six inches high again just two weeks after harvest. However made great feed when straw plus clover baled dry on a very windy day.

Have mentioned before that clover responds very well to rising background CO2 levels and this accounts for some of the vigourous growth we see nowadays
 

Kidds

Member
Horticulture
Have mentioned before that clover responds very well to rising background CO2 levels and this accounts for some of the vigourous growth we see nowadays
I don’t want to be rude but that is made up nonsense. You could say the same about tomatoes but we don’t get overrun by them.
I had the exact same issue as the op 40 years ago, was that still nowadays? 40 years before that it would have just got eaten and nobody any the wiser.
 

Ted M

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Shropshire
We have the same problem, mowed 4th cut yesterday some fields are almost all clover with a few strands of grass here and there.
I put it down to last year's dry weather, the clover's better root mass scavenged for moisture better and allowed it to gain a foothold over the grass. Also we only use bagged N for first and second cuts, its just slurry after that.
 

DRC

Member
Ley with red clover was mowed today for third cut . No fertiliser since second cut, as don’t really need it.
Neighbour and forum member saw this thread and is sending 400 lambs to attack the other clover infested field .
860C6874-DA33-4AF8-8B0C-4C5D90445A8C.jpeg
A2DCB294-00CC-4AD1-A1A0-BE68B0616C24.jpeg
 

multi power

Member
Location
pembrokeshire
Clover grows well here, but I think it’s got a bit out of hand this year.
First pic is year 3 of a 6 year ley. Been silaged and grazed( probably too hard last year). Getting a bit docky as well, so might get put into wheat this year.
Second pic is 1st year of a 5 yr ley, sown last autumn. Had sheep last winter then has had 2 cuts. No fertiliser since, as no one wants the grass, but looks like I will have to cut it again as the tack sheep would get lost in it.View attachment 832370View attachment 832371View attachment 832370View attachment 832371
Can you have too much money in your bank account?
The answer to this is the same answer to your clover question
 

RushesToo

Member
Location
Fingringhoe
Ley with red clover was mowed today for third cut . No fertiliser since second cut, as don’t really need it.
Neighbour and forum member saw this thread and is sending 400 lambs to attack the other clover infested field . View attachment 832700View attachment 832701
Not only the tack costs but the golden hoof free of charge and fat sheeps, win win for all.

Here endeth the lesson from @silverfox about how to handle too much clover. :)
 
Nearly all of our 4/5 year grazing leys end up completely dominated by clover. Much like the picture you have put up. I think it's due to us being pretty low input with N. The red clover has been cut three times is pushing on for a 4th cut.
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Tremendous yields this year.

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Two bottom images are a grazing ley currently with 50 small stores on.
 
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