FYM on grass

[BRB John]

Some cracking farming ground around Aberdeen. I always look forward to flying back in after 2 or 3 weeks away to see whats been going on in the fields.

Nice (ish) problem to have - an over supply of straw based FYM. We cant get straw easily so most of our cattle sheds have slurry tanks below. Nothing is simple.

It's not I'd take slurry over FYM any day of the week.
Haha my dad was told the farm was one of the worst in the shire when he bought it back in the 60's

 

[Pan mixer]

I use a straw rake, it doesn't bung up like a cahin harrow.

 

[puppet]

Load the spreader properly, not in huge lumps, plenty revs works even on a rotary spreader. Any lumps on grazing ground don't matter. Just kick them about while checking stock.

 

[Whitepeak]

That would depend on if/ when you planned to cut it.
Lumps of FYM can get picked up with the grass unless at least 5 months have passed.

Only time I've had muck coming back in silage was when it was a dry spring and a dry summer. Luckily we made very dry bales, so we swept up the lumps after the cows had picked through the bales, and put it back on the muck heap. Would have been different if we made clamp silage though.
I've still got a fair heap of fym to go on silage ground, it is getting late but if it stays wet most will have disappeared by the time we cut in mid June.

 

[crashbox]

We put some on in January, will see how it goes...

Definitely telling mower man to cut high.

 

[Chae1]

We put some on in January, will see how it goes...

Definitely telling mower man to cut high.

If the mower doesn't get it, the rake will.

 

[Derrick Hughes]

I know this wont suit everyone.
My old man let FYM sit and rot all summer till late August. Then spread it on what ever fields required it - usually by rotation. I keep it for Potash hungry silage ground.
Spread in late August the bottom of the heap is well rotted the top still has fresh straw. Get the odd lump.
Cows graze lightly maybe one or twice more before they are housed. Help to tramp it in and it gets all winter to break down. No sign of it come the spring.

So you get some benefit with autumn grass growth and all winter to break down naturally to send silage on again in the spring. If it worked for Dad then I aint going to change it.

Have read all the comments, 1st prize goes to this one
Except my Summer Silage Man says he's not putting autumn muck on to feed tack sheep
His onw
fault then that his towers are full and its to wet to get it on
If your reading this , Derrick knows best Mr E

 

[ringi]

Except my Summer Silage Man says he's not putting autumn muck on to feed tack sheep

But the FYM is primarily to feed the soil life, so the soil life looks after the clover/grass over the next year. The sheep will reprocess most of the winter grass they eat into slow release fertilizer to feed the sillage.

 

[crashbox]

If the mower doesn't get it, the rake will.

Yes for big cloddy stuff, was well rotted and fortunately seems to have gone down in with all this rain we've had...

 

[Hilly]

We put some on in January, will see how it goes...

Definitely telling mower man to cut high.

On e grass starts growing muck disappears veey quickly ,

 

[Derrick Hughes]

But the FYM is primarily to feed the soil life, so the soil life looks after the clover/grass over the next year. The sheep will reprocess most of the winter grass they eat into slow release fertilizer to feed the sillage.

Dairy men hate sheep , no talking to them

 

[yoki]

Set the muckspreader up properly to minimise lumps rather than burn diesel chain-harrowing

There'll still be lumps!

 

[yoki]

Dairy men hate sheep , no talking to them

Very true.

Even when their poached open-swarded fields won't carry a slurry tanker so you let them spread a few loads on your ground to help them out!

 

[ollie989898]

Dairy men hate sheep , no talking to them

A lot of dairy farms will have sheep on their leys over the winter around here. To stop the grass growing on slowly and flopping over and being a lot of horrible wet gunge first thing in spring. Nipped down and the sheep moved on nicely I think works wonders for some leys.

 

[balerman]

One benefit of all the wet weather,im still having to spread on grazing and silage ground now,when normally the stock would out.Can hardly see where the FYM has been spread other than the wheelmarks.

 

[czechmate]

I use a straw rake, it doesn't bung up like a cahin harrow.

am i being dense? doesn’t that make some rows of lumps ?

 

[Pan mixer]

am i being dense? doesn’t that make some rows of lumps ?

Not if you are careful and set the tine angle just right as well as the downward pressure.