- Location
- Owaka, New Zealand
My own "theory" (probably incorrect) is that in the springtime, you want to be going as fast around as you can while still making sure each individual plant gets a prune.
Not much more, not much less, just "topped"
Some of my more ryegrassy ones have had two light grazings per month, for example; what I've struggled with is having enough stock to do it, because of the way I've stocked the place and the classes of stock - the calves aren't born yet and so we're looking for R1 dairy calves to do this.
The ones with less ryegrass are much easier to manage in this respect.
So that'a why I need the tighter cells, rather than spread everything out and let them be selective, I want them to be mobbed but moving - if I had my way (be a fulltime grazier) then we'd keep the quarter acre cells and move 5 or 6 times a day during that rapid growth period.
The result would be a very flat "wedge" but also a very high average cover across the farm, none of this 2100kg crap, double it if possible, because there's your extra 2 tons of cover that becomes 2 tons of DM for the soil to consume - which then becomes about 3+ tons of extra feed later on.
What it means is that you are still only taking half the plant per grazing but the plants are getting bigger and bigger all the time, and then they stay leafy
When you try clamping down on them to prevent them flowering, they slow down because reproduction is what they live to do, (not feed our cows) and then you grow less to feed your cows with, which is practically the advice given by the folks who sell us bagged myths: "don't let post-grazing covers rise" or "you'll lose quality"..
..and what'ya know, you lose quality and quantity, every year.. but because they are experts, we believe this natural occurence to be our own fault!
So it comes back to thinking... think what would be happening if we didn't have 11kV keeping them parked up, segregated: the whole county's cattle would be running together and smashing over whatever was in their path - but I can't think where they would be eating grass down past halfway, unless a river stopped them.
They just don't do that, because the energy is in the top of the plant they keep moving looking for more, and the predators help keep them moving and picking off whatever they can catch up to.
So that's one thought process..
Predating "a farmer's stock" is much easier, because they have less energy and sore feet, (and probably have half a lamb or calf hanging out of them ) and this is due to not enough mustering and not enough movement, in most cases.
There's the difference between rotational and rational grazing - what we're thinking, as apex predators
Not much more, not much less, just "topped"
Some of my more ryegrassy ones have had two light grazings per month, for example; what I've struggled with is having enough stock to do it, because of the way I've stocked the place and the classes of stock - the calves aren't born yet and so we're looking for R1 dairy calves to do this.
The ones with less ryegrass are much easier to manage in this respect.
So that'a why I need the tighter cells, rather than spread everything out and let them be selective, I want them to be mobbed but moving - if I had my way (be a fulltime grazier) then we'd keep the quarter acre cells and move 5 or 6 times a day during that rapid growth period.
The result would be a very flat "wedge" but also a very high average cover across the farm, none of this 2100kg crap, double it if possible, because there's your extra 2 tons of cover that becomes 2 tons of DM for the soil to consume - which then becomes about 3+ tons of extra feed later on.
What it means is that you are still only taking half the plant per grazing but the plants are getting bigger and bigger all the time, and then they stay leafy
When you try clamping down on them to prevent them flowering, they slow down because reproduction is what they live to do, (not feed our cows) and then you grow less to feed your cows with, which is practically the advice given by the folks who sell us bagged myths: "don't let post-grazing covers rise" or "you'll lose quality"..
..and what'ya know, you lose quality and quantity, every year.. but because they are experts, we believe this natural occurence to be our own fault!
So it comes back to thinking... think what would be happening if we didn't have 11kV keeping them parked up, segregated: the whole county's cattle would be running together and smashing over whatever was in their path - but I can't think where they would be eating grass down past halfway, unless a river stopped them.
They just don't do that, because the energy is in the top of the plant they keep moving looking for more, and the predators help keep them moving and picking off whatever they can catch up to.
So that's one thought process..
Predating "a farmer's stock" is much easier, because they have less energy and sore feet, (and probably have half a lamb or calf hanging out of them ) and this is due to not enough mustering and not enough movement, in most cases.
There's the difference between rotational and rational grazing - what we're thinking, as apex predators