it's not over
Member
- Location
- thunder rd co.antrim
And so was today. I read the sfp is looking like continuing to 2022
Northern Ireland Milk Price Tracker
- Thread starter it's not over
- Start date
- Location
- Northern Ireland
We got rain this evening after all. A couple of hours of light but steady rain. Perfect. 
Not good practice to apply slurry and lime within 4 weeks apart.
Ideally slurry after cutting followed by fertiliser a week later.
Do slurry and lime react? I used to wait to I could see wheel tracks before spreading fertiliser but now try and get it on within a week or so after cutting. Just curious as to other people's ideas.
- Location
- County Antrim
We usually cut with a certain amount of nitrogen still in the ground, it never does any harm if you have the grass wilted well enough, so that it's still there to start the regrowth back again sharply. We then concentrate on slurry straight after cutting and leave a week/ten days between slurry and sowing fertiliser. Maybe we're wrong, but it's how we do it.
it's not over
Member
- Location
- thunder rd co.antrim
Why on earth did you plan to have a baby at silage time????And
Very same happened me. Mowing on Saturday for Monday start. Wife says she's feeling odd at lunchtime. At 11pm we're in the hospital. Born on the Sunday. Had to ejit up to the hospital twice a day in between rowing fields and looking after stock, for the next two days, and brought them home on the Wednesday. Talk about pressure.
No fortnight's paternity leave.
- Location
- Northern Ireland
To avoid being there when it was being covered?
- Location
- County Antrim
I'm sure it seemed a great idea at the time of conception [emoji5]
Bogeyman
Member
- Location
- North Antrim
As Chris Rea sings. Ghhhuumm. "When passion shines its blinding light on you, you know my friend there's nothing that you can really do "
Yes they do react , at least that's what I was told when I done my F.A.C.T.S course a number of years ago, was told to leave a month apart if possible.
Lime along with fertiliser is fine providing it is not urea based , if urea based leave 3-4 weeks of a gap between applications as well.
Slurry first and leaving for several days before fertiliser application is to do with cutting carbon emissions. It will be something which could become more stringent in years to come.
So I could slurry this week then lime in a month or so, or would there be too much grass then. Maybe best left till the back end.
As you say probably to much grass. The lime will get carted back into the pit at 2nd cut and not as not all will get washed into the ground. Not sure if any lime on the grass leaf will cause fermentation issues as its a scenario I try to avoid. Lime best applied after the last cut of silage in the year or during the winter.
Lime is the cheapest and most effective fertiliser in my opinion but the vast majority of farmers in NI still neglect it. When Ph drops weeds thrive and fertiliser gets wasted. I've seen other farmers soil test results with ph close to 5! They seem happier in renting unnecessary additional land to fill a clamp and writing bigger cheques to the meal and fertiliser reps than correcting soil imbalances and growing higher quantity/quality crops.
Lime is the cheapest and most effective fertiliser in my opinion but the vast majority of farmers in NI still neglect it. When Ph drops weeds thrive and fertiliser gets wasted. I've seen other farmers soil test results with ph close to 5! They seem happier in renting unnecessary additional land to fill a clamp and writing bigger cheques to the meal and fertiliser reps than correcting soil imbalances and growing higher quantity/quality crops.
- Location
- Northern Ireland
Regarding the timing of fertiliser and slurry. The textbook approach is, not surprisingly, over-simplified in a Northern Ireland context. Sometimes it's easy to follow the book, sometimes the weather gets in the way. Take spring. If slurry is applied in a dry window, and it comes on persistent rain again for several weeks, you won't want to even walk on the land never mind go on with a tractor and spinner. And by the time it skins enough to let you on, the grass is up and you're tramping it down, and it could be getting late for the urea you've got sitting in the shed.
So my preference is to go in front with the sower, clean conditions, and not sealing the slurry in with wheel prints, and killing out the grass. The weather is supposed to be better in the summer, so less issue with ground after cuts. But it's not always like the conditions we have now, and you can easily run into the same issues with slurry on sticky ground.
Another theory might be that, in a dry time, it's more useful to have your fertiliser dissolved by the water in the slurry, and absorbed, than sitting dry on top of a hard slurry crust waiting a week or ten days for rain. Seems to work here.
It's back to the old story of an academic writing a one-size-fits-all policy, without having a real grasp of the day to day challenges to be found across different farm types. They'd make better policy if they were prepared to go out and learn from successful practice occuring on real farms in a variety of different areas, rather than an isolated college or research farm in a favourable location.
So my preference is to go in front with the sower, clean conditions, and not sealing the slurry in with wheel prints, and killing out the grass. The weather is supposed to be better in the summer, so less issue with ground after cuts. But it's not always like the conditions we have now, and you can easily run into the same issues with slurry on sticky ground.
Another theory might be that, in a dry time, it's more useful to have your fertiliser dissolved by the water in the slurry, and absorbed, than sitting dry on top of a hard slurry crust waiting a week or ten days for rain. Seems to work here.
It's back to the old story of an academic writing a one-size-fits-all policy, without having a real grasp of the day to day challenges to be found across different farm types. They'd make better policy if they were prepared to go out and learn from successful practice occuring on real farms in a variety of different areas, rather than an isolated college or research farm in a favourable location.
Regarding the timing of fertiliser and slurry. The textbook approach is, not surprisingly, over-simplified in a Northern Ireland context. Sometimes it's easy to follow the book, sometimes the weather gets in the way. Take spring. If slurry is applied in a dry window, and it comes on persistent rain again for several weeks, you won't want to even walk on the land never mind go on with a tractor and spinner. And by the time it skins enough to let you on, the grass is up and you're tramping it down, and it could be getting late for the urea you've got sitting in the shed.
So my preference is to go in front with the sower, clean conditions, and not sealing the slurry in with wheel prints, and killing out the grass. The weather is supposed to be better in the summer, so less issue with ground after cuts. But it's not always like the conditions we have now, and you can easily run into the same issues with slurry on sticky ground.
Another theory might be that, in a dry time, it's more useful to have your fertiliser dissolved by the water in the slurry, and absorbed, than sitting dry on top of a hard slurry crust waiting a week or ten days for rain. Seems to work here.
It's back to the old story of an academic writing a one-size-fits-all policy, without having a real grasp of the day to day challenges to be found across different farm types. They'd make better policy if they were prepared to go out and learn from successful practice occuring on real farms in a variety of different areas, rather than an isolated college or research farm in a favourable location.
I know of farmers who do fertiliser first slurry 2nd. To help wash it in. My biggest concern with slurry is getting it on before regrowth makes a start so it doesn't smother the emerging grass. Unless you have a trailing shoe/dribble bar. But even then with regrowth taking hold the surface damage to grass from wheelings stunts growth to a certain degree.
Agrarian I agree different soil types in NI can make application timings difficult to say the least, but mark my words reducing carbon footprint will be the next chalange to hit agriculture with any possible future payments linked to it. Timing of nutrient applications is already on the governments agenda.
thunderballs
Member
- Location
- NI
Glanbia fixed price scheme for 2018 is 31cpl Inc. vat. If the maths is right 31 = 29.5cpl @ 0.87 = 25.7ppl. That's the current 2017 spring price. Would anyone commit, say 25% of supply if offered that here in the north?
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- Location
- Northern Ireland
it's not over
Member
- Location
- thunder rd co.antrim
27p I think I would sign. Would depend on the term. Would like 3 years. Lots have signed for less 23p
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