Sheep grazing fertiliser

[farmer_Nick]

Hi folks, wondering what the best way to fertilise sheep ground is. Based in Northern Ireland and have heard about too much nitrogen based fertiliser being bad for sheep but isn't that what makes grass grow? Also don't have too much acreage so hoping there some way around this. Cheers and thanks for any advice in advance.

 

[tr250]

We put on 43kg/ha of nitrogen or a bag to the acre in old language and I think that’s a good balance between giving the grass a lift in the spring, cost and over doing the sheep with frem grass. That’s assuming your ph, p+k are all good

 

[cotswoldcs]

We used to put on Nitram with DoubleTop on silage/hay ground but now use DoubleTop on everything. I think sulphur is increasingly important. I might go up to 50kgN/ha but not really any more unless we're short of grass.

Everything seems to be bad for sheep and they can die from too much or too little of anything! I have avoided putting on MOP fertiliser in the spring after a bad problem with staggers (hypomagnesaemia) in the past.

 

[farmer_Nick]

Thanks for the reply tr250, is this a once off or continuous and is 'poisoning sheep' an easy thing to do or are they hardy enough to it?
and thanks as well cotswoldcs what does MOP mean in fertiliser and can the nutrients get balanced with licks to stop staggers?

 

[milkloss]

I would just go in with nitrogen or 27-5-5 at most and not have the worry of staggers. Never liked too much N on sheep ground...... makes’em shite too thin and make a mess of themselves. Certainly in the summer anyway.

 

[tr250]

Thanks for the reply tr250, is this a once off or continuous and is 'poisoning sheep' an easy thing to do or are they hardy enough to it?
and thanks as well cotswoldcs what does MOP mean in fertiliser and can the nutrients get balanced with licks to stop staggers?

We just do one application in the spring. I’m not sure about poisoning sheep with nitrogen but the issue we have is a flush of frem grass causes dirty tails and the grass grows faster with a diluted vitamin and mineral content causing staggers etc

 

[farmer_Nick]

so should I just supplement with hay into summer? and then does well fertilised hay/haylage ground ultimately effect them poorly in the winter?

 

[Hooby Farmer]

I got the land tested this year and I'm using a couple of different types for grazing 27 4 4 and 15 15 16 about 75kg/acre.

 

[Mc115reed]

Put some on some sheep ground on Monday with ewes and lambs grazing it 30kg/acre... nothing’s dead yet but they did all run away from the tractor into a corner and flatten the fence and go in the neighbors wheat [emoji28]

 

[JoeFo]

18-6-12 here, bag and a half to the acre and they graze away