Silage Analysis

[davidroberts30]

Depends where you are and the year.

I left some 1st cut to bulk up because of the shortage of rain last spring.
Would sooner feed a bit more concentrate than buy round bales at £50 each as saw locally a few years ago!

lots of situations but 1 cut wont stack up against 2 for milk
we dont know the situation maybe the op has had grass since last autumn in the first cut
might be better to use his first cut as dry cow food and use 2nd and 3rd cuts for milk

 

[Mowerzstuff]

Thank you for all your replies so far.
A bit more background information for you all to muse over.
This is an organic dairy farm in North Somerset so grass tends to grow well early although it's on cold heavy clay.
No reseeding has been done for at least 20 years & the owner is worried about weeds taking over if its ploughed up but I'd say it wouldn't totally be out of the question. I'd say that the current grassland would be average for weeds considering the organic nature of it. It is all grazed up until it gets too wet in the autumn & sheep are used to graze out any rough grass up until the end of January. One cut is normally taken as pretty much all the ground is then grazed by cows & youngstock. A few fields away from the main block are cut again around August time but a great quantity of second cut wouldn't result from this & is more often than not baled.
Basically is there any ideas I can suggest for short & longer term improvement of the grassland & silage quality?
Many thanks

 

[livestock 1]

Thank you for all your replies so far.
A bit more background information for you all to muse over.
This is an organic dairy farm in North Somerset so grass tends to grow well early although it's on cold heavy clay.
No reseeding has been done for at least 20 years & the owner is worried about weeds taking over if its ploughed up but I'd say it wouldn't totally be out of the question. I'd say that the current grassland would be average for weeds considering the organic nature of it. It is all grazed up until it gets too wet in the autumn & sheep are used to graze out any rough grass up until the end of January. One cut is normally taken as pretty much all the ground is then grazed by cows & youngstock. A few fields away from the main block are cut again around August time but a great quantity of second cut wouldn't result from this & is more often than not baled.
Basically is there any ideas I can suggest for short & longer term improvement of the grassland & silage quality?
Many thanks

Try an overseed of ryegrass and clover to wake the analysis up

 

[ollie989898]

Thank you for all your replies so far.
A bit more background information for you all to muse over.
This is an organic dairy farm in North Somerset so grass tends to grow well early although it's on cold heavy clay.
No reseeding has been done for at least 20 years & the owner is worried about weeds taking over if its ploughed up but I'd say it wouldn't totally be out of the question. I'd say that the current grassland would be average for weeds considering the organic nature of it. It is all grazed up until it gets too wet in the autumn & sheep are used to graze out any rough grass up until the end of January. One cut is normally taken as pretty much all the ground is then grazed by cows & youngstock. A few fields away from the main block are cut again around August time but a great quantity of second cut wouldn't result from this & is more often than not baled.
Basically is there any ideas I can suggest for short & longer term improvement of the grassland & silage quality?
Many thanks

The D value is low because the material probably wasn't the best of stuff in the first instance. Be interesting to see what is there and if cutting a bit earlier like Sid would help. Lime and dung put on might help matters.

Fermentation has probably been affected by the low sugars. Protein is low for a grass silage but again, if the land is hungry or there is little clover content the lack of nitrogen may explain this.

Would start with soil tests. Then contemplate what budget you have to begin considering improvement options. Heavy clay in North Somerset is basically a huge area. Is it steep, properly wet, does it warm properly or is it shaded and facing the wrong way?

Be wary of the sheep and youngstock grazing it when the conditions aren't right. This kind of land was a familiar sight on my travels. Grazed wrong it's hard as hell afterwards.

Not reseeded in 20 years... yes this is the sort of thing I used to encounter a lot. Probably even know the land itself.

 

[Barmyfarmer]

Can understand the owners point of view as we get hammered with weeds every time we do a reseed, definetly soil test and overseed/direct drill some clover and ryegrasses into the existing ley

 

[HarryB97]

Thank you for all your replies so far.
A bit more background information for you all to muse over.
This is an organic dairy farm in North Somerset so grass tends to grow well early although it's on cold heavy clay.
No reseeding has been done for at least 20 years & the owner is worried about weeds taking over if its ploughed up but I'd say it wouldn't totally be out of the question. I'd say that the current grassland would be average for weeds considering the organic nature of it. It is all grazed up until it gets too wet in the autumn & sheep are used to graze out any rough grass up until the end of January. One cut is normally taken as pretty much all the ground is then grazed by cows & youngstock. A few fields away from the main block are cut again around August time but a great quantity of second cut wouldn't result from this & is more often than not baled.
Basically is there any ideas I can suggest for short & longer term improvement of the grassland & silage quality?
Many thanks

Fully reseed a field and then overseed another as two trials or even split a field in two. Silage is the most important and cost affective feed after grazed grass so the owner is shooting them selves in the foot not improving their leys. What are compaction levels like? A pass with a grass subsoiler could be beneficial.

 

[davidroberts30]

You need high output clovers dd into your fields

 

[Sid]

Silage made from a crappy long term organic ley 8th June last year.

Was left another 2 weeks after rest to bulk up some more as a drought plan.

 

[Sid]

Thank you for all your replies so far.
A bit more background information for you all to muse over.
This is an organic dairy farm in North Somerset so grass tends to grow well early although it's on cold heavy clay.
No reseeding has been done for at least 20 years & the owner is worried about weeds taking over if its ploughed up but I'd say it wouldn't totally be out of the question. I'd say that the current grassland would be average for weeds considering the organic nature of it. It is all grazed up until it gets too wet in the autumn & sheep are used to graze out any rough grass up until the end of January. One cut is normally taken as pretty much all the ground is then grazed by cows & youngstock. A few fields away from the main block are cut again around August time but a great quantity of second cut wouldn't result from this & is more often than not baled.
Basically is there any ideas I can suggest for short & longer term improvement of the grassland & silage quality?
Many thanks

Soil test.
P corrected with FYM
K with slurry.
pH with lime, reseed I would use glendenning as its fine ground and has works quicker for a reseed.

Get an early cut off it, go over it with a spring tile einbock type machine then sow some clover and grass seed. We use festeoliums and red clover for silage but only in full reseed I don’t know how they would take with stitching in. @Great In Grass ?

Then roll.

 

[Will Blackburn]

I used to rent a grazing farm, 40 year old shite ley. Just run away if you can’t improve the grass, grazing growth rates were poor even with cake supplements. Another farm, good leys, no supplements and borderline over fat every year.