Zero grazing.

About 8 years ago wee started to cross our cows to dairy shorthorn and wee have had some good crosses from them then wee used Montys British fresian and fleckveihs to be honest I regret it fully i believe the correct holstein wouldn't see any of them in her road !. Have found when using holstein sires forget about milk production go for power and strength everytime feet and legs and the milk will naturally follow. But everyone to there own I wouldn't run anyones herd down.
 

Suckndiesel

Member
Location
Newtownards
But are those 40 litre cows in calf? A 200+ day in calf cow is a very different beast to a 80 day not in calf cow.

No generally not as we wouldn’t be serving them until 60 days calved and they generally wouldn’t be giving 40 l for much longer after 60 days. Our herd average is 7400l so don’t have much experience with high yielding cows and not sure how’d you would work them on a grass based system
 

pine_guy

Member
Location
North Cumbria
Can anyone explain why grass too old to zero graze makes good silage? Stopped zero grazing 3-4 week old grass, upped 1st cut in TMR, milks gone up 2-3 litres in a day.
was the grass going in the TMR? If you made a grass TMR with all the sweeties that goes in the silage TMR and could stop it heating instantly, I’m guessing they’d feed similar.
 

Seasider

Member
Location
Lancs
Can anyone explain why grass too old to zero graze makes good silage? Stopped zero grazing 3-4 week old grass, upped 1st cut in TMR, milks gone up 2-3 litres in a day.
Have you had grass tested? If you are short of rain protein in grass can drop/ less available hence milk drop. Silage could well have more available protein and higher dm intake.
 

Conrod96

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Co. Antrim
Looking for a bit of advice and just some general questions to those of you who zero graze we’ve been paying contractor to cut couple of loads a day since the beginning of June as we’d to much grass for our pits and seemed like a good way to utilise it.
But seeing the benefits we’d had the discussion of buying our own and keeping a batch of 70 cows on grass full time for the spring and summer. How many loads a day or tonnes would it take to keep these girls going and how many acres if your trying to cut the right grass as much as you can? Thanks
 
Looking for a bit of advice and just some general questions to those of you who zero graze we’ve been paying contractor to cut couple of loads a day since the beginning of June as we’d to much grass for our pits and seemed like a good way to utilise it.
But seeing the benefits we’d had the discussion of buying our own and keeping a batch of 70 cows on grass full time for the spring and summer. How many loads a day or tonnes would it take to keep these girls going and how many acres if your trying to cut the right grass as much as you can? Thanks
Our zg will keep 80 cow's full for 24 hours.
Gt160 from grass tech
 

Suckndiesel

Member
Location
Newtownards
Looking for a bit of advice and just some general questions to those of you who zero graze we’ve been paying contractor to cut couple of loads a day since the beginning of June as we’d to much grass for our pits and seemed like a good way to utilise it.
But seeing the benefits we’d had the discussion of buying our own and keeping a batch of 70 cows on grass full time for the spring and summer. How many loads a day or tonnes would it take to keep these girls going and how many acres if your trying to cut the right grass as much as you can? Thanks

Cows are fit to eat 100kg fresh weight of dry leafy grass here in 24 hours. Zg100 ,it holds about 7.5 ton of dry grass. We would be aiming not to go below 1.5 acre to fill a load but doesn’t always work out like that
 

Conrod96

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Co. Antrim
Cows are fit to eat 100kg fresh weight of dry leafy grass here in 24 hours. Zg100 ,it holds about 7.5 ton of dry grass. We would be aiming not to go below 1.5 acre to fill a load but doesn’t always work out like that
Had seen a zg55 for sale only year old for not bad money but I’ll maybe be overruled on the purchase 😂
 

Conrod96

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Co. Antrim
That the one in Clarke machinery? You’d need a couple of load a day with it
Yeah that’s it we’ve mostly troughs in our place but build a new shed in 17 with concrete ones that can be lifted out of the way with 78 cubicles in the shed thought 2 loads with that would feed that amount? Just trying to make more use of grass as we’ve only grazing for 160 or that and rest have to be housed
 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

  • 0 %

    Votes: 79 42.2%
  • Up to 25%

    Votes: 65 34.8%
  • 25-50%

    Votes: 30 16.0%
  • 50-75%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 75-100%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 100% I’ve had enough of farming!

    Votes: 7 3.7%

Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

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  • 1
As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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