Four-six weeks are needed to build pasture cover, assuming good growth conditions continue, he says.
“Just because it’s gone green doesn’t mean we’ve got enough food in the bunkers. A lot of maize silage and grass silage has been eaten throughout the autumn period. I think it’s going to be very much an individual farm thing. Farms that have planned and prepared well and who’ve made good decisions early on – they will be fine. But farms that have done it on a wing and a prayer… have not carefully planned, could have some surprises yet.”
Rowe says cow condition has been lost over the last six weeks and most are not in as good a place as farmers would like them to be at this time of the year. “So we have a lot of ground to make up and that’s going to require more feed and time to get them back to normal before calving.”
From what Rowe has seen, not all farmers are protecting next season’s production: it is mixed. “Those planning well and looking at next year and the potential for a good payout are aware that if you don’t set up really accurately, you lose a whole lot more than you’ll ever gain in another few weeks of milking now. However those struggling and wanting every dollar out of this year are going to penalise next year’s production and good animal health.”
Rowe’s key message to farmers is focus on measuring and planning and making sure cows are in adequate body condition score for calving time. This may involve drying off cows early to reach the BCS targets. “If you’re not measuring and looking and getting independent assessment you might not know what place you are at. That would be a key strategy.”
Rowe says farmers need to produce good feed budgets and make sure they have adequate pasture covers and supplements to feed their cows right through winter.
