When is it too late to plant maize? Ian Williams, Pioneer forage specialist explains.

Follow these seven steps to ensure you plan for maize planting as well as you can.

Maize silage is a maize crop cut and ensiled in a stack or bunker; commonly used as a supplement to pasture in situations where cows would otherwise be underfed.

The long summer dry has meant many farmers are now focused on how they can increase pasture cover levels while still meeting cow condition score targets.

The summer dry has resulted this autumn in less-than-ideal quantities of grass being available to cows.

The predicted dry patch, which in November seemed impossible to envisage, has arrived.

About this time of the year, we always seem to get calls from merchants and farmers asking several versions of the same question: “Is it too late to plant maize silage in November?” 

Maize is a vital crop that consumes a lot of farmers’ time and money, says DairyNZ.

Over the last three years, pressure has increased on dairy farmers to produce food with a low environmental footprint.

The maize harvest in many regions is being severely hampered by rain and high soil moisture levels.