Weeks of frost takes toll on pasture cover
Weeks of frost have knocked pasture cover on Lincoln University’s Dairy Farm and the South Canterbury Tactics for Tight Times (TTT) focus farm is no different.
“There is no silver bullet out there,” local consulting officer Caleb Strowger said. “It’s more about following a decision process on how best to get through the next 12-18 months.”
Highlighting the volatility in payouts, and step change in operating costs in 2007-08, he stressed the need for resilient systems, but while the 2008-09 TTT programme focus was systems, now it’s “more about cashflow and getting through”.
Analysis of operating expenses since that step change shows feed is the main inflator, with repairs and maintenance also up a little, but labour, fertiliser, animal health, breeding and general overheads little changed.
Event hosts sharemilkers Cole and Virginia Groves outlined the limitations in their 900-cow business, notably a 42-aside herringbone shed and long 264ha milking platform with two road crossings.
“We spend nine hours a day in the shed without counting shifting the K-line and everything else,” Cole told the field day.
“We’re understocked for the farm at 3.4 cows/ha but overstocked for the cowshed.”
Installing grain feeders has helped keep cows fed while off pasture for milkings and saved “two hours a day shifting PKE troughs”. They also ensure each cow gets the intended amount. “With PKE in trailers it’s the same cows round the trailer all the time.”
But with the bulk of the farm’s irrigation going off with the Opuha shutdown on February 25 Groves had been out buying baleage and PKE.
“[PKE] is a hell of a lot cheaper than baleage or grain,” he noted.
At the February 24 field day, average pasture cover had “just dropped under 2000” with the herd on a 28-day round.
