Gareth outlined how over recent weeks he has increased his grazing rotation length from 18-20 days to 30 days by early September with that to be further extended to 35-40 and beyond in the coming weeks. Extending the grazing rotation is one of a number of actions that are being taken to increase grass covers. Fertiliser was sowed up to the deadline and empty cows are being removed from the herd to further reduce demand. Meal feeding was also increased and when covers got particularly tight buffer feeding of silage during milking times was introduced for a couple of weeks.
Grazing infrastructure is vital to the successful utilisation of grass on dairy farms. The farm is well set up with lanes and multiple entry points to paddocks. During the main grazing season the aim is to go into covers of 2,800kgDM/ha and graze them down to 1,600kgDM/ha. The target entry cover increases to 3,100kgDM/ha in the autumn. The entire farm is at optimum levels for pH, P and K and the entire farm has been reseeded in the last 10 years.
Cappagh Farms is one of 20 farms in Northern Ireland, and over 50 across the UK that are part of the new UK Dairy Carbon Network project. By demonstrating practical solutions on real farms, the project aims to break down barriers to change and fast-track the adoption of methods that reduce GHG emissions while supporting the long-term resilience and profitability of the UK dairy industry. Initial approaches chosen by Cappagh Farm to reduce emissions are in the area of enhanced nutrient planning; introducing clover into swards and switching to protected urea.
A copy of the handout from the day can be found by clicking here.
GrassCheck is a joint initiative of AgriSearch, AFBI and CAFRE and is co-funded by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA).
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Attendees at the recent GrassCheck farm walk at Cappagh Farm near Omagh
1 The UK Dairy Carbon Network is working with over 50 UK dairy farms to implement and assess practical, farm-ready solutions for reducing greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). Led by AFBI and funded by DEFRA, the project is supported by a UK-wide consortium of leading research and industry partners (including AgriSearch). Further information on the UK Dairy Carbon Network project can be found here: https://ukdairycarbonnetwork.co.uk/
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Gareth Shortt and Cormac Cunningham from Cappagh Farm along with Jonathan McAleese (UK Dairy Carbon Network Farm Liaison Officer, AgriSearch)