Autumn Pasture and Fertiliser 2022

Workshop teaches principles of effective

BY DAVID FAMULARO

On a warm summers morning last Thursday, a small collection of dairy sta˜ from around the South Wairarapa met at Kaiwaiwai Dairies on the Featherston-Martinborough highway for a DairyNZ organised discussion group on how to measure and allocate pasture.

Most of the attendees were young men and women, with Senior DairyNZ Extension Partner Abby Scott stressing, when I momentarily talked to her before the event started, that a good understanding of the basics of pasture management and feed allocation are key for anyone new to the industry.

Somewhat surprisingly, it turns out, this is a message that is also relevant for those who have been in the dairy industry in the Wairarapa for many years.

Supported by Aidan Bichan, one of the shareholders of Kaiwaiwai Dairies and part of its management team, Abby ÿ rst went through the principles of pasture allocation which turn out to be surprisingly simple, and which, with a few simple equations, can be used to determine the comparative rates of grown of di˜ erent paddocks on a farmknowledge of which can allow management to take a variety of di˜ erent actions to make their pastures as productive as possible.

“It’s all about getting the basics right”, says Abby. But, she adds, also about “measuring, measuring, measuring. I can’t stress that enough.”

The second part of the workshop was to step out on to two separate paddocks with a plate metre.

One of the attendees was given the job of using to measure the grass growth of the two which had been grazed at di˜ erent days and under di˜ erent conditions, followed by a discussion on the ÿ ndings.

One of the things that became clear was how much of a di˜ erence there could be between two paddocks so close to each other, and both using the same rye/clover/plantain/ chicory mix. The growth rate of two paddocks side by side can be considerably di˜ erent in just a matter of days.

Some positive news for urea prices

AUTUMN Pasture & Fertiliser 2022

They can grow at di˜ erent speeds, and the rate of growth can vary quite considerably between the di˜ erent species in a mix in the same spot of paddock. Kaiwaiwai Dairies measures all the pasture of its 325ha milking platform farm every seven to ten days which in total takes about half a day of a sta˜ member’s time, Aidan says.

“A lot of farmers don’t do this because it is labour intensive, but the value of having this knowledge outweighs the cost of the labour. You can’t manage what you don’t measure, so measuring is very important.”

Through Abby, Kaiwaiwai Dairies goes so far as to post its measurements, along with Platform Farm in Greytown, in the Wairarapa Midweek every week as a free service to other farmers.

“It’s ÿ ne for other farms to use the data but they should do measuring on their own farm. The variability can be quite dramatic,” says Aidan.

For Kaiwaiwai Dairies, grass is the foundation of its feed plan.

“The cheapest feed we have is grass so want to utilise all of it.”

Aidan likens a pasture to a giant solar panel, with the aim of capturing as much of the suns energy and turning it into as much feed, as is possible. At the end of the workshop Abby points out that “we have got to remember that with farming we have a lot of science, but there is a bit of art as well.”

This sentiment is backed up by an antidote from Aidan about a farmer who asked an older farmer what the

secret to good pasture management is. The older farmer told him to get a black box, put it in the middle of the paddock, stand on it, and slowly turn 360 degrees looking at the pasture.

Once the farmer had mastered this, the older farmer told him to do the same thing “but leave the box behind.”

There is a value in looking around - not just using a plate metre, Aidan says.

“Do its measurements line up with what you are seeing with your eyes. The more often you do it, the better you will get at pasture management.”

There are a lot of things involved in running a farm but the foundation of any successful farm is pasture management, Aidan believes.

“High quality pasture management delivers the best farm performance. But this is an area that has been slipping a lot in the last ten to 15 years. People are doing a lot less farm walking.”

One of the most important things a farmer wants in a new employee is a good grasp of pasture management, but these people have become hard to ÿ nd, Aidan says.

“Many farms do not have people skilled people at pasture management, and those that do are often vulnerable because they only have one sta˜ member who is trained in pasture management. If they lose them they may ÿ nd it hard to replace them.

But there is not that much required to be become skilled in this area, as the workshop illustrated.

There are simple formulae, which when

Going over the simple formulae to work out the ideal food plan.

used with good measurement data, can be easily understood and used to make proÿ table decisions.

Abby is pleased to see these skills are being learned at these short and accessible workshops which are also perfect as refresher courses for farm employees.

“They are entry level workshops that are suitable for anyone relatively new to the industry including young people. They are set up as practical core part of any management system.”

Another DairyNZ pasture management workshop is being held at Carterton/ Masterton on Tuesday 1 March, 10:30am - 1pm (host farm yet to be announced)

Contact Abby Scott 021 244 3428

Agribusiness banking specialist Rabobank New Zealand is predicting a fall in urea prices over the next sixth months.

In contrast, it expects phosphate prices to remain at current levels or even increase marginally over the next six months.

Both predictions are made in the bank’s annual ˛ agship report, Agribusiness Outlook 2022, titled “Will the Party Continue in 2022?.”

In recent weeks, some of the demand and supply drivers that elevated global urea prices to record levels have begun to ease, the report says.

“We expect this is the beginning of a slow decline in urea prices over the next sixth months.

“While this is good news for New Zealand farmers, we expect local urea prices will remain materially higher than for 2021 for this season.

“We also expect freight interruptions will continue to plague deliveries, which may cause some delays.”

Prices of European natural gas, a key raw material in urea, have now fallen by 60 percent from midDecember 2021 levels due to increasing supply.

There is also some optimism that the Nord Stream 2 pipeline will be approved

by regulators which would further pressure gas prices, but geopolitical tension with Russia is already driving gas price volatility, the report says.

“Following recent global headlines about urea shortages, some indicators show that the supply balance is improving.

“The two most recent Indian tenders were oversubscribed by more than double.

“Some 1.19 million tonnes of urea were booked for the most recent December 23 tender, after o˜ erings of 2.75 tonnes.

“Furthermore, northern hemisphere demand has been very quiet in recent weeks, which has left the market wondering where all these extra tonnes will go. Despite our expectation of lower prices over the next six months, we expect local prices will remain well above average.”

If Russian gas supplies into Europe reduced, this would again send nitrogen prices upward.

Rabobank expects global prices of corn, soybeans and wheat will all remain relatively high, which is likely to act as a ˛ oor in global fertiliser prices, as farmers will continue to aggressively chase yield and protein.

It’s important to keep in mind that local prices may take as much as three months to re˛ ect global price movements, the report says.

“In contrast, we expect that phosphate prices will remain at current levels or even increase marginally over the next six months.

“We expect supply of phosphate will remain very tight while China’s expert restrictions remain. Typically, China export about 30 percent of global phosphate trade.”

The threat of con˛ ict or even further sanctions on Russia and ally Belarus is a major upside risk for fertiliser prices.

“If Russian gas supplies into Europe reduced, or even cut, this would again send nitrogen prices upward.

“Furthermore, 23 percent of global ammonia trade, 14 percent of urea, and ten percent of phosphates is exported by Russia. Together with Belarus, they make up 30 percent of global potash exports. Interruption to supply would again send prices upward from high levels.”

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Now is the time to keep an eye on FE spore counts

Last week saw a dramatic leap in facial eczema (FE) spore counts in the Wairarapa, according to the Gribbles Veterinary Facial Eczema Report (labportal. gribbles.co.nz). The ÿ rst week of February saw spore counts jump to nearly 70,000 spores/g in the Wairarapa, from around 9000 the week before, while in the Tararua district spore counts have gone from around 90,000 to 120,000.

The past three years have seen spore counts steadily go up during February across New Zealand.

Gribbles advises that “when local pasture spore counts are trending upwards of 30,000 spores/g and weather conditions look favourable for sporulation, monitor your own farm’s pasture spore counts week to week and implement facial eczema control and prevention strategies.”

Facial eczema a° ects most ruminants but especially cattle and sheep throughout most North Island regions plus the northern end of the South Island, the website says.

“During summer and autumn months

warm, humid conditions together with dead litter in pasture support the growth of a fungus (Pithomyces chartarum) in pasture.

“Animals graze toxic pasture and once in the rumen the spores release a mycotoxin sporidesmin, which then enters the blood stream eventually ÿ nding its way into the liver.

“The toxin speciÿ cally attacks the cells of the bile duct resulting in the liver being unable to process and excrete waste products and phylloerythrin, a chlorophyll breakdown product.

“Infected animals display signs of photosensitisation and look distressed.

The ÿ rst signs are often reddening and swelling of skin exposed to the sun (i.e. around the eyes, ears, lips and nose) as well as restlessness, shaking and rubbing of the head and ears, and seeking shade.”

Warm summer temperatures and high humidity are presently creating the perfect conditions for facial eczema, says Beef + Lamb New Zealand which is urging farmers to be vigilant.

The organisation has started publishing weekly spore counts in its weekly e-diaries and will be launching a regional text service in the near future to alert farmers of high spore counts.

Will Halliday, B+LNZ’s Senior Advisor

for Biosecurity and Animal Welfare recommends that farmers in high-risk regions undertake weekly monitoring of their own property and when spore counts start to rise, put management strategies in place to prevent stock being a° ected by this productionlimiting disease.

These strategies could include avoiding hard grazing, feeding “clean” forage crops such as chicory or plantain, dosing sheep and cattle with zinc oxide boluses

or drenches, or adding zinc oxide to cattle water troughs. When monitoring indicates rising spore counts, he urges farmers to keep a close eye on stock, looking out for signs of discomfort, photosensitivity and skin lesions.

“For every animal with clinical signs of FE – which are obvious skin lesions – there will be many more with subclinical disease, which is the invisible ongoing liver damage that can cause major productivity losses including reduced liveweight gain especially at mating resulting in lower lambing and calving percentages.”

B+LNZ has a number of resources to help farmers understand and manage FE in both the short and long-term. In sheep, genetics (buying FE-tolerant rams) o° ers a long-term solution to limiting the impacts of this disease.

Pasture spore counting is an excellent tool to visualise pasture spore count trends, says Dairy NZ on its website www.dairynz.co.nz.

“However variability between farms is very large because every farm, paddock and even sections of paddocks contains a slightly di° erent micro-climate for the fungus. It is possible to have spore counts varying by as much as a 500,000 spores/g of pasture or more between farms and between paddocks.

Influence of marine heatwave likely to continue into autumn

In its Seasonal climate outlook February 2022 - April 2022 (niwa. co.nz) NIWA says sea surface temperatures in New Zealand’s coastal waters ranged from 0.9°C to 1.9°C above average.

In the Wairarapa, NIWA says temperatures are likely to be above average or near average over the next three months with periods of high humidity and warm overnight temperatures.

“It is therefore important that when regional spore counts start trending upwards to reach 20,000 to gather a picture of your own farm.

“Similarly, it is not uncommon for spore counts to decrease unusually early or unusually late. Therefore do not stop your management program until you are certain that the spore counts are trending down and are consistently below 10,000 spores/g for three weeks,” says DairyNZ.

Cattle need to be fully dosed with zinc as soon as there is an indication that spore counts are rising on your farm.

Daily individual cow drenching at full dose is optimal for protection against FE. However, Zinc is toxic in high doses so care should be taken in calculating dose rates.

When your pasture spore counts are consistently at 10,000 or less for three weeks and this is accompanied by cooler temperatures, you can stop your management programme.

However, if you have stopped earlier than you are used to, keep an eye on regional spore counts for any spore count movements.

The booklet “Facial Eczema - Treatment and Prevention” can be downloaded from dairynz.co.nz

La Niña conditions peaked in the equatorial Paciÿ c during January, with a 75% chance for its continuation during the next three months, with the marine heatwave conditions continuing to have an upward in˝ uence on air temperatures and humidity.

In late January, abnormally dry conditions were occurring across the Wairarapa, according to NIWA’s New Zealand Drought Index.

A reduction in westerly winds may lead to fewer hot days than normal, however.

Rainfall totals are about equally likely to be near normal or above normal.

That said, heavy rainfall events which can lead to abrupt and rapid increases in river ˝ ows and soil moisture, and extended dry spells could both be possible.

NIWA says weather-sensitive groups should keep a close eye on day-to-day forecasts.

Soil moisture levels and river ˝ ows are most likely to be near normal.

Weekly monitoring is required when spore counts trend over 30,000 spores/g and weather conditions look favourable for sporulation.

A marine heatwave is currently a° ecting the Wairarapa’s climate, with higher temperatures and humidity, but NIWA’s modelling suggests the marine heatwave will gradually ease during autumn.

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Plan the most profitable renewal programme

While you may instinctively know your best and worst paddocks, without measuring or assessing pasture growth, paddocks cannot be accurately ranked to identify worst performance.

The best paddocks to renew are the poorest producers as these have the potential for greatest improvement.

The highest producing paddocks on a farm indicate the property’s overall potential. Under-producing paddocks highlight the opportunity for extra pasture growth.

Use grazing and yield records to identify

your best and worst paddocks. The more measures and assessments you have to compare, the better (and easier) the decision will be.

If records are unavailable use the Pasture Condition Score Tool available at www. dairynz.co.nz and walk your farm at least six months before sowing date.

Three ways you can measure pasture performance are:



give a clear indication of paddock ranking.

 PADDOCK RECORDS

A simple collection of the number times paddocks have been grazed can give a quick indication of paddock growth.

Identify reasons for poor-performance

breeders on target for next advances

WEEKLY COVER PASTURE INFORMATION

Use a rising plate meter or visual yield estimates from farm walks to estimate pasture to calculate paddock growth.



GRAZING RECORDS

Analysis of good grazing records can

2022Have you soil tested the paddocks you plan to sow?

Testing will tell you whether soil nutrient levels are high enough to deliver optimal plant growth. It will also alert you to any deÿ ciencies, excesses or imbalances of major nutrients, as well as enabling you to track fertility trends over time. And, of course, a soil test will inform your fertiliser recommendations, helping your fertiliser dollar go further. Your local fertiliser rep can carry out a soil test for you, or you can do it yourself, if you have a soil auger.

Soil test before selecting the paddock and deciding on the crop type or fertilizer application.

Optimal applications of fertilizer reduce the risk of nutrient loss. A nutrient budget (OverseerFM) will help highlight potential nutrient losses from di° erent crop types and fertilizer applications.

SOME SOIL TESTING TIPS:

1 Don’t test within three months of applying fertiliser or lime.

Introducing new plants will not increase production if you do not resolve the underlying causes of low pasture production - treat the cause and not the symptom.

Problems include poor soil fertility, poor drainage, pugging, soil compaction, overgrazing, weeds and insect pests

Source: www.dairynz.co.nz

2 Take samples by walking in a random or zig zag pattern across the paddock.

3 Don’t sample in dung or urine patches, or stock camping areas, such as around troughs or under trees.

4 Put each sample in a clear snap lock bag and label clearly.

5 Deliver your samples to the lab immediately or store in the fridge until you can get to the lab. Delays expose samples to excess heat and moisture and can a° ect the analysis.

Farming doesn’t stand still, and neither does plant breeding.

Captain CSP (cool season plantain) reduces nitrogen leaching and raised the bar for cool season growth when it was released three years ago.

Drilling down

We have also increased our focus on certain properties speci c to plantain that industry scientists have identi ed as driving changes in nitrate leaching compared with ryegrass/white clover pasture.

But we’re already working on something even better. We currently have several advanced new plantain crosses under careful scrutiny, bred for the ideal mix of plant characteristics to reduce nitrogen leaching.

That’s not all They’ve also been bred for more cool season growth than Captain, plus higher overall yield, and increased persistence.

Cool season growth is one key objective because this is when your risk of nitrate leaching is highest.

The more dry matter a plantain grows during the cooler months, the more soil nitrogen it utilises, reducing your nitrogen loss to waterways and improving environmental outcomes.

Captain has more cool season growth than many other plantains, so it also provides extra feed when you need it most.

But we know there is plenty of room for improved performance with

plantain, not least because it is such a variable species.

Variability helps

Variability is good for plant breeders!

It gives us more opportunities to single out key characteristics of plant performance that are measurably better than what has already been achieved.

Plantain’s season growth patterns are a good example of this variability. Warm season growth is reasonably consistent between different plantain varieties.

But cool season growth is highly

Captain cool season plantain

Leach less. Feed more.

Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s Knowledge Hub has resources on soil characteristics, fertiliser use and crop establishment. Visit www.knowledgehub.co.nz @BarenbrugNZ facebook.com/BarenbrugNZ barenbrug.co.nz

variable, ranging from complete winter dormancy to higher DM growth than Captain, so we’ve been able to select aggressively for this trait.

Persistence is another key trait for many pasture species, and plantain is no exception – typically it is recognised as a short-lived crop, although well-managed Captain CSP will thrive for up to three years.

But we are going to improve that, combined with targeting higher overall dry matter yield, because this will really help with tting plantain into farm systems.

Chief among these are plantain’s lower dry matter percentage than ryegrass and higher ratio of water soluble carbohydrate (WSC) to crude protein (CP).

For now, Captain remains ideal for both red meat and dairy farmers who want a plantain with good cool season yield as well as other bene ts.

For animals, it’s palatable, easily digested and rich in essential minerals and trace elements. Grazing utilisation is good, because Captain remains obviously upright in the pasture yearround.

Sow it as a specialist three year dairy pasture, mixed with hybrid ryegrass and white clover; or include it with new perennial ryegrass pastures. Or mix it with red and white clovers for high liveweight gain and red meat nishing. You can also include it in perennial pasture mixes for sheep, beef and deer.

Captain CSP (centre), showing its cool season growth advantage over other cultivars in mid-winter on July 30.

Paul Sharp, Barenbrug Area Manager

Captain CSP is ideal for both red meat and dairy farmers.