FEATURE SUPPLEMENT 27
www.age.co.nz Thursday, October 7, 2021
HAY 2021 silage
&
Above average temperatures predicted
The lack of a strong climate driver will likely be associated with more variability in New Zealand’s weather patterns during the coming months, says NIWA in its seasonal climate outlook for October to December 2021. La Niña Watch remains active, but the event is less advanced compared with this time last year. The short-term in˜ uence on New Zealand’s climate likely won’t be as substantial, but is expected to grow over the next three months. October-December rainfall is most likely to be near normal in the north of both islands and about equally likely to be near normal or below normal in all other regions. The ÿ rst half of October, however, is expected to be unsettled, with periods of rain and possible thunderstorms. The chance for dry spells may increase over time. Temperatures are very likely to be above average across New Zealand. More northeasterly winds are expected to cause periods of warmth and humidity, such as in early October. Soil moisture levels are most likely to be below normal in the west of the South Island and about equally likely to be near normal or below normal in all other regions. River ˜ ows are most likely to be below normal in the west and east of the South Island and about equally likely to be near normal or below normal in all other regions.
Wairarapa temperatures are very likely to be above average (60% chance). Rainfall totals are about equally likely to be near normal (40% chance) or below normal (35% chance).
“
The ÿ rst half of October, however, is expected to be unsettled, with periods of rain and possible thunderstorms. The chance for dry spells may increase over time. Soil moisture levels increased during September after normal or above normal rainfall, but the tendency for more high pressure systems can contribute to dry spells in the months to come. Soil moisture and river ˜ ows are equally likely to be near normal (45% chance) or below normal (45% chance).
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28 FEATURE SUPPLEMENT
HAY2021 silage
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FEATURE SUPPLEMENT 29
www.age.co.nz Thursday, October 7, 2021
Thursday, October 7, 2021 Wairarapa Times-Age
Keeping contracting work safe on farms What can farmers do to keep contractors healthy and safe? Farmers must make sure: • that any risks from farm work are reasonably managed (eliminated or minimised) to protect the health and safety of contractors • that risks from any previous work carried out on the farm (eg spraying hazardous substances) are reasonably managed to protect the health and safety of contractors • that farm buildings and any area where work is being carried out (apart from the farm house) is safe for everyone including contractors.
What can contractors do to keep farmers healthy and safe? Contractors must make sure: • that any risks from their work that could a˜ ect the farmer, farm workers or other contractors on the farm are reasonably managed. • If a risk can’t be eliminated then it must be minimised, so far as is reasonably practicable. How can farmers and contractors consult, cooperate and coordinate activities with each other? Farmers and contractors must work together to meet their overlapping duties every time a contractor comes on farm.
Safe stacking of hay It is important to stack bales correctly to avoid creating hazards to yourself and other people.
Having a face-to-face or over the phone meeting before work starts can help farmers and contractors to reach a common understanding and establish clear roles, responsibilities and actions. It will also prevent any gaps in managing health and safety risks. The more in° uence and control a farmer or contractor has over a health and safety matter, the more responsibility they are likely to have.
Checklist for farmers and contractors Possible questions famers could ask. Have I: • checked where the contractor will be going/working? • got their contact details? • told them about any expected or unexpected risks? • told them about other work activity on the farm that could pose a risk to them? Farmers should tell contractors about: • farm rules (eg speed limits, alcohol) • any expectations of their behaviour on farm? • told them about any relevant emergency procedures? • determined appropriate time in/time out reporting?
Build stacks on ÿ rm, level ground WHEN FARMING MEANS •BUSINESS away from ÿ re hazards, sources
of ignition, overhead power lines, dwellings, boundary fences and footpaths. Ensure stacks are safe at all times.
Having a face-to-face or over the phone meeting before work starts can help farmers and contractors. PHOTO/STOCK.ADOBE.COM
Take precautions to prevent mechanical damage, for example by transport, rodents and undermining by cattle.
• Big round bales may be stacked • Where regular access past stacks is either on their ends, if covered, or unavoidable, either by employees on their sides in a pyramid. End or other people, or where excessive • * made a back-up plan with the Told the farmer: stacking: Use bales of the same wind loading is likely, do not stack contractor if there’s no phone • Never stack higher than the MOUNTED MOWER diameter. Pyramid stacking: MOUNTED MOWER •2628/2632 what I am going toSERIES be doing? Don’t to these heights. coverage? lifting capabilities of the handling • 2.8m and 3.2m working width CONDITIONER - 3232MN CONDITIONER -maximum 3332/3336 stack more than four layers high. •• what risks it poses to others? equipment used for stacking and • Large hay bales often weighcontour about R ound discs are less susceptible to stone impacts F ourmay suspension arms, ground breaking • * made a note of what I told them? (eg • Lightweight due to nylon conditioner Each tynes bale on the bottom •layer (including the farmer) destacking. This is particularly 500kg and a stack collapsing inside (on all mowers) • 3.2 and 3.6m working width in the farm diary) • F ully welded cutter-bar with overlapping C-profiles be chocked to enable safe and important if you employ a building could cause damage • discussed how I am going tolift manage Easy lift on headlands, can by spool only • NonStop BreakBack protection across working width for to strength mowers) convenient destacking. Fit stakes or Also consider: contractors do the (on job.all Make to its structure, in turn may and communicate risks? • NonStop BreakBackthose system •the Flexible suspension - 700mmwhich working range • NonStop BreakBack system supports to either side of stack. sure stack and load heights do not injure people. • printing and marking-up a farm map exceed the lifting capabilities of • been made aware of any relevant • Never build a conventional stack to show hazards Some structures may not be strong your own handling emergency procedures? IDEAL FORequipment. of bales higher than the limits of enough to support large hay bales & L • getting the contractor to call in at the ENTIONA CONVmore safe access to and from the stack. • Never stack bales on handling • agreed with the farmer on appropriate stacked against them. For these S LER farmhouse, or phone before starting BA D ROUNto a height higher Height will also be limited by the equipment, time in/time out reporting? reasons, structures for storing large work means used for getting bales from than the equipment is designed to hay bales should be designed, • made a back-up plan with the farmer if the loads on to the stack. handle. • helping them across rough terrain manufactured and built by suitably there’s no phone coverage? using an appropriate vehicle. Stacks will be more stable if their qualiÿ ed people who have taken • Wherever possible, stack big bales Also consider letting the farmer know height does not exceed 1.5 times the these factors into account. (rectangular, square or highHas the contractor: 8500 RANGE 9472C RAKE 9590C HYDRO anyTEDDER changes in the work that may kverneland.com about shortest base dimension. density) by overlapping to form a Source: ProLine Guidelines forbox the with Safe fully • 5.5 toadditional 14m working • communicated with the farmer about create riskswidths to other persons • Maintenance-free gear • Working width of 7.2m stable stack. Big square bales are Where stacks are likely to be Handling, Transportation And Stacking • Super-C tines with large spring coil diameter where I or my team will be going/ (including the farmer) on farm. enclosed oil bath design • CompactLine maintenance gearbox normally stacked to a maximum of - friendly dismantled over a period of time, Of Large Hay Bales. The full • Easy setting of spreading angle through simple working? • HydroLift allows lowering of the frameguidelines for transport • TerraLink Quattro for bales perfect ground following four layers high. High-density Source: Workforce New Zealand Mahi build them under cover so the stack can be found at worksafe.govt.nz three-way adjustment of wheel height • T erraLink Quattro for perfect ground following • Active wheel steering with 80° turning angle for easy can be stacked ° at up to six layers • checked with the farmer if there is risk Haumaru Aotearoa www.worksafe.govt.nz can be taken down without exposing • L ow weight and power requirements • Hydraulic adjustable working width 8.0-9.0m high. manoeuvrability from farm work activity where I will be each layer to the weather. going/working?
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30 FEATURE SUPPLEMENT
HAY2021 silage
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Thursday, October 7, 2021 Wairarapa Times-Age
FEATURE SUPPLEMENT 31
www.age.co.nz Thursday, October 7, 2021
The art of making good silage It is impossible to produce high quality silage from low quality pasture, no matter how good the fermentation is, says DairyNZ. Both the quality of the ensiled pasture and the quality of the fermentation must be considered. What is pasture silage? Silage is pickled pasture. When pasture is ensiled, its sugars are converted into lactic acid by bacteria. It is the lactic acid which pickles the pasture, allowing it to be preserved for a lot longer than it would have been if left in the open air. With well-preserved silage, losses in feeding value during fermentation will be small, and the ÿ nal silage will be only slightly lower in feeding value than the original pasture. Minimum values for high quality silage is 10MJME/kgDM and 16% crude protein. Good quality pasture silage is a good source of energy and protein for a milking cow and can be used as a ÿ bre source when feeding high sugar or starch feeds. However, a poor quality pasture silage (made from low quality pasture, or ensiled with low quality fermentation, or both) will not support high milk yield
Losses when making pasture silage Losses occur as sugars and protein in the grass is broken down by enzymes, and bacteria. This process starts as soon as the grass is cut. Losses decrease quality as well as quantity, because it is the highly digestible components which are most rapidly broken down. Losses depend on the dry matter (DM) of the pasture. The optimum DM for silage is 25-30% because total DM loss is minimised. Cut in the morning of a sunny day, for rapid wilting. Cutting after 1-2 days’ sunny weather will result in good sugar levels in the pasture, even when cut in the morning. Avoid wilting for any more than 24 hours.
or dry cows and allows you to value silage based on its Metabolisable Energy (ME) content.
Fast production of lactic acid will quickly reduce the pH, to prevent protein losses.
How to sample silage
Feeding out losses
Take at least ÿ ve handfuls of silage from di° erent places and mix them together.
Silage begins to break down once exposed to air, and will begin to heat up as micro-organisms turn the remaining sugars and protein into heat and energy.
Send a subsample of one litre (half a bread bag) for analysis. The sub-sample should be representative of all the silage in the stack or bale.
When feeding out, aim for as little time as possible between exposing the silage to air, and the cow eating it.
You can take silage sampled from unopened stack or bales to tell the quality of the feed before it is fed out. (It will also not have been spoiled through exposure to air) or sample silage as it is being fed out.
There are several ways to limit losses from silage while feeding out.
and will only be suitable for dry cows, or as a ÿ bre source to reduce risk of acidosis.
Losses during harvesting
will keep out oxygen, making conditions more suitable for bacteria to convert sugars into lactic acid.
Good quality pasture silage is a good source of energy and protein for a milking cow. PHOTO/STOCK.ADOBE.COM
Compact the silage well. In a stack or pit, use the heaviest wheeled vehicle available. Tractor wheels should not sink into the pile of pasture any further than the depth of rubber. For baled silage make sure that a high density baler is used. Seal the stack completely with a weighted, airtight cover. Wash
old polythene before use to avoid contamination with the wrong bacteria. Don’t reopen a covered stack to add more pasture on another day Losses while grass is in the stack,
pit or bale
Once the silage is sealed, nothing can be done to change the fermentation process. Poor fermentation (eg air in the stack)
leads to major losses of protein quality.
Remove at least 20cm o° the whole stack Assessing silage quality by sight face each day, so silage at the face is not and smell exposed to air for a more than one day. Cut silage o° the face, rather than pulling If you don’t have a feed analysis for your silage, you can estimate quality from its it o° . This keeps a smooth surface at the stack face, which reduces air penetration appearance. into the stack. Feed quality: High quality silage has lots Leave the stack face open on dry days to avoid heat build-up under the polythene.
of leaf, and very little stem in it. The more stem in silage, the poorer its quality.
Do not feed out more than one day in advance, especially in summer.
Colour: Well-preserved silages are green, yellow, or pale brown. Dark brown silage is generally poorly preserved.
In poorly preserved silage protein is broken down into ammonia, which decreases the feeding value of the silage.
Cows will be able to eat more of the silage they are o° ered if it is fed out on dry paddocks or feed out areas, along fence lines, or in feed bins or troughs.
Getting things right while the grass is being harvested will maximise the chance of having a good fermentation:
Do not allow cows access to spoiled silage.
A fast wilt to 25-30% DM will leave good sugar concentrations in the pasture. Quick compaction and e° ective sealing
Why analyse pasture silage? To assist your management. An analysis will tell you the quality of the silage so you can decide whether to feed milking
Smell: Well preserved silage has a sweet, tobacco smell. Foul, rancid smells indicate the presence of butyric acid from poor preservation. Moulds: Moulds grow where silage has been exposed to air. Some fungi can produce toxins. Source: www.dairynz.co.nz
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32 FEATURE SUPPLEMENT
HAY2021 silage
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Thursday, October 7, 2021 Wairarapa Times-Age
FEATURE SUPPLEMENT 33
www.age.co.nz Thursday, October 7, 2021
A hand on the tiller gains early
Keeping safe on farm during summer
Lighter crops, harvested earlier, produce better silage, says DairyNZ farm performance developer Maitland Manning.
Summer means heavy workloads on farms, from weaning lambs and calves to hay and silage making. There’s close work with animals, many large vehicles coming and going, contractors on farm and heavy use of tractors and machinery.
“Our research shows closing a silage area two to four weeks after balance date signiÿ cantly drops its pasture quality, as seed heads emerge within three weeks. So harvest with an eye on quality pasture not quantity.”
At the same time, you may also have summer visitors, and children wanting to be out playing or helping out.
A post-grazing residual close to 1500 kilograms of dry matter per hectare (kg DM/ha) helps to maximise silage quality.
“All these factors carry health and safety risks,” says Mark Harris, lead extension manager at Beef + Lamb New Zealand.
“Our trials showed that for every 100kg DM/ha above that, DM/ha pastures should be closed for 1.4 days less.”
“Vehicles and machinery feature in almost 90 per cent of fatal workplace accidents on farms and accidents requiring more than a week o° work.
Achieving silage success means carefully managing pasture growth, residuals, storage and feeding out, Maitland says. Managing surplus pasture growth in early summer is important in achieving ongoing pasture performance. In November/December, reproductive tillers appear, elongating into less easily-digested stems and seed heads, dropping pasture quality.
Always walk around a vehicle to check children are a safe distance away before starting the engine.
“Recognise vehicles as a critical risk on farm and establish good ongoing practice around using them.
and ensure you continue to hit residuals in preparation for summer. If you’re using a stack or pit, make sure it’s well-packed and covered promptly, Maitland says.
Leaving high residuals in early summer All silage should be given time to won’t help ÿ ll a feed deÿ cit later, as there ferment before feeding out. Depending is reduced pasture growth and quality in on the inoculants used, any silage stack those later months. or bale should not be opened for three Silage is one way to use up a true surplus to four weeks after closing.
Shape stacks and pits to suit herd size and clean the stack face daily, so it’s not exposed to air for longer than 24 hours. Movement of the silage within a stack should be minimised (use a block cutter/ shear grab). Wastage at feeding out is best reduced by using a feed pad so cows cannot trample the silage into the ground.
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“Always select the right vehicle and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for the job. A quad bike might be ideal for nipping round but not for towing a heavy load, take those few minutes to get the tractor.”
Most fatal tractor rollover accidents in recent years would have been prevented by the driver wearing a seatbelt on a Roll Over Protection (ROP)-ÿ tted tractor.
One of the main causes of deaths involving tractors are where it hits the operator or another person because it hasn’t been properly braked, or through the tractor rolling, with the driver not wearing a seatbelt.
‘It’s a good idea to consult with your contractors ahead of any work, to establish clear roles, responsibilities and actions and discuss risks - it’s as simple as a phone or email conversation.”
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Children on the farm
tanks, dams or ponds, all pose risks.
“Naturally, farmers want their children, grandchildren and other young visitors to enjoy the farm with them, it’s the Kiwi way – but vehicles also pose a major risk for children,” says Mark.
“Where reasonably practicable, set up safety barriers around play areas, animal pens, work areas and water spots. Cover tanks and wells with child restraint covers or ÿ ll in disused ones. Lock doors and ensure agri-chemicals are stored safely out of children’s reach. Small hands may also be able to reach through machinery guards.”
“Don’t let children ride on tractors, quad bikes or on the back of utes. Children should be in car seats or seat belts when in cars, utes or trucks, including on private roads. Always walk around a vehicle to check children are a safe distance away before starting the engine – and never leave vehicles unattended with the engine running or the key in the ignition.” Children lack the judgement, body weight and strength to handle full-sized farm vehicles, like quad and other farm bikes. According to ACC ÿ gures, more than 100 children hurt themselves on these vehicles annually. About 28 are hospitalised and tragically from three to six are killed. “When walking around the farm with children, identify risks together,” says Mark. “Make sure children wear high visibility clothing and teach them to wash and dry their hands after touching animals. Water, be it rivers, creeks, troughs, dips,
Tie spare tractor wheels to walls or lie them ˛ at. Ensure bikes children ride are appropriate for their age and height. “Above all, ensure children are well supervised,” says Mark. Even the most sensible child can do something impetuous. It’s important safety conversations are part and parcel of everyday life on farm. “If someone is getting out of the tractor, check they’ve put the brakes on. If they’re hopping into or getting out of machinery remind them to always use three points of contact and buckle up. “If you lead by example, like wearing an approved helmet (PPE) on a quad bike and wearing your seatbelt in vehicles where provided, your team and your kids will learn that’s the way to do things – and you will be setting them up for lifelong good safety habits.”
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