Tuesday 29 th October 2013 Lincoln University Dairy Farm Farm Walk notes Critical issues for the short term 1. Manage feed supply on the platform and respond quickly to changing growth rates. 2. Use back fences on all herds. 3. Keeping all cows especially heifers and fresh cows well fed whilst limiting pasture and soil damage. 4. Make sure all calved cows are getting enough magnesium chloride (Dosatron). 5. Closely observe cows for any signs of mastitis and metabolic conditions. 6. Identifying cows and heifers for mating. Herd Management 1. There are now 394 in the main herd and 226 in the small herd (heifers and a few light condition score cows). This gives a total of 625 cows milking into the vat this morning. plus 2 treatment cows. 2. The whole herd has gained 3kg liveweight over the week, the monitor herd is up 5kg while the first calvers gained 5kg liveweight this week. 3. We have had 0 new cases of mastitis and 10 new lameness cases this week. 4. Average bulk milk SCC is 106 5. Average milk production per cow (all cows milked into the vat) is 2.11kgMS/cow, similar to the last few weeks, while production per hectare was 8.25 kg MS/ha. Growing Conditions 6. Soil temperatures at 9 am have averaged 12.1 degrees; this is 0.4 degrees warmer than last week. 7. We have irrigated 3 days on the north Block and 2 days on the South Block. This has been a bit challenging as parts of the farm were still a bit wet, the soil moisture range from 50 75% of the fill point. The soil moisture meter data below, of the lighter soils, shows that the soils have dried out considerably. Pasture Production and Management Page 1 of 4
8. This weeks measured average pasture cover is 2567 kg DM/ha, an increase of 160 kg DM/ /ha over the week. Our estimated average daily pasture growth rate for the last week has been 87 kg DM/ha. 9. This gives us a predicted surplus of 2 tonnes DM. The round length has been 20 days this week. 10. 53 ha received nitrogen this week at 25kg N/ha 11. No mowing was done. 12. Paddock N9 was re sown into new pasture on 17 th Oct. Seeding was delayed due to the rain. This reduces the available grazing area by 7 ha until the new grass is back in the rotation (typically 8 weeks at this time of the year). We can just see the first grass seedlings emerging. Feeding Management 13. We have fed 4.5kg DM silage per cow/day this week. The small herd has not had silage for the last 2 days. We are stopping silage as we see growth rates and cover have increased. We willl feed silage again in order to hold the round at or above 19 days. 14. Our plan is to continue feeding cows as well as we can whilst concentrating on ensuring good pasture quality going forward by achieving even and consistentt residuals of 1700 kg DM/ha. 15. This week s wedge is printed below Herd Management and Mating 16. All calved cows are now receiving magnesium supplementation via water troughs 17. Mating the herd started on 25/10. There were 123 cows mated in the first 5 days of AB =24.6/day [82%]. 18. Data sheet Page 2 of 4
LUDF Weekly Report 8 Oct 13 15 Oct 13 22 Oct 13 29 Oct 13 Farm grazing ha (available to milkers) 160 160 160 160 Dry Cows on farm / East blk / other 0/9/0 0/0/0 0/0/0 0/0/0 Culls (Includes culls put down & empties) 0 4 0 3 Culls total to date 12 16 16 19 Deaths (Includes cows put down) 1 1 0 0 Deaths total to date 3 4 4 4 Calved Cows available (Peak Number 630 ) 624 630 630 627 Treatment / Sick mob total 3 5 3 1 Mastitis clinical treatment 2 5 1 0 Mastitis clinical YTD (tgt below 64 year end) 25 30 31 31 Bulk milk SCC (tgt Ave below 150) 130 163 148 106 Lame new cases 1 1 2 10 Lame year to date 26 27 29 39 Lame days YTD (Tgt below 1000 year end) 216 174 188 223 Other/Colostrum 0/6 0/2 0/0 2/0 Milking twice a day into vat 614 623 623 620 Milking once a day into vat 0 0 0 5 Small herd 220 226 226 226 Main Herd 394 397 398 394 MS/cow/day (Actual kg / Cows into vat only) 2.15 2.16 2.15 2.11 MS/cow to date (total kgs / Peak Cows 630) 90 105 120 134 MS/ha/day (total kgs / ha used 8.14 8.37 8.38 8.25 Herd Average Cond'n Score 4.70 0.00 4.6 0.00 Monitor grp LW kg WOW 157 early MA calvers 459 455 456 461 Soil Temp Ave Aquaflex 12.0 9.5 11.7 12.1 Growth Rate (kgdm/ha/day) 79 44 60 87 Plate meter height ave half cms 15.0 13.3 13.6 14.8 Ave Pasture Cover (x140 + 500) 2601 2355 2407 2567 Surplus/[deficit] on feed wedge tonnes 11.8 [26] [19] 2 Pre Grazing cover (ave for week) 3245 3336 2869 3035 Post Grazing cover (ave for week) 1600 1700 1600 1600 Highest pre grazing cover 3450 3590 3204 3400 Area grazed / day (ave for week) 6.90 8.20 7.20 7.60 Grazing Interval 22 19 21 20 Milkers Offered/grazed kg DM pasture 16.5 20.3 14.4 16.8 Estimated intake pasture MJME 198 244 173 202 Milkers offered kg DM Grass silage 4 0 5 5 Silage MJME/cow offered 10 10 10 10 Estimated intake Silage MJME 39 0 49 46 Estimated total intake MJME 237 244 222 248 Tgt total MJME Offered/eaten (incls 6% waste) 0 0 0 0 Pasture ME (pre grazing sample) 12.0 12.0 12.1 0.0 Pasture % Protein 26.3 20.4 20.5 0.0 Pasture % DM Concern below 16% 14.9 16.6 17.4 0.0 Pasture % NDF Concern < 33 40.0 36.1 33.7 0.0 Mowed pre or post grazing YTD 9.9 9.9 9.9 9.9 Total area mowed YTD 9.9 9.9 9.9 9.9 Supplements fed to date kg per cow (630 peak) 161.9 161.9 194.1 226.0 Supplements Made Kg DM / ha cumulative 0 0 0 0 Units N applied/ha and % of farm 25units/18% 25units/28% 25units/25% 25units/33% Kgs N to Date (whole farm) 52 64 74 78 Rainfall (mm) 0 61.8 6.2 0.8 Aquaflex topsoil relative to fill point tgt 60 80% 40 60 75 100 50 90 50 75 Page 3 of 4
Our next farm walk will be Tuesday 5 th November. Farmers or their managers and staff are always welcome to walk with us. Please call to notify us of your intention and bring your plate meter. Phone SIDDC 03 423 0022. Management Group Peter Hancox (Farm Manager), Steve Lee (DairyNZ). Page 4 of 4
Tuesday 22 nd October 2013 Lincoln University Dairy Farm Farm Walk notes Critical issues for the short term 1. Manage feed supply on the platform and respond quickly to changing growth rates. 2. Use back fences on all herds. 3. Keeping all cows especially heifers and fresh cows well fed whilst limiting pasture and soil damage. 4. Make sure all calved cows are getting enough magnesium chloride (Dosatron). 5. Closely observe cows for any signs of mastitis and metabolic conditions. 6. Preparation for mating cows and mating heifers. Herd Management 1. There are now 398 in the main herd and 226 in the small herd (heifers and a few light condition score cows). This gives a total of 624 cows milking into the vat this morning plus 5 treatment cows. 2. The whole herd has gained 1kg liveweight over the week, the monitor herd is up 1kg while the first calvers liveweight has held weight this week. 3. We have had 1 new case of mastitis and 2 new lameness cases this week. 4. Average bulk milk SCC is 138 5. Average milk production per cow (all cows milked into the vat) is 2.15kgMS/cow, similar to the last few weeks, while production per hectare (now at 8.38 kg MS/ha). Growing Conditions 6. Soil temperatures at 9 am have averaged 11.7 degrees; this is 2.2 degrees warmer than last week and Growth rates have recovered somewhat as a consequence. See the graphic below of soil temps for the last 2 weeks. 7. Irrigation has just started today, this is a bit challenging as parts of the farm are still a bit wet soil moisture is range from 50 90% of the fill point. The North part of the farm is ready for water and the newly sown pasture on N9 will be watered. Below is a graphic of the Aquaflex in N7 for the last 2 weeks. We have had 6.2mm rain this week. The soil moisture meter data shows that the soils have dried out considerably. Page 1 of 4
Pasture Production and Management 8. This weeks measured average pasture cover is 2407 kg DM/ha, an increase of 52 kg DM/ha over the week. Our estimated average daily pasture growth rate for the last week has been 60 kg DM/ha. 9. This gives us a predicted deficit of 19 tonnes DM. The round length has been 21 days this week. 10. 40ha received nitrogen this week at 25kg N/ha 11. No mowing was done. 12. Paddock N9 was sprayed with Glysophate and Granstar, it was sub soiled, surface cultivated and re sown into new pasture on 17 th Oct. Seeding was delayed due to the rain. This reduces the available grazing area by 7 ha until the new grass is back in the rotation (typically 8 weeks at this time of the year). Feeding Management 13. We have fed 4.6kg DM silage per cow/day this week. We will continue to feed silage in order to hold the round at or above 19 days. We will stop silage as we see growth rates and cover increasing. 14. Our plan is to continue feeding cows as well as we can whilst concentrating on ensuring good pasture quality going forward by achieving even and consistent residuals of 1500 1700 kg DM/ha. 15. This week s wedge is printed below Page 2 of 4
Herd Management and Mating 16. All calved cows are now receiving magnesium supplementation via water troughs 17. 190 pre mating heats were observed for 7 days on average 27.1 cows /day = 90% of total cows expected to be milked. 18. Heifer mating has been going for a week, they all have tail paint and kamars on. 57 out of 155 weree mated in 7 days. AB will continue for 3 weeks followed by 6 weeks running with jersey bulls. 19. Pre mating bloods have been done on 5 x 2yr olds and 5 x mature cows, all tests came back in the adequate range. 20. Mating the herd starts on Friday 25 10. 21. Data sheet LUDF Weekly Report Farm grazing ha (available to milkers) Dry Cows on farm / East blk / other Culls (Includes culls put down & empties) Culls total to date Deaths (Includes cows put down) Deaths total to date Calved Cows available (Peak Number 632 ) Treatment / Sick mob total Mastitis clinical treatment Mastitis clinical YTD (tgt below 64 year end) Bulk milk SCC (tgt Ave below 150) Lame new cases Lame year to date 1 Oct 13 160 0/26/0 0 12 0 2 610 2 2 23 131 8 25 8 Oct 13 160 0/9/0 0 12 1 3 624 3 2 25 130 1 26 15 Oct 13 160 0/0/ /0 4 16 1 4 630 5 5 30 163 1 27 22 Oct 13 160 0/ /0/0 0 16 0 4 630 3 1 31 148 2 29 Page 3 of 4
Lame days YTD (Tgt below 1000 year end) 160 216 174 188 Other/Colostrum 0/9 0/6 0/2 0/0 Milking twice a day into vat 587 614 623 623 Milking once a day into vat 0 0 0 0 Small herd 220 220 226 226 Main Herd 367 394 397 398 MS/cow/day (Actual kg / Cows into vat only) 2.15 2.15 2.16 2.15 MS/cow to date (total kgs / Peak Cows 632 76 90 105 120 MS/ha/day (total kgs / ha used 7.83 8.14 8.37 8.38 Herd Average Cond'n Score 0.00 4.70 0.00 4.6 Monitor grp LW kg WOW 157 early MA calvers 458 459 455 456 Soil Temp Ave Aquaflex 10.2 12.0 9.5 11.7 Growth Rate (kgdm/ha/day) 98 79 44 60 Plate meter height ave half cms 14.7 15.0 13.3 13.6 Ave Pasture Cover (x140 + 500) 2554 2601 2355 2407 Surplus/[deficit] on feed wedge tonnes 0 11.8 [26] [19] Pre Grazing cover (ave for week) 2911 3245 3336 2869 Post Grazing cover (ave for week) 1600 1600 1700 1600 Highest pre grazing cover 3098 3450 3590 3204 Area grazed / day (ave for week) 6.50 6.90 8.20 7.20 Grazing Interval 25 22 19 21 Milkers Offered/grazed kg DM pasture 14.9 16.5 20.3 14.4 Estimated intake pasture MJME 176 198 244 173 Milkers offered kg DM Grass silage 5 4 0 5 Silage MJME/cow offered 10 10 10 10 Estimated intake Silage MJME 55 39 0 49 Estimated total intake MJME 230 237 244 222 Tgt total MJME Offered/eaten (incls 6% waste) 0 0 0 0 Pasture ME (pre grazing sample) 11.8 12.0 12.0 12.1 Pasture % Protein 22.8 26.3 20.4 20.5 Pasture % DM Concern below 16% 16.0 14.9 16.6 17.4 Pasture % NDF Concern < 33 37.6 40.0 36.1 33.7 Mowed pre or post grazing YTD 9.9 9.9 9.9 9.9 Total area mowed YTD 9.9 9.9 9.9 9.9 Supplements fed to date kg per cow (632 peak) 135.5 161.9 161.9 194.1 Supplements Made Kg DM / ha cumulative 0 0 0 0 Units N applied/ha and % of farm 25units/28 25units/18 25units/28 % % % Kgs N to Date (whole farm) 48 52 64 74 Rainfall (mm) 32 0 61.8 6.2 Aquaflex topsoil relative to fill point tgt 60 80% 25units/25 % 50 70 40 60 75 100 50 90 Our next farm walk will be Tuesday 29 th October. Farmers or their managers and staff are always welcome to walk with us. Please call to notify us of your intention and bring your plate meter. Phone SIDDC 03 423 0022. Management Group Peter Hancox (Farm Manager), Steve Lee (DairyNZ). Page 4 of 4
Tuesday 15 th October 2013 Lincoln University Dairy Farm Farm Walk notes Critical issues for the short term 1. Manage feed supply on the platform and respond quickly to changing growth rates. 2. Use back fences on all herds. 3. Keeping all cows especially heifers and fresh cows well fed whilst limiting pasture and soil damage. 4. Make sure all calved cows are getting enough magnesium chloride (Dosatron). 5. Closely observe cows for any signs of mastitis and metabolic conditions. 6. Irrigation has been set up and will be test run over the next few days, irrigation is likely to begin shortly. 7. Preparation for mating cows and start mating heifers. Herd Management 1. There are now 401 in the main herd and 222 in the small herd (heifers and a few light condition score cows). This gives a total of 623 cows milking into the vat this morning. plus 2 colostrums and 5 treatment cows. 2. The whole herd has lost 4kg liveweight over the week, the monitor herd is down 4 kg while the first calvers liveweight has dropped 5 kg this week. 3. All replacement calves have been de budded and are now outside. 4. We have had 5 new case of mastitis and 1 new lameness case this week. 5. Average bulk milk SCC is 165 6. Average milk production per cow (all cows milked into the vat) is 2.16kgMS/cow, similar to the last few weeks, while production per hectare (now at 8.37 kg MS/ha). Growing Conditions 7. Soil temperatures at 9 am have averaged 9.5 degrees; this is 2.5 degrees cooler than last week. Growth rates took a big hit as a consequence. See the graphic below of soil temps for the last 2 weeks. 8. We have had 62mm rain this week. The Aquaflex soil moisture meter data shows that the soils are back to 75 to 100% of field capacity so we don t expect a start to irrigating to happen before Monday at the earliest, but we will be monitoring this day by day. Page 1 of 4
Pasture Production and Management 9. This weeks measured average pasture cover is 2355 kg DM/ha, a decrease of 250 kg DM/ /ha over the week. Our estimated average daily pasture growth rate for the last week has been 44 kg DM/ha, a big drop from last weeks 79 kg DM/ha. 10. This gives us a predicted deficit of 26 tonnes DM. The round length has been 19 days this week. 11. 46ha received nitrogen this week at 25kg N/ha 12. No gibberellic applied this week. No further GA is planned for this spring 13. No mowing was done. 14. Paddock N9 was sprayed with Glysophate and Granstar, it will be subsoiled, surface cultivated and resown into new pasture as soon as possible. Seeding has been delayed due to the rain, as soon as it is dry enough, it will be drilled. This reduces the available grazing area by 7 ha until the new grass is back in the rotation (typically 8 weeks at this time of the year). Feeding Management 15. We have not fed any silage this week. From today we intend to feed 3 4 kg DM silage to the big herd for the next 2 3 days in order to hold the round at or above 19 days. We will stop silage as we seee growth rates and cover increasing. 16. Our plan is to continue feeding cows as well as we can whilst concentrating on ensuring good pasture quality going forward by achieving even and consistentt residuals of 1500 17000 kg DM/ha. 17. This week s wedge is printed below Herd Management and Mating 18. All calved cows are now receiving magnesium supplementation via water troughs Page 2 of 4
19. 125 pre mating heats were observed for 6 days on average 20.8 cows /day / 70% of total cows expected to be milked. 20. Heifer mating started today; they all have tail paint and kamars on. 12 out of 155 were mated. AB will continue for 3 weeks followed by 6 weeks running with jersey bulls. 21. Data sheet LUDF Weekly Report 24 Sep 13 1 Oct 13 8 Oct 13 15 Oct 13 Farm grazing ha (available to milkers) 160 160 160 160 Dry Cows on farm / East blk / other 0/18/27 0/26/0 0/9/0 0/0/0 Culls (Includes culls put down & empties) 2 0 0 4 Culls total to date 12 12 12 16 Deaths (Includes cows put down) 1 0 1 1 Deaths total to date 2 2 3 4 Calved Cows available (Peak Number 632 ) 590 610 624 630 Treatment / Sick mob total 8 2 3 5 Mastitis clinical treatment 1 2 2 5 Mastitis clinical YTD (tgt below 64 year end) 21 23 25 30 Bulk milk SCC (tgt Ave below 150) 143 131 130 163 Lame new cases 5 8 1 1 Lame year to date 17 25 26 27 Lame days YTD (Tgt below 1000 year end) 104 160 216 174 Other/Colostrum 0/13 0/9 0/6 0/2 Milking twice a day into vat 569 587 614 623 Milking once a day into vat 0 0 0 0 Small herd 215 220 220 226 Main Herd 354 367 394 397 MS/cow/day (Actual kg / Cows into vat only) 2.17 2.15 2.15 2.16 MS/cow to date (total kgs / Peak Cows 632 62 76 90 105 MS/ha/day (total kgs / ha used 7.48 7.83 8.14 8.37 Herd Average Cond'n Score 4.60 0.00 4.70 0.00 Monitor grp LW kg WOW 157 early MA calvers 460 458 459 455 Soil Temp Ave Aquaflex 9.1 10.2 12.0 9.5 Growth Rate (kgdm/ha/day) 55 98 79 44 Plate meter height ave half cms 13.0 14.7 15.0 13.3 Ave Pasture Cover (x140 + 500) 2326 2554 2601 2355 Surplus/[deficit] on feed wedge tonnes [27] 0 11.8 [26] Pre Grazing cover (ave for week) 2680 2911 3245 3336 Post Grazing cover (ave for week) 1600 1600 1600 1700 Highest pre grazing cover 2908 3098 3450 3590 Area grazed / day (ave for week) 6.35 6.50 6.90 8.20 Grazing Interval 25 25 22 19 Milkers Offered/grazed kg DM pasture 11.8 14.9 16.5 20.3 Estimated intake pasture MJME 146 176 198 244 Milkers offered kg DM Grass silage 9 5 4 0 Silage MJME/cow offered 10 10 10 10 Estimated intake Silage MJME 90 55 39 0 Estimated total intake MJME 236 230 237 244 Tgt total MJME Offered/eaten (incls 6% waste) 0 0 0 0 Pasture ME (pre grazing sample) 12.4 11.8 12.0 12.0 Pasture % Protein 19.1 22.8 26.3 20.4 Pasture % DM Concern below 16% 20.2 16.0 14.9 16.6 Pasture % NDF Concern < 33 36.2 37.6 40.0 36.1 Mowed pre or post grazing YTD 9.9 9.9 9.9 9.9 Total area mowed YTD 9.9 9.9 9.9 9.9 Supplements fed to date kg per cow (632 peak) 99.4 135.5 161.9 161.9 Supplements Made Kg DM / ha cumulative 0 0 0 0 Units N applied/ha and % of farm 25units/40% 25units/28% 25units/18% 25units/28% Page 3 of 4
Kgs N to Date (whole farm) 40 48 52 64 Rainfall (mm) 8.4 5 0 61.8 Aquaflex topsoil relative to fill point tgt 60 80% 50 90 50 70 40 60 75 100 Our next farm walk will be Tuesday 22 nd October. Farmers or their managers and staff are always welcome to walk with us. Please call to notify us of your intention and bring your plate meter. Phone SIDDC 03 423 0022. Management Group Peter Hancox (Farm Manager), Steve Lee (DairyNZ). Note: Please ensure you take up the opportunity to vote in the industry elections. Page 4 of 4
Tuesday 8 th October 2013 Lincoln University Dairy Farm Farm Walk notes Critical issues for the short term 1. Manage feed supply on the platform and respond quickly to changing growth rates. 2. Use back fences on all herds. 3. Keeping all cows especially heifers and fresh cows well fed whilst limiting pasture and soil damage. 4. Make sure all calved cows are getting enough magnesium chloride (Dosatron). 5. Closely observe cows for any signs of mastitis and metabolic conditions. 6. Irrigation has been set up and will be test run over the next few days, irrigation is likely to begin shortly. Herd Management 1. There are now 394 in the main herd and 222 in the small herd (heifers and a few light condition score cows). This gives a total of 616 cows milking into the vat this morning. plus 8 colostrums and 3 treatment cows. 2. The whole herd has gained 2kg liveweight over the week, the monitor herd is up 1 kg while the first calvers liveweight has been constant for the last 2 weeks. 3. All replacement calves have been de budded and are now outside. 4. We have had 2 new case of mastitis and 1 new lameness case this week. 5. Average bulk milk SCC is 130 6. Average milk production per cow (all cows milked into the vat) is 2.15kgMS/cow, similar to the last few weeks, while production per hectare (now at 8.14 kg MS/ha) continues to increase with increasing cow numbers. Growing Conditions 7. Soil temperatures at 9 am have averaged 12 degrees; this is 1.8 degree warmer than last week. 8. We have had no rain this week, but it is started to rain heavy this morning the Aquaflex soil moisture meter data shows irrigation will be required shortly. This will depend on the amount of rain over the next couple of days Pasture Production and Management 9. This weeks measured average pasture cover is 2601 kg DM/ha, an increase of 47 kg Dm/ha over the week. Our estimated average daily pasture growth rate for the last week has been 79 kg DM/ha (cows have not found as much pasture as the plate meter did over the last week). We are currently experiencing very low Dm in our pasture cuts 13.9% and 15.9% on the samples taken last week. 10. This gives us a predicted surplus of 11.8 tonne between supply and demand, last week the farm should have had enough feed to feed cows but as stated above the cows didn t find as much as we measured. The round length has been 22 days this week. (see note on silage below) 11. 30ha received nitrogen this week at 25kg N/ha. 12. No gibberellic applied this week. No further GA is planned for this spring. 13. No mowing was done. 14. Paddock N9 was sprayed with Glysophate and Granstar, it has been aerated / disced, and will be surface cultivated and resown into new pasture as soon as possible. This reduces the available grazing area by 7 ha until the new grass is back in the rotation (typically 8 weeks at this time of the year). Page 1 of 4
Feeding Management 15. We have fed silage all week, all cows received an average of 3.8 kg DM/cow per day, We don t intend to feed silage over the next week however we wont let the round get any faster than 19 days and if required will use silage to slow the round. 16. Our plan is to continue feeding cows as well as we can whilst concentrating on ensuring good pasture quality going forward by achieving even and consistent residuals of 1500 1700 kg DM/ha. 17. With a growth rate of 79 kgdm/ha /day for the past week, and a favourable weather forecast it is likely that farm will grow enough to meet cow demand in the coming week. 18. This week s wedge is printed below Herd Management and Mating 19. All calved cows are now receiving magnesium supplementation via water troughs. 20. All cows have had a booster BVD vaccination this week. 21. 171 pre mating heats were observed for the week on average 24.4 cows /day / 81% of total cows expected to be milked. Page 2 of 4
22. Data sheet LUDF Weekly Report 17 Sep 13 24 Sep 13 1-Oct-13 8-Oct-13 Farm grazing ha (available to milkers) 160 160 160 160 Dry Cows on farm / East blk / other 40/0/31 0/18/27 0/26/0 0/9/0 Culls (Includes culls put down & empties) 0 2 0 0 Culls total to date 10 12 12 12 Deaths (Includes cows put down) 0 1 0 1 Deaths total to date 1 2 2 3 Calved Cows available (Peak Number 632 ) 568 590 610 624 Treatment / Sick mob total 10 8 2 3 Mastitis clinical treatment 8 1 2 2 Mastitis clinical YTD (tgt below 64 year end) 20 21 23 25 Bulk milk SCC (tgt Ave below 150) 207 143 131 130 Lame new cases 6 5 8 1 Lame year to date 12 17 25 26 Lame days YTD (Tgt below 1000 year end) 69 104 160 216 Other/Colostrum 0/24 0/13 0/9 0/6 Milking twice a day into vat 532 569 587 614 Milking once a day into vat 0 0 0 0 Small herd 135 215 220 220 Main Herd 397 354 367 394 MS/cow/day (Actual kg / Cows into vat only) 2.14 2.17 2.15 2.15 MS/cow to date (total kgs / Peak Cows 632 48 62 76 90 MS/ha/day (total kgs / ha used 7.00 7.48 7.83 8.14 Herd Average Cond'n Score 0.00 4.60 0.00 4.70 Monitor grp LW kg WOW 157 early MA calvers 457 460 458 459 Soil Temp Ave Aquaflex 8.6 9.1 10.2 12.0 Growth Rate (kgdm/ha/day) 37 55 98 79 Plate meter height ave half cms 12.3 13.0 14.7 15.0 Ave Pasture Cover (x140 + 500) 2224 2326 2554 2601 Surplus/[deficit] on feed wedge tonnes [18] [27] 0 11.8 Pre Grazing cover (ave for week) 3021 2680 2911 3245 Post Grazing cover (ave for week) 1650 1600 1600 1600 Highest pre grazing cover 3300 2908 3098 3450 Area grazed / day (ave for week) 7.10 6.35 6.50 6.90 Grazing Interval 23 25 25 22 Milkers Offered/grazed kg DM pasture 0.0 11.8 14.9 16.5 Estimated intake pasture MJME 0 146 176 198 Milkers offered kg DM Grass silage 0 9 5 4 Silage MJME/cow offered 0 10 10 10 Estimated intake Silage MJME 0 90 55 39 Estimated total intake MJME 0 236 230 237 Tgt total MJME Offered/eaten (incls 6% waste) 0 0 0 0 Pasture ME (pre grazing sample) 0.0 12.4 11.8 12.0 Pasture % Protein 0.0 19.1 22.8 26.3 Pasture % DM Concern below 16% 0.0 20.2 16.0 14.9 Pasture % NDF Concern < 33 0.0 36.2 37.6 40.0 Mowed pre or post grazing YTD 9.9 9.9 9.9 9.9 Total area mowed YTD 9.9 9.9 9.9 9.9 Supplements fed to date kg per cow (632 peak) 41.8 99.4 135.5 161.9 Supplements Made Kg DM / ha cumulative 0 0 0 0 Units N applied/ha and % of farm 25units/29% 25units/40% 25units/28% 25units/18% Kgs N to Date (whole farm) 31 40 48 52 Rainfall (mm) 2.8 8.4 5 0 Aquaflex topsoil relative to fill point tgt 60 80% 60 90 50 90 50 70 40 60 Page 3 of 4
Our next farm walk will be Tuesday 15 th October. Farmers or their managers and staff are always welcome to walk with us. Please call to notify us of your intention and bring your plate meter. Phone SIDDC 03 423 0022. Management Group Peter Hancox (Farm Manager), Steve Lee (DairyNZ). Note: LUDF focus day this Thursday at LUDF 10.15 start Note: Please ensure you take up the opportunity to vote in the industry elections. Page 4 of 4
Tuesday 1 st October 2013 Lincoln University Dairy Farm Farm Walk notes Critical issues for the short term 1. Manage feed supply on the platform and respond quickly to changing growth rates. 2. Use back fences on all herds. 3. Keeping all cows especially heifers and fresh cows well fed whilst limiting pasture and soil damage. 4. Make sure all calved cows are getting enough magnesium chloride (Dosatron). 5. Closely observe cows for any signs of mastitis and metabolic conditions. 6. Irrigation has been set up and will be test run over the next few days, irrigation is likely to begin shortly. Herd Management 1. There are now 381 in the main herd and 220 in the small herd (heifers and a few light condition score cows). This gives a total of 601 cows milking into the vat this morning. plus 6 colostrums and 3 treatment cows. 2. The whole herd has lost 2kg liveweight over the week, the monitor herd is down 2 kg while the first calvers liveweight has been constant for the last 2 weeks. 3. All replacement calves have been de budded and are now outside. 4. We have had 2 new case of mastitis and 8 new lameness cases this week. 5. Average bulk milk SCC is 131 6. Average milk production per cow (all cows milked into the vat) is 2.15kgMS/cow, similar to the last few weeks, while production per hectare (now at 7.83 kg MS/ha) continues to increase with increasing cow numbers. Growing Conditions 7. Soil temperatures at 9 am have averaged 10.2 degrees; this is 1.1 degree warmer than last week. 8. We have had 5 mm rain this week, the Aquaflex soil moisture meter data shows irrigation will be required shortly. Pasture Production and Management 9. This weeks measured average pasture cover is 2554 kg DM/ha, an increase of 228 kg Dm/ha over the week. Our estimated average daily pasture growth rate for the last week has been 98 kg DM/ha though we anticipating the growth rate may be a little overstated (cows may not find as much pasture as the plate meter did). 10. This gives us a predicted balance between supply and demand, unlike last week where the farm had a 27 tonne deficit. The round length has been held at 25 days again this week. 11. 46ha received nitrogen this week at 25kg N/ha 12. 39.2 ha received gibberellic acid following grazing this week. No further GA is planned for this spring 13. No mowing was done. 14. Paddock N9 was sprayed with Glysophate and Granstar, it will be subsoiled, surface cultivated and resown into new pasture as soon as possible. This reduces the available grazing area by 7 ha until the new grass is back in the rotation (typically 8 weeks at this time of the year). Feeding Management 15. We have fed silage all week, all cows received an average of 5.3 kg DM/cow per day, though in the last 2 days actual silage fed was only 3.7kgDM/cow/day. It is likely that a reducing amount of silage will be fed for a few more days. Page 1 of 3
16. The round length will drop down to 21 days and silage will be used if / as required to hold the round at this length. Our plan is to continue feeding cows as well as we can whilst concentrating on ensuring good pasture quality going forward by achieving even and consistent residuals of 1500 1700 kg DM/ha. 17. With a growth rate of 98 kgdm/ha /day for the past week, and a favourable weather forecast it is likely that the farm will grow enough to meet cow demand in the coming week. 18. This week s wedge is printed below Herd Management and Mating 19. All calved cows are now receiving magnesium supplementation via water troughs 20. 111 premating heats were observed for the week on average 18.5cows /day / 62% of total cows expected to be milked. 21. Data sheet LUDF Weekly Report 3 Sep 13 10 Sep 13 17 Sep 13 24 Sep 13 Farm grazing ha (available to milkers) 160 160 160 160 Dry Cows on farm / East blk / other 87/69/0/0 69/31/0/0 40/0/31 0/18/27 Culls (Includes culls put down & empties) 9 0 0 2 Culls total to date 10 10 10 12 Deaths (Includes cows put down) 0 0 0 1 Deaths total to date 1 1 1 2 Calved Cows available (Peak Number 632 ) 494 541 568 590 Treatment / Sick mob total 1 2 10 8 Mastitis clinical treatment 0 1 8 1 Mastitis clinical YTD (tgt below 64 year end) 11 12 20 21 Bulk milk SCC (tgt Ave below 150) 112 120 207 143 Lame new cases 2 2 6 5 Lame year to date 4 6 12 17 Lame days YTD (Tgt below 1000 year end) 7 7 69 104 Other/Colostrum 0/44 0/20 0/24 0/13 Milking twice a day into vat 452 506 532 569 Milking once a day into vat 0 4 0 0 Small herd 124 127 135 215 Main Herd 334 379 397 354 MS/cow/day (Actual kg / Cows into vat only) 2.17 2.23 2.14 2.17 Page 2 of 3
MS/cow to date (total kgs / Peak Cows 632 24 36 48 62 MS/ha/day (total kgs / ha used 5.41 6.69 7.00 7.48 Herd Average Cond'n Score 5.00 0.00 0.00 4.60 Monitor grp LW kg WOW 157 early MA calvers 456 459 457 460 Soil Temp Ave Aquaflex 7.8 7.8 8.6 9.1 Growth Rate (kgdm/ha/day) 46 36 37 55 Plate meter height ave half cms 14.7 13.6 12.3 13.0 Ave Pasture Cover (x140 + 500) 2560 2407 2224 2326 Surplus/[deficit] on feed wedge tonnes 21 [17.8] [18] [27] Pre Grazing cover (ave for week) 3409 3210 3021 2680 Post Grazing cover (ave for week) 1700 1700 1650 1600 Highest pre grazing cover 3510 3594 3300 2908 Area grazed / day (ave for week) 4.80 5.70 7.10 6.35 Grazing Interval 33 28 23 25 Milkers Offered/grazed kg DM pasture 0.0 0.0 11.8 Estimated intake pasture MJME 0 0 146 Milkers offered kg DM Grass silage 0 0 9 Silage MJME/cow offered 0 0 10 Estimated intake Silage MJME 0 0 90 Estimated total intake MJME 0 0 236 Tgt total MJME Offered/eaten (incls 6% waste) 0 0 0 Pasture ME (pre grazing sample) 12.7 12.7 0.0 12.4 Pasture % Protein 25 22.4 0.0 19.1 Pasture % DM Concern below 16% 16 15.2 0.0 20.2 Pasture % NDF Concern < 33 49 47.3 0.0 36.2 Mowed pre or post grazing YTD 9.9 9.9 9.9 9.9 Total area mowed YTD 9.9 9.9 9.9 9.9 Supplements fed to date kg per cow (632 peak) 0.0 8.6 41.8 99.4 Supplements Made Kg DM / ha cumulative 0 0 0 0 Units N applied/ha and % of farm 25units/13 25units/25 25units/29 % % % Kgs N to Date (whole farm) 18 24 31 40 Rainfall (mm) 14 12.6 2.8 8.4 Aquaflex topsoil relative to fill point tgt 60 80% Our next farm walk will be Tuesday 8 st October. 25units/40 % 90 100 80 100 60 90 50 90 Farmers or their managers and staff are always welcome to walk with us. Please call to notify us of your intention and bring your plate meter. Phone SIDDC 03 423 0022. Management Group Peter Hancox (Farm Manager), Steve Lee (DairyNZ). The next LUDF Focus Day will be held at the farm on Thursday, 10 th October. 10.15am 1.00pm, for more information see the Focus Days / Events section of our website. All welcome. Note: Please ensure you take up the opportunity to vote in the industry elections. Page 3 of 3