RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE NUTRITION FORAGE AND ARABLE HORTICULTURE ANIMAL MANAGEMENT DAIRY MANAGEMENT
Plan 365 is a technical guide aimed at helping shareholders learn about best practice and the latest advancements in rural technology.
A cut above the rest
For horticulturalists, selecting the right cutting tool is important – and cutting tools made with Japanese high carbon steel have proved to be superior for use in the horticulture industry.
Japanese high carbon steel is formulated to the highest standard in the industry and is traditionally harder than steels from Europe. Due to this high standard, blades will remain sharper for longer and can provide higher resistance when accidently cutting wire or other hard objects. Japanese steel blades have been known to last up to 4 years in some horticultural markets – some users have got up to five times more life out of their blades than what they had previously used. Their ability to stay sharper for longer means less wear from files, stones or diamond sharpeners and their great resistance to wire etc. means the rate of blade wear and replacement drops drastically, saving the user money on spare blades. Another key factor not often considered is that the higher quality the steel, the easier and faster it is to sharpen. It is very noticeable how quick the edge will come up compared to sharpening a lower quality blade. A sharper blade also requires less effort to cut, so the user will be able to conserve energy and perform better during a day’s work.
One of the most important things to every horticulturalist is the health of their fruit bearing plants. A clean cut is essential and this can only be achieved by a sharp lopper blade. The duller or more damaged
the blade, then the rougher the cut – which means increased risk of disease getting into the plant.
The team at Aorangi Merchants recognise the many benefits of using this type of high quality steel and have imported a range of ARS secateurs and loppers for use in the horticulture industry. ARS cutting tools are widely used in many horticultural and agricultural areas including kiwifruit, pipfruit, vineyards, greenhouses, avocados, citrus and flower growing.
Farmlands shareholder Greg Clifford, a grape grower based in Marlborough, trialled ARS loppers and secateurs and says the first thing he noticed was the hardness of the steel.
“We were able to get five times more life out of the ARS blades than anything we have used previously.
This is a no-brainer from a cost point of view – the savings are very good. The loppers for example have the same feel and weight as what we have used previously,” he says.
Farmlands Whakatu Business Manager, Daniel Hill, says that the ARS LPB Bypass Loppers have proved very popular with many of their major shareholders.
“One particular shareholder growing kiwifruit had four seasons of use out of his LPB Bypass Loppers before he needed to change blades. This has made them a popular choice throughout the region,” he says.
For further information, contact your Farmlands Technical Advisor or the friendly team at your local Farmlands store.
Article supplied by Aorangi Merchants.
Autumn pasture risks for horses
While forage is the most significant part of any equine diet and pasture is often the most readily available form, there are a host of potential issues that accompany grazing horses on New Zealand pasture at certain times of the year. The most common grass related problem is ryegrass staggers, a condition that affects the nervous system causing incoordination. Ryegrass staggers is caused by fungi called endophytes contained in the ryegrass producing mycotoxins and autumn is prime season for high endophyte pastures.
Staggers occurs from the toxins produced by the endophytes affecting part of the brain’s cerebellum involved in muscle co-ordination and can present as various symptoms depending on the severity of the toxicity. Mild signs include muscle trembling around the head, neck and possibly shoulder area and reactive and anxious behavior may also be noticed. Symptoms will progress with increased exposure to toxins, with severe symptoms including unsteadiness and loss of control, particularly in the hind end, which may progress to
complete loss of co-ordination and balance. While the disorder itself rarely results in fatalities, horses with severe symptoms require careful monitoring as often the loss of co-ordination can increase the risk of associated injuries that could be life threatening. Individual sensitivities to ryegrass toxins can vary significantly from horse to horse, resulting in various degrees of outward symptoms.
Because the signs will increase with the more toxins consumed, horses with high energy requirements and therefore higher pasture intakes will generally be more at risk. This includes growing horses, lactating broodmares, breeding stallions and larger horses with high workloads. The most effective form of treatment and management of staggers is to avoid consumption of the toxins through removing the ryegrass from the horse’s diet. However in many cases this is not easy, as ryegrass is a significant part of most New Zealand pastures. Restricting pasture access through yarding or stabling and offering hay as a replacement forage source is often required for
horses experiencing symptoms, although in this case it is important that ryegrass type hay is avoided also. Management to avoid cases of ryegrass staggers on farms includes planting low endophyte grasses when resowing pastures and regularly rotating stock. Pasture quality and stage of maturity contributes considerably to the level of endophytes it contains, as they are mostly concentrated in the base of the sheath of the leaf or in the seed heads. Therefore rotating stock to avoid horses eating to the base of the plant and to ensure ryegrass is kept to an acceptable height to avoid going to seed is beneficial. Mycotoxin binders can be included in diets for horses that are consistently experiencing symptoms of staggers, however these are required to be fed at regular intervals to be effective. For further assistance and advice on preventing and managing ryegrass staggers in horses, consult a reputable Equine Nutrition Advisor.
Article supplied by Luisa Wood, Equine Nutrition Technical Advisor, Farmlands Nutrition.
Keeping calves on track
The summer and autumn can be a difficult time for calves, so weighing beefies and dairy replacements regularly (every 3 months if possible) is recommended to avoid future disappointments.
It is important to weigh stock to check if they are on track and allocate feed appropriately to achieve the required growth rates, whilst ensuring that animal health issues like internal parasites and diseases are not holding back performance. One question which is often met with vagueness is “what is the mature weight of your cows?”
If you are rearing calves from your own herd it is important to identify the potential mature weight of your calves.
Weighing 6-8 year old cows in April or May is considered a good time to determine a reliable liveweight. With calves from a herd of variable breed and size it will be harder to monitor weight by age, so extra care is required with a mixed herd. Calves should be 40 percent of mature weight at 9 months of age, rising to 60 percent of mature body weight when 15 months old. If the calving pattern of first calvers and 3 week submission rate indicated a
moderate to high risk that heifer rearing affected reproductive performance, it is even more important to check heifer weights and review practices. It is harder for smaller heifers to calve and they will need to catch up and grow during their first lactation, which is likely to impact on both milk production and fertility. Autumn should be a good time for pasture growth and quality but surveys suggest calf growth is not always good enough to compensate for earlier shortfalls, possibly dealing with excess protein in the diet is limiting growth.
Identifying any animals that are above or below allows their feeding to be adjusted. Typically with young stock they need to be fully fed to achieve growth targets but even when fed ad-libitum, dry stalky summer grass may lack both energy and protein relative to the needs of calves. Lots of mature baleage has been made in some regions that may be lower in protein than expected, which could limit its ability to complement lower protein summer pasture. Straights and simple blends can be useful options when a simple forage
deficit is holding back young stock –they provide useful buffer feed to fill a gap. Generally quite low in fermentable carbohydrates, they lend themselves for use in trailers because gorging is generally less of a threat. Increasingly we are seeing issues associated with excess copper supply, so if animals are not performing it is worth checking if an over-supply of a key nutrient could be to blame rather than just a deficiency and consider the copper level in any potential supplements. Where the quality of the pasture in terms of digestibility and protein level is holding back performance, higher quality supplements many be justified to lift growth rates. Controlled feeding is required with gradual introduction but generally 1-1.5kg per head per day of a mineralised 16 percent calf feed can help put calves back on track. For further information, contact your Farmlands Technical Field Officer or the friendly team at your local Farmlands store.
Article supplied by Dr. Rob Derrick, Nutritionist, Farmlands Nutrition.
Micro minerals in the ruminant diet
Minerals are inorganic elements required in small quantities by animals and are present in all feedstuffs at varying levels. High producing animals have higher requirements for minerals and minerals can become even more important when feeding particular feeds known to be low in certain minerals or when the diet is rich in antagonists, which reduce the availability of other minerals.
Minerals are split up into two main categories – macro minerals (usually required in larger amounts, e.g. g/kg of body weight) and micro minerals (usually required in smaller amounts, e.g. mg/kg of body weight). Micro minerals (otherwise known as “trace elements”) can be very important to supply in adequate amounts to avoid deficiencies, however deficiencies
of micro minerals are not always as obvious to pick up on when compared to macro mineral derived issues, as the symptoms are not as debilitating. Symptoms between
the different micro minerals can also be quite similar, often including decreased feed intake, decreased milk production, poor fertility, poor immune function and overall ill-thrift.
A summary of micro minerals, their key functions in the body and signs of deficiency:
Micro mineral
CopperEssential for blood formation and also involved in many metabolic processes.
SeleniumNatural antioxidant. Involved in liver and immune function.
ZincEssential for skin, bones and hair as well as reproductive organs and the immune system.
CobaltRequired by ruminants to produce vitamin B12 in the rumen.
IodineEssential for the control of basal metabolic rate, thermoregulation, reproduction and muscle function.
IronA component of protein, e.g. haemoglobin and myoglobin. Important for cellular respiration and metabolism.
Manganese Important for brain and nervous system as well as bone mineralisation and connection tissue growth.
Molybdenum Component of many enzymes and plays a role in protein synthesis.
ChromiumStimulates insulin activity and glucose uptake in the body.
Anaemia, hair depigmentation (especially around eyes), poor fertility, retained placenta, impaired immune function.
White muscle disease/ muscle wasting. Reproductive issues including low sperm motility, infertility and retained placenta.
Hoof and horn weakness, skin, hair and wool issues. Reduced feed intake/growth. Delayed healing of wounds and poor immune function.
Poor appetite, harsh coat and muscle wasting, pining.
Goiter (enlarged thyroid gland). Reproductive problems. Newborns hairless, weak or dead.
Anaemia, paleness of mucous membranes. Poor skin/hair condition. Reduced growth. Commonly seen in young ruminants on milk.
Bone malformation and poor growth in young. Low fertility in adults. Nervous disorders and muscle weakness.
Poor fertility, delayed onset of puberty.
Glucose metabolism issues. Reduced growth rate.
(check with a vet or supplier)
Copper sulphate fertiliser, injection, bullets and licks.
Sodium selenate orally or by injection, mineral supplements or as fertiliser.
Zinc oxide in drench or bolus, zinc sulphate in mineral supplements. Works well with biotin.
Cobalt sulphate in fertiliser, bullets, injection.
Iodised salt or injection. Too much can lead to excessive level in milk.
Important for suckling animals as milk is low in iron. Most hard feeds and calf milk replacers have adequate iron.
May be more important in TMR type diets.
Sodium molybdate. Not commonly required to be supplemented to grazing animals.
Chromium propionate added to dairy feed.
| Micro minerals may be needed in small amounts but are still important for animal health and productive performance.
As it can often be difficult to decipher the exact micro minerals in deficiency in a particular situation, it can be helpful to look at micro mineral supplementation as more of an insurance policy for animal health – and a good micro mineral supplement is worth including in the ruminant diet all year round in
order to prevent issues arising. There are many ways of supplementing animals with micro minerals – with the two most common being in their feed or through the water system. Some micro minerals are known to be low in New Zealand soils and therefore require more targeted supplementation.
Comments
Cattle and deer have higher copper requirements than sheep. Sheep are more prone to toxicity.
Typically low in New Zealand soils. Excess is toxic, so avoid supplementing by several routes at the same time.
May help good hoof growth. Can help to prevent facial eczema if supplemented in adequate amounts during facial eczema risk period.
Cobalt levels in grass lowest in spring and summer.
Typically low in New Zealand soils. Requirement increased in presence of goitrogens (kale and other brassicas).
Not normally issues in grazing animals as forages/ soil usually provide adequate levels.
The least toxic of the trace micro minerals.
An antagonist for copper. When too high in the diet copper absorption can be compromised.
Could help to increase feed intake post calving in dairy cows.
For further information, contact your Farmlands Technical Field Officer or the friendly team at your local Farmlands store.
Article supplied by Stacey Cosnett, Assistant Nutritionist, Farmlands Nutrition.
Living the dream with pigs in your life
When Kaikoura residents Chris Sturgeon and Fiona Read returned to the South Island from Wellington a few years ago, they succumbed to the River Cottage dream and bought a couple of piglets for their 7 acre block.
Five pigs currently occupy about ¾ acre of the block, with Belted Galloway cattle occupying the majority. As Managers of Hapuku Lodge and Tree Houses, which offers a unique tree top experience, they thought a heritage breed would give them the potential to produce high quality meat products for guests to savour. Wessex Saddlebacks have delivered both the temperament and great tasting meat they were looking for. Slower maturing than commercial breeds, Fiona and Chris are happy that when ready for slaughter their porkers have internal marbling and a layer of firm, delicious fat, which allows them to recreate the high quality meat products they found when travelling through Italy.
Top tips for anyone thinking about upgrading from poultry are:
• Pigs are addictive – they are intelligent and highly amusing – a great antidote to the pressures of work.
• You are never too old to learn a new skill if you have a passion – stock management skills soon develop but if needs be, Google is always close by.
• Two pigs are better than one and are great cultivators for the veggie patch.
Guests are keen to know how stock have been raised and handled and value products that have a story. Finished pigs are taken by horse float to Harris Meats at Cheviot, so bacon, ham and pork belly can be sold at the local farmer’s market. Immediately after the November 2016 earthquake, their meat was in high demand and stocks were cleared in a day.
• Socialise your pigs and teach them to come for feed – there will be a rebel in every litter that encourages its litter mates to escape – pigs love nuts and are easy to lure back with feed.
• Never underestimate how strong pigs are – build shelters as strong as you can.
• Be careful how much well prepared pork belly you have access to – it is totally moorish.
• Give it a go – the set-up costs are not great and the proof is in the eating.
The pigs are given access to grazing and can exhibit all natural behaviours. As their foundation boar – Mr. Pig –has matured, he has surpassed the size expectations of an allegedly “small breed” but has always been a gentleman to handle. Now on their second sow, they have found Wessex Saddlebacks to be easy farrowing, good natured attentive mothers that prefer to make their own nest under the trees than use an ark, which they resort to in really bad weather. NRM Big Pig Nuts and NRM Little Pig Pellets have proved to be a convenient core diet enriched with kale out of the garden, vine leaves and even swedes. Bakery waste is largely avoided as it can be a little over fattening for the breeding pair. With tourists now returning to Kaikoura, it’s good to see that people can continue living their lifestyle dreams and add to the visitor experience.
Article supplied by Dr. Rob Derrick, Nutritionist, Farmlands Nutrition.
Fodder beet transitioning
Transitioning is a major phase in the successful use of fodder beet. Introducing your stock to fodder beet, whether it be for autumn or winter grazing, or feeding it out after it has been lifted, requires careful planning and management. A transition period is essential to reduce the risk of animal health problems, such as rumen acidosis.
Prior to feeding fodder beet to livestock, a diet plan is essential. This addresses the desired animal performance and the target volume of daily intake required to achieve this and the percentage of total daily intake that fodder beet will make. The main health concern around introducing and grazing fodder beet to the diet is rumen acidosis. Acidosis occurs when poorly transitioned animals eat a large amount of rapidly digestible carbohydrates (sugars), which lowers rumen pH due to the
excessive production of normal volatile fatty acids (VFAs). This will typically occur within the first 3 weeks of stock having access to fodder beet.
The choice of supplement is important as it needs to be palatable, balanced in fibre and also potentially make up for the lack of protein in the fodder beet. Fodder beet leaf supplies the majority of the protein, however as the crop matures, the leaf proportion decreases. If grazing in early autumn for example, there may be sufficient protein as the crop will have a higher leaf percentage and an adequate supplement may be hay or straw. If your crop is damaged, or you have a high yielding crop and leaf proportion is low (i.e. 10 percent) then a high protein supplement such as grass baleage or lucerne silage is preferred. This principle also applies if you are trying to achieve liveweight gain in young stock, a high protein
supplement will generally be required, whereas if you are just maintenance feeding (particularly mature cattle) then a lower quality supplement such as hay or straw may be sufficient. Developing a transitioning feed programme and determining what will be the finial diet is crucial. Fodder beet yield can be very hard to estimate accurately, with huge variation between sites and variation in bulb dry matters depending on cultivars and growing conditions. Therefore it is important to have an estimate of your crop yield based on samples taken from your own paddock to get a good estimate of the feed available. For further information on transitioning your stock to fodder beet, contact your Farmlands Technical Field Officer or the friendly team at your local Farmlands store.
Article supplied by Agricom.
Example of a transition programme and final diets of fodder beet for cows, sheep and deer systems:
StartBeet1-2kg DM per cow allocated behind a wire. 1kg DM per animal allocated behind a wire.
DM per animal allocated behind a wire.
Supplement8-9kg DM per cow.7-8kg DM per animal.5kg DM per animal.Access to pasture > 2000kg DM/ha. Access to pasture > 2000kg DM/ha.
TransitionDietIncrease the allocation of crop by 1kg DM and decrease the supplement allocation by 0.5kg DM per cow every second day until the final diet is reached for each component. If residuals are accumulating, pause until the allocation is totally consumed.
Final diet (an example)
Beet @ 10kg DM/ head/day. Silage @ 3kg DM/head/day.
Increase the allocation of crop by 1kg DM and decrease the supplement allocation by 0.5kg DM per cow every second day until the final diet is reached for each component. If residuals are accumulating, pause until the allocation is totally consumed.
Beet @ 5kg DM/head/ day. Silage @ 2kg DM/ head/day.
Increase the allocation of crop by 0.5kg DM and decrease supplement allocation by 0.5kg DM per animal every second or third day until the final diet is reached for each component. If residuals are accumulating, pause until the allocation is totally consumed.
Beet @ 4kg DM/head/ day. Silage @ 2kg DM/ head/day.
Increase time spent grazing crop by 1-2 hours every second day until the final diet is reached for each component. If residuals are accumulating, pause until the allocation is totally consumed.
Beet @ 1.1kg DM/ head/day. Silage @ 0.5kg/head/day.
Increase time spent grazing crop by 1-2 hours every second day until the final diet is reached for each component. If residuals are accumulating, pause until the allocation is totally consumed.
Beet @ 1.0kg DM/ head/day. Lucerne hay @ 0.5kg/head/ day.
This is a guide only. Accurate allocation is important. The timing of feeding each day needs to be consistent. Regular checks are suggested to identify issues early. Always seek further technical advice.
Planning an autumn clean-up of weeds and pests on your property
The autumn/winter months are a good time to carry out property maintenance to ensure smooth running of your farm operation and optimise productivity.
Have you ever looked at the tidiest property in the district and wondered about how the owner achieved it?
It is natural to assume a higher level of investment on relatively weed free neighbouring properties but if you dig deeper, this is often not the case. “A stitch in time saves nine” is an appropriate saying in relation to property maintenance.
“Regular, well planned weed and pest control are a key part of keeping ahead of weeds,” Dow AgroSciences National Sales Manager, Peter Holden says.
There are a number of areas to focus on.
Pasture weeds rob you of valuable feed and mature, flowering weeds in fence lines, farm roads etc. act as an ongoing seed source, which generate new infestations. While many farmers use glyphosate to control weeds in these areas, mature broadleaf weeds like ragwort, dock, oxeye daisy and thistles are often poorly controlled and start to become the dominant weeds in these non-productive areas – and continually seed your productive areas. Tordon™
PastureBoss™ is an ideal product for reliable control of these “tough” broadleaf weeds without damage to grasses – but if necessary may be mixed with glyphosate if total vegetation control, including grasses, is required. Brushweeds such as gorse and broom require a different approach.
As a general rule when embarking on any brushweed programme, it is important to start in the cleanest areas of a property and work back from there – so here are a few tips:
• Always treat scattered brushweeds in paddocks first. Tordon Brushkiller XT is a tried and trusted product and is ideal because it doesn’t harm grasses. Brushweed plants up to knee high can be treated by knapsack sprayer or a battery powered spraying unit. Larger plants are best treated by a high volume brush-gun.
• As with fence lines, farm lanes and other non-productive farm areas mentioned earlier, removal of brushweeds from these areas should also be a priority to prevent the spread of seed. This is particularly important with gorse and broom, which are prolific seeding plants.
• Where there are undeveloped “blocks” of dense brushweeds on a property, hand spray the perimeter of these areas to prevent spread into clean areas. Make a point of repeating this perimeter spraying every year. While this type of approach is focussed on containment, many farmers find that by repeat spraying in this manner annually they can, like peeling an onion, push 4 or 5 metres into a brushweed block each year and ultimately clear a block completely over a few years. An advantage of this approach is spreading and minimising the cost of development.
With more than 30 years’ experience in the agrichemical industry, Peter also notes new considerations that farmers need to be mindful of when planning weed control on their properties.
“Farmers have been very proactive in fencing off waterways and planting up riparian areas to mitigate nitrate run-off. Weed control in these areas to ensure safe release and rapid establishment of riparian plantings is crucial. Preferentially, these areas should be as clean as possible before planting.” There are some limited options for weed control post-planting but Peter recommends farmers seek prescriptive advice about weed control for riparian areas before they plant.
For further information, contact your Farmlands Technical Field Officer or the friendly team at your local Farmlands store.
Article supplied by Dow AgroSciences.
Early ordering a win-win for farmers
When Bay of Plenty farmer Kevin Clark learned he was a winner of the Pioneer Early Order 2016, he was a bit bewildered.
“I couldn’t remember entering any competition,” he says. Farmlands Technical Field Officer Mark Beer explained to him that everyone who places an early order of maize with Pioneer before the cut-off date automatically goes in the draw to win the purchase price of their seed back. Last year Kevin’s name that was drawn out of the hat.
Mark suggests to his clients that they order their maize early. “You secure your choice of hybrid early, which means you know when to plant, so you can book your contractor early and everything else seems to fall into place. There’s no last minute rushing around trying to get something done.”
Maize silage is an important part of the Clark’s farm system, providing 50 percent of the winter intake for their 430 cow herd. “We’ve found that wintering-on with maize silage has increased the output and efficiency of our farm,” Kevin says.
Each season Kevin grows 7.5 hectares of maize on the farm and brings in another 20 hectares from outside sources. In spring 2016 he planted Pioneer® brand P0791 hybrid, which is a drought-tolerant AQUAmax hybrid. After harvest he inoculates his maize silage with Pioneer brand 11C33 to reduce heating and retain the nutritional quality.
The Clark’s farm has an 800m border with the Waimana River, which can be a source of flash flooding. “We’ve never had our crop destroyed by floods but there have been a couple of occasions where it’s gone through the maize covering the ground in silt. The crop survived pretty well though.” That potential for flooding is another reason why Kevin orders his seed early. The Pioneer Early Order replant guarantee provides him with free replacement seed and $100.00 per bag towards the cost of replanting if the first crop is destroyed. According to Mark, there have been a couple of farmers in the area in who
have had to rely on the Pioneer replant guarantee for exactly that reason. Kevin wouldn’t go without maize silage in his system. The benefits are just too big to pass up, increasing his milk output, increasing farm efficiency and having the guaranteed feed to fill any feed gaps. That, and the advantages of the Early Order scheme, is why Kevin will be ordering the seed for his next maize silage crop before June.
For further information, contact your Farmlands Technical Field Officer or the friendly team at your local Farmlands store.
Article supplied by Pioneer.
| Kevin Clark (right) with Technical Field Officer Mark Beer in front of Kevin’s P0791 crop.
Pasture sown, job done? Not quite…
You’ve sprayed out your paddocks and sown new pasture – now all you have to do is sit back and wait for the grass to grow. Job done. Or is it?
Chances are grass and clover are not the only seeds in the soil of your renewed paddock. And it’s those other seeds that are about to cause a problem.
“The sprays we use before sowing do a great job of cleaning up the weeds that are already growing but they have no effect on the weed seed that is hidden in the soil,” new grass specialist Chris Brenan explains.
“As soon as conditions are right for germination, those seeds will get growing as fast as your grass and clover seeds, if not faster.”
Hence the need to spray most new pastures after they have emerged, even though the paddock was sprayed before sowing.
“The moment you have weed seedlings in there challenging the clover and grass you have competition for light, space, moisture and nutrients. That’s when part of your new pasture never becomes new pasture, because it becomes weeds instead.”
In 20 years as upper North Island Territory Manager for Nufarm, Chris has seen more new grass paddocks than most. He says while farmers have a great range of post-emergence herbicides to control weeds at different stages of pasture establishment, spraying early is still the gold standard.
“There are two times you can spray –before the first full grazing and after.
To my mind, the best time is before the first grazing, because this is when weed competition does the most damage.”
Tribal® Gold is the Rolls Royce treatment at this timing. It’s ideal where farmers want a broader weed spectrum and/or need to control hard to kill weeds like chickweed, shepherd’s purse and buttercup. Thistrol® Plus has a narrower weed spectrum and is also very effective before the first full grazing. Valdo® 800WG can be added if required to extend the range of weeds controlled. Bonza® spraying oil should always be used with Tribal Gold and Valdo 800WG. Spray applications ideally are applied when approaching approximately 70 percent ground cover and the clovers have two identifiable trifoliate leaves. Different chemistry is required to kill weeds in new pasture after the first full grazing and while this timing is not Chris’ first choice, Baton® herbicide is highly effective. It’s important not
to confuse the “first full grazing” with the light pasture nip off recommended at about 6 weeks after sowing. That’s because young clover leaves in particular must be properly grazed before Baton is applied, to minimise the risk of clover damage (if your pasture mix includes red clover, Chris says to use no more than 1kg/ha Baton). If necessary, Baton can be mixed with Valdo 800WG to kill weeds that don’t respond to phenoxy herbicides, such as perennial buttercup and chickweed. Look out for Nufarm’s GrassmanshipTM video series for tips on weed control in new pasture, available on the Nufarm Youtube channel. For further information, contact your Farmlands Technical Field Officer or the friendly team at your local Farmlands store.
Article supplied by Nufarm.
® Bonza, Valdo and Tribal are registered trademarks of Nufarm Limited. Thistrol is a registered trademark of Nufarm Australia Limited.
TM Grassmanship is a trademark of Nufarm Limited.
| Chris Brenan and Jamie MacKay discuss best practice weed control in the GrassmanshipTM video series.
Don’t let velvetleaf take over your farm
With a new fodder beet season underway, landowners who’ve planted beet are being reminded to check their crops for the possible appearance of the pest weed velvetleaf.
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) says now’s the time to expect to see velvetleaf plants if the weed has made it onto your farm and it’s important
any plants are found early and pulled out before they can go to seed.
MPI’s Response Manager Catherine Duthie says if left unchecked, a single velvetleaf plant can produce up to 17,000 seeds, and what may look like a small issue one season can become a massive problem in following years. Early last year velvetleaf was found on farms in most regions of New Zealand.
The weed entered the country as seed contamination in imported fodder beet seed that was planted out in the 2015 planting season.
Catherine says MPI has funded regional councils around the country to visit some 1600 properties known to have bought the affected seed and help the farmers concerned develop plans to manage the weed.
“But velvetleaf is a notorious spreader and may have moved to other properties on rural contracting equipment or with stock.
“We recommend all farmers be on the lookout for velvetleaf and if they find plants, pull them out and destroy the plants by deep burial, e.g. in an offal pit.
“Ideally, pull out plants before they flower and especially before they set seed. Where plants are already flowering or seeding, tie a plastic bag over flowers or seedheads, bend the stem in half so any seed is contained inside the bag, pull the plant out and safely dispose of it by deep burial,” Catherine says.
MPI encourages farmers to report any finds to its pests and diseases hotline – 0800 80 99 66 – for help managing the situation.
Full information about the weed, the affected seed lines, how to identify plants and safely dispose of them is at www.mpi.govt.nz/alerts
For further information, contact your Farmlands Technical Field Officer or the friendly team at your local Farmlands store.
| Velvetleaf in flower. Photo courtesy of Ministry of Primary Industries.
How to cope with Cooperia
In today’s ever challenging environment eliminating worm burdens is not only important in improving animal health but it also assists in valuable increases in production. One of the most productionlimiting worms in cattle is Cooperia, with scientific evidence showing that if Cooperia are left unchecked it can lead to lost production, clinical disease such as scouring and even death. The main impact a Cooperia infestation is likely to have on
productivity is a reduction in appetite. Changes in grazing behaviour have been demonstrated in scientific studies where naturally infected animals spent less time grazing than non-infected herd mates. Cooperia populations have also increased due to management systems and inadequate worm control being in place. Increased incidents of Cooperia related production loss is a direct result of these.
In some parts of New Zealand it is known that Cooperia has developed a resistance to the ML
type drenches, which means that a combination product should be used. Some have also suggested that a product containing levamisole and a benzimidazole, which also controls Cooperia, could be used as an alternative. The use of these types of combinations is even more important through late summer and autumn when calves are at the greatest risk of infection from Cooperia. Depending on your formulation preference, there are two options in either a pour-on or an oral product. Saturn Pour-on is a combination of abamectin and levamisole, which helps delay the onset of resistance, plus it is highly effective against Cooperia (mature and immature) as well as controlling sucking lice.
Concur Cattle is a great example of a levamisole and benzimidazole combination product. It is an easy to use oral drench where levamisole is combined with oxfendazole to provide a drench that is particularly successful for young stock.
For further information, contact your Farmlands Technical Field Officer or the friendly team at your local Farmlands store. Article supplied by Donaghys.
Meeting regulations this calving season
Figures from the 2016 calving season showed a major improvement in bobby calf welfare. Mortality rates for bobby calves between farm and processing more than halved from 0.25% to 0.12% in 2016.
A significant effort from government and industry through education, information and regulation has made a real difference. This work will continue as further regulations will come into force in August 2017.
As planning for the spring calving season gets underway, the Ministry for Primary Industries is encouraging everyone across the supply chain to ensure they meet all of the young calf regulations. Seven regulations were issued in 2016 to strengthen the rules around calf welfare. Five of those are now in effect and the remaining two come in to force on 1st August 2017.
These require:
• that suitable shelter be provided for young calves before and during transportation and at points of sale or slaughter.
• that loading and unloading facilities be provided and used when young calves are transported for sale or slaughter or as a result of sale.
The requirements for a loading facility and suitable shelter were given a 12 month lead-in time to allow farmers, transporters, sale yards and processors time to make any necessary changes to their infrastructure or system and procedures.
DairyNZ is supporting farmers with information on the regulations through
a good practice guideline for all aspects of calf holding and loading facilities on-farm, including siting, access, design, construction, building consent and health and safety. You can find it at www.dairynz.co.nz/caringforcalves.
If you want to know more about the regulations, go to
www.mpi.govt.nz/calves, where you will find a guidance document containing commonly asked questions. Alternatively, you can ask a specific question either by emailing animalwelfare@mpi.govt.nz or phoning 0800 00 83 33.
Safeguarding your farm dairy effluent system
As many dairy farmers approach the end of the current milking season, some thought needs to be given to the upkeep of their farm dairy effluent (FDE) system, following the demands placed upon it during the year. Many farmers will already have a preventative maintenance programme in place but for those who haven’t, it is timely to consider the following simple system maintenance checklist.
Daily
• Before and after each milking, check that the storm water, or wash water, diversions are in place.
Regularly
• Assess whether the soil is dry enough and the water table is low enough to allow effluent application to the pasture without excessive ponding or run-off.
• Shift the spray applicator at the completion of each run.
• Make sure water troughs are covered, if affected by the spray drift.
• Regularly check waterways to ensure effluent is not entering these.
• Check flow-switches on pump.
• Grease the applicator.
• Check nozzles.
• Flush clean water through delivery lines and applicators.
Six months to annually
• Strip down pump for oiling and cleaning.
• Check pump seals.
• Have a nutrient analysis done on the stored effluent, soil and pasture.
• General storage facility maintenance such as weed spraying and sludge removal.
The DairyNZ Farm Enviro Walk technical support booklet is an excellent source of information.
The outline of this very instructive booklet is a simple self-assessment checklist for the farm. It aims to highlight practices on your farm that can lead to effluent and nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorus entering ground or surface water.
To obtain a copy, visit the DairyNZ website www.dairynz.co.nz.
The booklet encourages both dairy farm owners and farm staff to take a proactive outlook in checking their FDE system. Examples of the things to be checked via the quarterly walks include:
• Has the sump ever overflowed?
• Do the holding ponds leak or overflow?
• Is there vegetation on the pond’s surface?
• Do the irrigation nozzles block?
• Have any pipes burst?
• Does ponding occur when you irrigate effluent?
• Are there dead worms on ground surface?
• Does the grass brown off after applying effluent?
• Is the effluent from the stand-off and feed pads collected and treated?
As well as checking the existing system, it may well be time to look at extending the current system.
Article supplied by Iplex.
William Innes and Chris Thomson. |