Outlook with Bill Webb Bill Webb Feed Solutions

By the end of September we would normally be planting maize – but not this year. Like farmers and cropping companies throughout the Bay of Plenty and Waikato, we’ve been unable to get machinery on paddocks because unrelenting rain has saturated the soil and there have not been enough fine days to get grass dry enough to make silage.

So, as we did last season, we are revising which varieties we plant and it looks like we’ll be putting in the shorter maturing ones which actually did better than I expected this season. These varieties are designed for cooler areas such as around Rotorua and further south but when planted in areas with warmer temperatures, like the Bay, their yields are quite good.

However, these maize varieties produce a lot less on average per hectare than long-maturing varieties which can be quite significant across large plantings – and will no doubt mean less maize silage available this coming season.

We are luckier than a few contractors and farmers in the Waikato who have some of last year’s maize still standing, and probably rotting, in paddocks.

Soil temperatures

The rain really hasn’t stopped since March and sunshine hours have been so few that soil temperatures are not coming up as would be expected, so grass growth has been affected.

For farmers at the busiest time of the year, constant wet, cold conditions are draining on energy and positivity. It’s not easy getting up to mud, hard work and rain every day.

It affects staff morale and the health of cows too. Cows are using much of what they eat just to keep warm instead of producing milk and getting into calf, which is why production is down. That means another hit for farmers. Fonterra’s forecast is up, but milk volumes have dropped.

Direct drill seeds

Managing pastures in these conditions isn’t easy as paddocks are damaged by stock. One solution, when the paddocks are dry enough to get machinery on, is to direct drill with chicory or sorghum into the worst of them which will provide feed through the summer, especially if it does eventually turn dry. More permanent pasture can be planted in autumn.

We all need the weather to turn fine. When it does there’s going to be a lot happening and this is when good communications between farmers and contractors will be essential to ensure there’s plenty of warning about what’s planned and when it needs to happen.

As always, farmers need to be thinking ahead regarding their requirements for feed and placing orders. We have plenty of standing grass which we’d normally make into silage, but can’t get it cut because of the wet conditions.

Weird weather

This year has certainly produced some weird weather but I guess we have to count ourselves lucky that we haven’t been hit by super hurricanes as they have in Texas, Florida and the Caribbean.

There is a feed shortage so get your orders in early. Demand is high and you don’t want to miss out when you need it most – in the summer when protein levels are traditionally high and you are restricted as to how much PKE you can feed before you breach Fonterra milk taint levels.

So be sure to get your orders in early as we still have some good quality grass silage bales and maize silage available.