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AG News: 28/01/2010

Includes: Mixing and Matching feed systems and Farming Diary

By Department of Primary Industries - 4th February 2010 - Back to News

Victorian dairy farmers involved with Project 3030 are now improving their ryegrass management and adapting new forages to maximise labour and capital resources to increase profit margins, fill key feed gaps, minimise bought in feed, and manage seasonal risks.

Farmers have been using the latest research from Project 3030 that demonstrated that many farmers still have some ‘untapped’ potential in their existing ryegrass pasture systems.

Project 3030 offers useful information to farmers planning to extend their home grown forage base on existing farms and or run-off blocks.

For example, one 3030 farmlet, Ryegrass Max (RM), was based on ryegrass pastures only with supplements as required. Profitability, as determined by Return on Assets (ROA), equalled or exceeded the top 10 percent of South West Victorian farms, meaning that 90 percent of farmers have the opportunity to increase their profitability through improved management of ryegrass.

A second 3030 farmlet, Complementary Forages (CF), was designed to ‘push the envelope’ having a stocking rate of 2.88 animals per hectare. It was also based on ryegrass, but the home-grown forage base was extended by growing summer and winter forage crops.

The CF farmlets were only slightly more profitable than the RM farmlets, but had greater inputs, capital and risk. In a practical context, when making decisions about introducing a new forage to a given farm system, it can be difficult to make a profit.

To compliment perennial ryegrass, new forages require high yields, high utilisation and a good fit with herd feed needs, for example filling feed gaps and balancing the diet. The real costs of these forages can be highly variable due to yield and losses during harvest, and feeding out (where the crop cannot be directly grazed) together with ‘hidden’ capital and labour costs.

Researchers and farmers collaborating with 3030 have been exploring these types of issues and looking at ways to avoid the ‘downsides’ and exploit the ‘upsides’ of using new forages.

Improvements in 3030 farmlets’ ROA have come from higher milk production due to increases in pasture, and forage production and utilisation. Although, it sounds simple, the mechanics of the work and its implementation into farming systems is complex. If a few pieces do not mesh correctly, then the level of profit sought can be lost.

Pivotal factors for achieving the desired profit levels from ryegrass include:

• High levels of management by ensuring autumn pastures are dense through renovation and inclusion of the latest varieties.
• Using the latest techniques in grazing management.
• Harvesting early cut high quality silage.
• Maintaining pastures of high nutritive value throughout spring using such techniques as ensiling and selective pre-graze topping.
• Careful use of nitrogen fertiliser.

Another very important, but often overlooked factor, is making the right decisions ahead of time and making sure they happen as planned.

Project 3030’s plot and systems research and development is a collaboration between the Department of Primary Industries, The University of Melbourne, Dairy Australia, Gardner Foundation, DemoDairy Gippsdairy, Murray Dairy and WestVic Dairy.

A series of Project 3030 discussion days are scheduled to be held in Gippsland from February onwards and details are available via the Dairy Extension Website www.dairyextension.com.au under ‘What’s on’. For more information, please contact Frank Mickan on 5624 2259 or 0427 317 471 or Jason McAinch on 5147 0839.

FARMING DIARY

PROJECT 3030 PROFITABLE FARMING DISCUSSION DAYS

The Gippsland Dairy Extension Centre is organising a series of days to discuss many of the key findings to come out of Project 3030 and how farmers are using them in their own farming systems.

Key areas to be covered include:

· How did the 3030 Ryegrass Max and Complementary Forage farmlets at DemoDairy in south west Victoria make such good profits, even in a drought year?

· Do alternative forages have a place on your farm?

· How does the host farmer integrate 3030 messages into his farming system?

· How do farmers balance risk and resources in a variable climate?

Dates and venues:

· Orbost: February 4, 2010 at Marlo Road from 7:00 pm to 9:30 pm.

· Maffra: February 5, 2010 at Department of Primary Industries (DPI) Maffra from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm.

· Poowong: February 8, 2010 at 1515 Drouin-Korumburra Road from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm.

· Alberton: February 9, 2010 at 199 Meadows Road from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm.

A free lunch or tea will be available on each discussion day.

To register or for more information, please contact Jason McAinch at DPI Maffra on (03) 5147 0839 or Frank Mickan at DPI Ellinbank on (03) 5624 2259 or 0427 317 471.

Source: http://gippsland.com/

Published by: news@gippsland.com