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Growing Heifers During Drought

The management of replacement heifers is of great importance for all farmers

By DPI - 18th February 2003 - Back to News

The management of replacement heifers is of great importance for all farmers as the next generation of animals are generally of better genetic merit and a lot of time and hard work has gone into the rearing of these heifers. Generally, if heifers are located away from the prime grazing areas on the farm, such as on "run off" blocks or on agistment, it is important that they are well managed. Otherwise many (up to 40% in some herds) may be culled before they reach maturity.

Good heifer growth rates are important for milk production and fertility and to minimise calving difficulties. Heifer growth rates are limited by inadequate water supplies, especially in parched summer conditions with high temperatures and dry, poor quality feed. Weaners require 25 L/day and yearlings require 45 L/day of water.

Growth rate in Friesians after weaning should average 0.7 kg/day, although that can vary between 0.5 and 1.0 kg/day, depending on available pasture and the supply and cost of supplements. Taking into account the current dry and drought conditions, if a heifer’s growth rate starts to drop below 0.5 kg/day then pasture should be supplemented with concentrates. Since access to most pasture in Gippsland is currently limited to low or none at all, then the easiest grain to feed, if available, is whole oats, as they do not need rolling before feeding. The amount of starches in oats and their rate of release are the lowest of any of the cereal grains - making oats the least likely to cause grain poisoning or acidosis.

The growth rates of heifers should be monitored regularly, and it is best to weigh them on scales as this is far more accurate than using chest girth tapes or wither sticks as they tend to over estimate liveweights, to ensure that targets are being met.

WHERE DO TREES COME FROM?

Where do trees/shrubs/grasses come from? Seed of course and now is the peak time to collect seed for future revegetation planting’s.

Vegetation that is native to the local area, also known as indigenous vegetation, has evolved to adapt perfectly to the local climate and soil conditions, and is better equipped to survive and grow well locally. Where possible plants for revegetation projects should be grown from a local source.

Seed collection involves collecting fruit from the plant and extracting the seed. Fruits may be woody capsules (eucalypts), papery capsules (bursarias), seedpods (wattles), berries and drupes (kangaroo apple), cones (casuarinas), grains (native grasses) etc.

To produce seed animals, insects or wind must pollinate the flowers of shrubs and trees. Once fertilised the seed and fruit begin to develop. The time from flowering to seed maturity can vary greatly between species from a few weeks to two years. For example eucalypts may take up to one year after flowering before seed is mature and ready for collection.

Fruits of many species are mature when they reach full size and change colour from green to brown or grey. When mature woody capsules will become hard, seedpods will begin to open, grains and papery capsules will become dry and brittle and fleshy fruits become soft and change colour, ie from green to red.

The length of time that the seed is retained on the plant once mature varies for each species; it may be released immediately or retained for short or long periods of time some species retain seed until fire releases the seed.

The amount of seed produced each year also varies according to environmental conditions and the genetics of the plant.

There are a few things to remember when collecting seed:

§ Always get permission from the owner or manager first, if it is public land you will need a permit, which may be obtained from the Department of Primary Industries.

§ Leave sufficient seed for other collectors, animals, insects and the tree itself, ie don’t collect more than 10% of the seed on any given plant.

§ Collect from groups of trees and from more than one plant to maintain genetic diversity.

§ Collect seed without damaging the tree or local environment.

BeefCheque Focus Farm Report – Dec/Jan

The following information has been collected from Beef Cheque focus farms to assist Gippsland farmers with grazing management decisions. This information is for the December/January period.

Next to no rainfall across Gippsland during December/January has resulted in almost zero average pasture growth. Most farms are now feeding supplements.

The Stratford farm received 9.5 mm rain for the period, resulting in average pasture growth rates of 1.8 kg Dry Matter per hectare per day. Average pasture cover is now 1162 kg Dry Matter per hectare, resulting in 47 Dry Matter tonnes of available feed or 26 days feed ahead at current consumption.

The farm is currently carrying 8.3 Dry Sheep Equivalent per hectare or 310 dry cows, 308 weaned calves and 8 bulls on 291 ha.

Source: http://gippsland.com/

Published by: news@gippsland.com

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