Martin Merrick

Crossmolina, Ireland

Buildings and Labour Efficiency Reporter at Irish Farmers Journal

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Articles

The Grass Week: growth variable from farm to farm

2 weeks ago | farmersjournal.ie | Martin Merrick

A bit of heat in the last two weeks has really put a spurt of growth in to ground, and combined with farmers having applied adequate nitrogen, some farmers have recorded grass growth as high as the low 60’s, according to Pasturebase Ireland data. For each country, the range of growth rates recorded is given, and the difference between the lowest and the highest is huge. Most counties are seeing the highest growth rates being twice that of the lowest.
Reinvesting in suckler facilities as prices remain strong

2 weeks ago | farmersjournal.ie | Martin Merrick

A range of superlatives have has used to describe the beef trade at the minute, with ‘booming’, ‘on fire’ and ‘soaring’ all having been used in recent weeks by ourselves in the Irish Farmers Journal to describe the live trade in marts and the factory demand for finished cattle. While fertiliser and meal costs did creep up in recent months, the price of live cattle has surpassed these increases,and many suckler farmers will feel they have more money in their pockets than normal.
Grass+ Beef: grass still on the tight side for many

2 weeks ago | farmersjournal.ie | Martin Merrick

You’d be forgiven for thinking that the dry weather has paved the way for excellent grass growth, but this isn’t the case for a lot of farms. Good grazing conditions have speeled an earlier turn out for many, though the regrowth on these paddocks is what is affecting growth the most. Reports from farmers suggest that paddocks with a cover on the are growing well, but recently grazed paddocks are slow to build up a cover.
The Grass Week: growth kicks into gear for second round

3 weeks ago | farmersjournal.ie | Martin Merrick

Growth had been lacklustre for much of spring, with many farmers eating into covers as more cattle got out to grass. Thankfully, the bit of heat over the last week or so, combined with the longer days, has turned the corner with regard growth. While 25% of farmers measuring on Pasturebase are still on the tight side with farm covers below 600kg DM/ha, the majority of farmers are in a good position grass-wise as the second round begins.
Small but mighty in suckler heartland

3 weeks ago | farmersjournal.ie | Martin Merrick

Cathal is very honest when it comes to his farm set up, which is located just outside Castlebar town, off the main Ballinrobe-Castlebar road. “I’m working off a small land base here. If you let it go, it would be all rushes, but I try and make the most of what I have here. There’s 18.76ha, with 4ha being silage ground and another 8ha being good grazing ground. "After that it is peaty, heavy soil that can’t grow much.
Grass+ Dairy: farms hit cruise control as good weather persists

3 weeks ago | farmersjournal.ie | Martin Merrick

We’ve often had summers where there have been less consecutive dry days. The March gone by was a world apart from last year, and while it was on the cooler side and growth was pinched, grazing conditions were excellent, which allowed even heavy farms to get cows to grass with little to no damage.
Ensuring sufficient water supplies this grazing season

3 weeks ago | farmersjournal.ie | Martin Merrick

When we think of livestock nutrition, we often talk about grass supply and allocation, or input of concentrates. But for all livestock – particularly dairy cows whose milk is roughly 85% water – ensuring clean, fresh water is available at all times freely is paramount to production and overall animal health. Two major factors will dictate if the current water system in place is fit for purpose or if modifications are required: trough size and flow rate of pipes.
Grass+ Beef: reseeding and spreading silage ground on the mind

3 weeks ago | farmersjournal.ie | Martin Merrick

Finally, there seems to be a bit of power in the sun, which is kicking on growth on farms. Nearly all farms will have an opening round of fertiliser, if not two, spread and from here on out, it will be about following stock and adding some P and K into the mix to where it is required. With April comes the heat cycle before breeding. Ensuring high-quality grass, and plenty of it, is going in to suckler cows is essential ahead of breeding.
Just under 2,000 applications submitted for emergency TAMS tranche

3 weeks ago | farmersjournal.ie | Martin Merrick

Figures released by the Department of Agriculture show that just under 2,000 applications were received under the emergency TAMS tranche. A total of 1,945 applications were submitted during the three-week tranche for the period 8 March to 28 March. The specific items that were accepted in the emergency-tranche were: Backup PTO generators. Sheep, bovine and equine fencing. Wood / biomass chippers. Mulchers.
The Grass Week: second round a way off for some

3 weeks ago | farmersjournal.ie | Martin Merrick |Inland Fisheries Ireland

Pasturebase Ireland figures this week show that 35% of farmers have a cover below 600kg DM/ha, which spells trouble for these farms in the near future. When a grass cover dips below 550-600kg, then one of two things have happened; either there is very little regrowth on already grazed paddocks or the demand is significantly higher than the growth. For this spring, it’s a combination of both really. If you are in this bracket of farmer where cover is significantly low, then action needs to be taken.