Signpost: Rotations lengthening and good covers carry cows into autumn for Dermot

Good grass supply, balanced diets and solid milk output have made 2025 one of the smoother years in dairying, writes Bandon dairy farmer Dermot Walsh

Dermot Walsh: 'Things have been running smoothly on the farm this year, and I couldn’t have asked for a better year in dairy farming.' Picture: David Creedon

I walked the farm on August 25. Farm cover is currently at 757kg DM/ha and cover per livestock unit is 263.

I am delighted with the grass I have in front of the cows as this will let me lengthen the rotation with autumn just around the corner. I have after grass from silage ground coming back in the rotation also which will definitely help lengthen the rotation.

I am hoping not to take out any more paddocks for bales as I think it is getting a bit late in the year for baling silage. I am glad I have my baling completed a month ago. The diet is currently 16kg DM of grass and 4kg of concentrate in the parlour.

The concentrate might seem a bit high to some lads, but the price of milk is good this year, so I want to try and hold the milk in the cows. I also want to try to build covers so the extra bit of concentrate will help to stretch the grass.

At the time of writing, grass growth is currently at 54kg/DM/day, and demand is at 46kg/DM/day. We have just had some rain, since I completed the grass walk, so I hope that growth will increase.

I’m not too worried if growth doesn’t increase, as I have all my milking platform available to the cows at this stage. I have no reseeding to do as I completed that back in the spring.

Cows are currently milking 20.67L/day at 4.28% fat and 3.87% protein, which is equating to 1.74kg milk solids per cow.

I cut my red clover silage paddock on Saturday, August 9, before letting it wilt for 48 hours. We then raked it in and baled it up with an average of 10 bales to the acre. We then gave the paddock 2,500 gallons of diluted slurry.

About two weeks after the slurry was spread, I applied 30 units/acre of 50% MOP - that is a potassium product. I didn’t apply any chemical nitrogen to this crop. I hope to cut this field again for bales in the second half of September.

Youngstock are with a contract rearer at the moment, and the in-calf heifers won’t be coming home until the beginning of November.

The calves received a dose for a bit of a cough they had; hopefully, this will cure them. Other than that, the young stock have been doing excellent this summer and it is a credit to my contract rearer. Calves are currently receiving 1kg of concentrate.

Things have been running smoothly on the farm this year, and I couldn’t have asked for a better year in dairy farming. We got away for a week’s family holiday to Spain in the middle of August for a nice break from work and farming.

It was good to get away before the kids go back to school. I am lucky to have good and reliable relief milkers that looked after the farm while I was away.

• Dermot and Linda Walsh are farming in Lislevane, Bandon, with their children Tadgh, Aoife, Maebh and Eoin. They milk 84 cows supplying Barryroe Co-op.