FEED FOR DAIRY COWS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 26 October 1940, Page 4

FEED FOR DAIRY COWS

PROVISION OF SUPPLEMENTARY FODDER Wairarapa Requirements AUTHORITATIVE DISTRICT SURVEY

(By

N. Lamont,

Instructor in Agricul-

ture, Masterton.)

It is an indisputable, if unpalatable fact, that the Wairarapa, possibly even more so than most other district, “enjoys” the reputation for making inadequate provision for the supplementary feeding of dairy stock. This reputation does not simply imply that Wairarapa dairy farmers are relatively less competent than those in other districts—on the contrary, in fact, one must recognise that the big majority of Wairarapa dairymen do make far more provision for lean periods than is made in the main dairying areas. What justice there is for this reputation, arises from the fact that the district is relatively an ill-favoured one from the dairying point of view. So that, even in making relatively greater provision for supplementary feed than their more favoured brethren in northern districts, Wairarapa farmers do not entirely compensate their stock for the unfavourable dairying climate which is their lot. In a normal Wairarapa season, considering the area south of Mount Bruce and excluding the narrow strip close to the Tararua Ranges, pasture production is adequate for only about three months of the year as the solo source of food for milking cows. That is to say, in order to adequately feed .a dairy herd in the Wairarapa, provision should really be made for nine months supplementary feeding. It is no doubt a truism that if there were no optimists there would be no dairy farmers, but this optimism is a source of weakness as well as a source of strength. In practice it is evidenced in the hope that the summer will not be as dry as it usually is, that the hill country man will have better grazing to spare than he very often has and that the spring will be at least as early as it has ever been before. It is regrettably true that, with the possible exception of an early spring this year, Wairarapa optimists have been sadly disappointed over the past two years with respect to all three points and production figures have clearly shown that from the cow’s point of view, optimism constitutes an inadequate ration.

The violent variations that do occur in seasonal conditions —for instance, 9.62 inches of rain in January or February, 1938, and 1.04 inches in the same months of 1939—make it imperative first of all that reserves of nonperishable supplements be established. On this point one might say, the whole case for ensilage may well rest, as there is no substitute for this fodder when an .exceptionally dry season calls for

. I reserves of milk producing supplements. For winter reserve, of course, hay is the obvious answer. > That, then, is the first point that must i be made —under Wairarapa conditions where violent extremes are the rule ; rather than the exception, it is impera- ’ tive that reserves of hay and silage . equal to at least one season’s total requirements, should be established. Per- ' haps a word is necessary to emphasise . that such silage must be a first-class . milk-producing product —which means that it must be made from a raw ma- . terial on which the cows would readily milk if it were fed to them as a standing crop. On many farms in the Wairarapa opportunities for making this class of silage are rare. Many pastures and soils have not the quality necessary to produce a substantial bulk of leafy material and usually the quality would be lacking unless the area were cut while the herbage was still inconveniently short. However, occasions can be found to convert an oat crop—cut really early—or the first cut of lucerne into a milk producing reserve of high quality. Assuming then that adequate reserves have been built up, it remains to consider what is necessary to provide adequate supplements for an average season. Probably the simplest way to consider this subject will be to divide up the season into periods according to the special demands of dairy stock, and the general level of pasture production and quality at different times of the ’ year. These periods can be conveniently taken as follows: (1) Late summer and early autumn. . An examination of the returns of most Wairarapa dairy herds will reveal the fact that soon after the New Year ’ their production declines fairly steeply. Sometimes there is a brief recovery with the autumn rains but this would indeed merely emphasise the serious inadequacy of the summer feed position. A perfectly fed cow will naturally fall away in production after she has been in milk for foui’ or five months, but this should be a gradual process if her feeding is adequate. On many Wairarapa dairy farms summer feeding is sadly lacking on the score of both quantity and quality. (2) Late autumn and early winter. Despite a normal autumn flush of grass, feed is rarely sufficient during the last few months of lactation. Cows are often already down in condition as a result of summer shortage and their (production plus the growing strain of (the developing calf, together, consti- ' tute a serious drain on the condition

and constitution of stock entering the winter. (3) Winter —dry period. As a reward for a season of good service the cow ;is turned out for her dry period to ' clean up the coarse leached roughage on some sheep farmers’ hills. While climbing the hills, digesting what is often little better than rubbish and nourishing a rapidly growing calf, she is expected to build herself up in condition and health to withstand another heavy production season. (4) Early spring. Most cows calve before the flush of .grass comes away and there is a period of about two months when the unfortunate dairy cow, freshly returned from a winter’s hard scrub cutting is expected to produce her maximum. An examination of herd testing sheets will again reveal the fact that few cows reach their flush production of milk, in a month, as is normal for a properly fed animal, but may take three or more months to attain this maximum and then are able to maintain it for no time at all, before dry weather forces them into a steep decline. Seasonal variations in production as revealed by herd test sheets are the best indication of the adequacy or otherwise of the food supplies. If a cow fails to reach her maximum milk production in about one month from calving, then her winter and early spring food supply has been inadequate—and if she fails to maintain that maximum for two or three months at least, then further provision of succulent summer fodder is necessary. In making the following suggestions for remedying the usual position, therefore, it is hoped that they will be studied in relation to individual circumstances as revealed by herd test or other records, in this way, any individual farmer can get a fairly accurate idea of how far these recommendations can apply to himself and how the areas and quantities given should be altered to suit his own circumstances. (1) Provision for the summer period. Omitting silage which is more lively to be used as a reserve than as a regular source of summer feed, we have the following possibilities—soft turnips, millet, green maize and lucerne —all of which will provide a good succulent feed for the dry period. Despite their susceptibility to disease and pest attack, soft turnips are probably the most popular. If fed only in the mornings and after wilting, no taint troubles will arise. On the lighter country as mpch as one acre to each five cows may be required, running up to one to ten cows on better ground. Millet and green maize are also very suitable where out of season frosts are not too risky—the former will do well on quite light stony country although maize requires rather better conditions. These crops are found convenient to follow swedes, etc., where chib root makes turnips inadvisable and have the further advantage that, should a very good season result in a surplus of summer crops, they can be converted " into hay or silage. As a sole source of summer feed one acre to each 8 to ‘ 12 cows should be grown. Although the stand is usually the i worse for the treatment involved, there • is no doubt that green lucerne is an i ideal dry weather food for milking ? cows. Providing it is wilted before j being fed there is no risk of bloat and > its high nutritive qualities place it in i a class by itself. With the exception 1 of lucerne, the crops named above i are all relatively deficient in protein. , and although their succulence makes 1 them well worth while in dry weather, | one feels that even better results could i be obtained if a protein rich supple- f ment could be added —for example, hi- i cerne or even a meal, fed in the bails, j consisting mainly of pea meal, linseed i meal, or something similar. 1

PROVISION OF SUPPLEMENTARY FODDER

(2) Provision for autumn and early winter. Later varieties of yellow fleshed turnip can be used to provide for this period and, on all but the lightest country, chou moellier is first class.. Although relished greatly by the white butterfly, etc., chou moellier has shown itself capable of good recovery from pest attack and is equally relished by stock. The amount of grass available at this period varies tremendously in different seasons and again the amount of feed provided earlier will affect the cows’ requirements, so that it is difficult to suggest even an approximate area that should reasonably be required. As a general rule, however, one acre to about fifteen cows, of chou moelliei’ or turnips, should suffice until the cows are dried off.

(3) Winter—dry period. There is undeniably a very regrettable tendency amongst many dairy farmers to regard a dry cow as deserving of little care or consideration. The standard practice of turning dry dairy cows out on rough hills rarely merits anything but the strongest condemnation. On light Wairarapa country, pugging is not often a serious consideration but even if it is, every endeavour should be made to see that cows are wintered in a good sheltered situation, sufficiently convenient to home to enable hay and roots to be fed. There is absolutely no doubt that many stock troubles, as well as low production, in the early spring, are directly the result of malnutrition during the ,dry period. It is agreed that a bulky, warmth-producing ration is appropriate at this time but it is essential that this ration, although bulky, contains more real nutriment than is to be obtained from the usual type of hill country roughage. Good hay and roots are not only necessary but highly profitable. Generally about three-quart-ers of a ton of hay per cow, cut from say, half an acre, and about an acre or two of mangels for fifty cows would not be too much for this period —remembering that a dairy cow will soon milk off any condition she might acquire when dry.

(4) Provision for early spring. Where cows calve in early August, they should be producing their maximum milk during September, whereas grass is rarely sufficient until mid-October. Really good hay and mangels will provide for this period, but it is frequently found that a green cereal is more acceptable. The area of, say, oats, sown will depend again upon the amount of hay and roots saved and upon the time when a flush of grass is normally experienced in the district, but probably one acre to ten cows would be the rule. Such an area of oats can later be converted into silage or hay and makes a good product if cut really early.

Summary. As was mentioned above,

the actual areas given are very approximate only and can only be taken as a rough guide. It is suggested as a sound practice that every endeavour be made to establish non-perish-able reserves in the form of silage and hay. These will be a safeguard against crop failures and against flush seasons when crops are partly wasted. Although! necessary in the Wairarapa. crops which cannot be converted into reserves should be kept at a minimum. As a rough guide the following scheme is suggested for a herd of 50 cows:

(1) For summer feeding.—(a) 5 acres of soft white turnips; (b) 3 to 5 acres of millet, green maize or lucerne (in addition to turnips); (c) the feeding of small quantities of protein rich meal in the bails is recommended as well worth a trial for the best cows at least. (2) For'autumn and early winter. — (a) 3 or 4 acres of chou moellier or late turnips; (b) probably some hay towards the end of the period. (3) For winter dry period.—(a) 25 acres of hay; (b) 1 or 2 acres of mangels (in addition to hay). (4) For early spring.—(a) At least 5 acres of green oats. (This area will depend on the quantity and quality of the hay that could be saved), (b) This is another period when the feeding of concentrate meals is likely to be a profitable venture.

This plan should serve as a rough idea of what is normally required in the Wairarapa—on some of the poorer country, the areas may need to be increased, and on the best country they may be a little on the high side. Such a scheme does not involve an excessive amount of ploughing as two or three crops can be taken from the same area—preferably so long as at least one fed-off crop is included. Any attempt to work out the economics of such a supplementary feeding plan would necessarily be so approximate as to be of little use, but there can be no doubt of the highly profitable results that must accrue from more adequate feeding. It must be remembered that a dairy cow uses about half her food first of all to maintain herself—that is, to maintain her bodily functions, keep herself warm, provide energy for movement, etc., and it is only when she is fed in excess of this “overhead” requirement that she will produce. In other words, any feeding in excess of maintenance is directly returned as profitable butterfat.

Many dairy farmers this year will, by cropping and topdressing, be striving to increase the amount of food produced on their farms, but in very many cases, it would be a mistake to also increase the number of cows milked. Unless the owner is one of the few whose cows are already fully fed, it would obviously be sound economy to convert all the extra food into milk by feeding it to cows which are already being maintained rather than to increase his “overhead” by bringing new animals on to the farm. There will be few farms on which increased food supply, without increase in herd number, would result in the stock becoming- fat during the milking season.