Go home, Mother Nature, you’re drunk

July 17, 2016September 25, 2016 / dairymilkmaid / 8 Comments

WaterDry In April and May, we were using the very last of our dam water in a desperate attempt to get grass out of the ground. Two weeks ago, we had floods and the cows missed two milkings, trapped on the flats despite valiant attempts to bring them home.

FloodJune22fjord

Then, just last week, we had snow.

SnowyHills

We even went up to the nearby hills so five-year-old Alex could see snow for the first time.

SnowAlex

It’s been a crazy year so far but I refuse to be cowed by mud.

I’m celebrating the recharging of our dam for summer. It got very, very low but now is back.

I’m also celebrating the snatch of spring we felt between the floods and the snow. With it came the magic of balloonists and their silks drifting across the river flats.

Most of all, it’s bringing the hope of a good season when we need it so desperately. We cannot afford to buy in hundreds of tonnes of hay again this year. A failed season like last year would spell disaster in the jaws of a crushingly low milk price. To survive, we need to grow more grass than ever.

Landgate’s Pastures from Space tool confirms it’s been a difficult start to the year, with pasture growth rates actually even worse than last year’s failure. The thick red line represents an average year, the blue one is last year and the black one is the year to date.

The outcome is even more stark when you look at the cumulative amount of feed grown. Again, red is average, blue is last year and black is this year. Last year the farm grew half the amount of grass it grows in an average year and this year sits below even that low water mark – so far.

As you can see from the two charts, things need to get better, fast. I’m really optimistic that we are seeing a turnaround.

Up until now, the rain we’ve had has been simply replenishing the parched subsoil rather than growing much grass. It needs to happen because unless the subsoil is moist, the root zone dries out in the warmth of Spring as soon as there’s any halt in rainfall.

So, how is the soil moisture looking? Check out these Australian Landscape Water Balance charts. The first one shows just how recently the soil moisture in the root zone has returned to normal. This means that, finally, the grass can grow if there’s enough sun, nutrients and warmth.

The good news is that while the subsoil is not as wet as the root zone, it’s returned to about average. The one to watch still is the deep soil moisture, which as you can see from the chart below, still has a way to go.

Mother Nature may be behaving like a drunk but, while it’s raining, I’m not complaining.

Three floods in 30 days

June 23, 2012June 23, 2012 / dairymilkmaid / 6 Comments

Red in the morning, shepherd’s warning

It all started with this glorious yet ominous sunrise over the first heavy frost of the year. But the chill of the glittering, icy landscape (and the weather forecast, for that matter) gave no hint of what was to come – three days of rain that have limited us to just two paddocks for the milking herd until the third flood in 30 days releases its grip on the farm.

The third flood in 30 days

Normally, a minor flood like this one wouldn’t cause us any angst. We’d still have two-thirds of the farm, after all. The river flats are cut off but we also have undulating paddocks that never see a flood.

Unfortunately, we are halfway through calving and need to have six different groups of cattle in different paddocks: calves, large and small yearlings, dry cows, springing (soon to calve) cows and milkers. We also have nine “high ground” paddocks out of action due to renovation.

On top of this, we have been making up for punishing the high ground during the last two floods with remedial doses of fertiliser, including urea.

Urea is 45 per cent nitrogen, an element that is every bit as essential for plant growth as sunshine and rain. It’s even fed to animals sometimes to boost the protein level of their feed but too much of a good thing can be lethal. Nitrate poisoning brings a sudden, horrific death.

According to University of Melbourne guru Richard Eckard:

“The timing of grazing, relative to nitrogen fertiliser application, may adversely affect cows. Figure 1 shows the pattern of nitrogen uptake, as nitrate-nitrogen or crude protein in the plant, after grazing and subsequent application of nitrogen fertiliser. The following observations, from Figure 5.1, are important:

depending on condition, it usually takes around 4 to 5 days for the applied nitrogen fertiliser to dissolve into the root zone and to be taken up by the plant;

nitrate levels in the plant peak around 7 to 14 days post nitrogen application;

protein levels in the plant peak slightly later, usually around 16 to 18 days;

usually nitrate levels in the pasture drop off to acceptable levels by 18 to 21 days post nitrogen application.”

In other words, don’t let the cows into the paddock for 18 days after you spread urea. It’s 10 days right now.

Oh bother, oh dear, holy cow. I want to go home! (Hang on, this is home. Damn.)

Floods, bogs and mud, mud, mud

July 22, 2011July 22, 2011 / dairymilkmaid / 3 Comments

Partial view of the flood from the house this morning

The rain came…again. Yesterday, Yarram airport received 48.5mm and today, all the roads to town are closed, a third of the farm is cut off with at least another four paddocks underwater and the car is still sitting bogged in the driveway. Thankfully, the house is nice and high, so no sand bags needed (but thanks for the offer, Julie and Doug)!

Most of this is a temporary inconvenience. The good news is that the local rivers are short and empty into the sea quickly, so the roads should be open again in the next day or so. More important is the longer lasting issue of saturated pastures and muddy tracks.

Saturated pastures (they were already saturated before this jolly east coast low pressure system decided to pay us a visit) are very vulnerable. The damage done now by cows’ hooves will cause compaction of the soil so that, come summer, water will run off rather than soak in and roots will find it harder to penetrate the soil, exposing them to heat and denying them sub-surface moisture. If you’re a gardener, you’ll understand!

Muddy pastures and tracks are also a perfect recipe for lameness and mastitis, both painful conditions that are difficult and expensive to treat.

Of course, sopping wet soil is also no good for growing grass, which means we must step up our imported feed. This means more cost, long days and heavy tractors on fragile pastures.

Those weather gods need an urgent performance review so they can refocus on their KPIs!

At least there aren’t white caps in paddock 17 today

July 19, 2011July 19, 2011 / dairymilkmaid / Leave a comment

Flooded paddock 17

Paddock 17 and part of 18 are underwater today but at least there are no white caps. White caps? Yes, the ones sailors dread on an angry sea were whipped up in paddock 17 a week ago. The waters have barely subsided since then and all of the three forecast models I follow on OzForecast.com.au are predicting lots more rain in the next few days.

I’m a weather geek at the best of times but now I’m now compulsive about checking the forecast. Almost all our ready-to-graze pastures are on the river flats across the gully, which is infamous for flash flooding. A big downpour on the range to our south would see the cows marooned. There’s no bridge – only a concrete fjord – and I reckon building one would certainly usher in a drought!

Seriously though, I know many dairy farmers are facing much tougher times than we are with this amazingly wet season. Good luck to those still struggling with floods. Our thoughts are with you.