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Fertilization advice second cut
In the past week, very heavy cuts of more than 6000 kg DM were harvested in places. The sod was damaged in several places and, as a result of insufficient mowing, the growing point was mown out of the grass. This quickly results in a growth delay of several days.
In addition, due to the cold spring, the flowering time of especially the perennial ryegrass in the northern part of the Netherlands was slightly later. As a result, in many places the grass does not start to shoot into the ear until the next cut.
Mow the next cut lightly
For a quick recovery of the sod gives Agrifirm We therefore recommend that you mow too lightly in the next cut. Grazing is better, but often much more is mowed than is necessary for grazing. Do not fertilize this cut too little. A shortage of nitrogen does not contribute to a quick recovery of the sod!
What is the fertilization advice after the first cut
Mowing a light cut means mowing globally with a cutting yield of 1500 to 2000 kg DM. In addition to a slurry application of 15 - 20 m3 an additional fertilizer application of approximately 25 kg N/ha is required.
With or without slurry on the second cut?
Dairy cattle have recently been kept in stables in various places as a result of the too wet conditions. Then there is sufficient slurry available for spreading. When there is limited stock of slurry, the plots that have suffered badly from this heavy cut can be skipped this time with the slurry application. This will have to be compensated with a slightly higher fertilizer application.
Selenium and sodium are also important
High-quality roughage is the start of circular cattle farming and ensures healthier livestock, resulting in higher milk and livestock & crop yields. Fertilization with nitrogen is not only important for healthy and tasty grass. Sulfur and other elements such as selenium and sodium are also important. The silage results of the previous growing seasons clearly show that selenium fertilization increases the content in roughage.
With selenium fertilization, the selenium absorbed by grass is organically bound. This way your animals can make better use of this than if you provide selenium in the ration. Your young stock and old-milked cows also ingest selenium via grass.