Milking the Weather - June 2011 Edition
This winter
by Greg O’Brien, DPI Ellinbank
Are you ready?
If you began your farming career after 1996, then you will not have experienced annual rainfall like we received across Victoria in 2010 (see graph below).
Normally, soil moisture decreases in summer but over 2010-2011 we had rainfall like never before (see graph below).
Autumn rainfall was a bit higher than average, so many farms have an unusually high moisture profile coming into winter.
For younger farmers there is potential to be placed in a position that they have never experienced. For others, very wet conditions are a distant memory and lessons learned may not be front of mind.
It can be a long time from the onset of waterlogged conditions to when things dry out sufficiently again.
In addition to wet soils, pasture growth may be half what we have been used to due to more cloud cover and less sunlight hours to grow pasture and crops.
So the question arises, how will you manage this winter compared to the past?
The key is to manage for the short term while planning for the long haul.
Strategies you could consider include:
- Maintain a rotation that maximises growth
- Agist off-farm
- Split day grazing into multiple shifts
- Use back fences
- On-off grazing
- Feed supplements off-paddock
- Use a sacrifice paddock
- Improve drainage
For more details contact your local extension officer, factory field officer or consultant.
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Stay tuned: Milking the Weather webinar July 2011 Want to hear the latest seasonal report and how the climate indicators are shaping up for spring 2011? Climate models strengthen in skill during winter, so for the latest update log in online to the Milking the Weather webinar. A webinar is an online seminar where you can view the presentation via your computer and listen to the speaker. An email will be sent to subscribers next month with further details. |
