DairyNZ’s DAiSY takes you one step further

When making spring nitrogen decisions, a generic answer is not always enough. Timing, application rates and trade-offs depend on pasture growth, soil temperature, feed demand, and environmental risk, and those factors can shift quickly through the season.

To compare how DAiSY, our AI-powered website assistant, handles this complexity, we asked both DAiSY and a general-purpose AI model three common spring nitrogen questions:

What is the lowest practical amount of nitrogen to apply on a New Zealand dairy farm?
Is liquid nitrogen more effective than granular urea for New Zealand dairy farms?
When is the best time to apply nitrogen on my dairy farm?

DAiSY turns answers into actions

In analysing the results, DairyNZ’s senior farm system specialist, Ron Pellow, says across the three questions, both AI tools landed on broadly similar baseline recommendations, including typical spring timing windows and common rate ranges, for example. “The difference wasn’t that one tool was ‘right’ and the other was ‘wrong’. The difference was in the level of local context and decision support,” Ron says. He says compared with the general-purpose AI model, DAiSY consistently:

Adds value on top of generally correct knowledge

By translating principles into on-farm suggestions (for example, soil temperature and pasture response expectations), rather than stopping at a rule of thumb.

Goes beyond simply answering the question to recommending what to actually do

Helping you check whether there’s a genuine feed deficit, how soon you’re likely to see a response, and how to plan grazing and supplements around it.

Shows stronger seasonal nuance

Including within-spring variation and how pasture dynamics change as you move from early to late spring (not just a high-level ‘spring is best’ message).

Makes trade-offs more explicit

By linking nitrogen decisions to whole-farm impacts (for example, what reduced N can mean for pasture grown, milksolids and stocking or feeding decisions).

Reinforces best-practice behaviour

In this case, suggesting the application of just enough N when it’s likely to be used by the plant and avoiding unnecessary applications when conditions don’t support a good response.

“Because DAiSY’s answers are grounded in DairyNZ research, its local relevance helps by providing seasonal nuance, practical decision cues and clearer links to whole-farm impacts, helping you apply information with confidence,” Ron says.

Have a question? Ask DAiSY today

What’s new with DAiSY?

A dedicated DAiSY page

Provides a clearer and easier chat experience. You can save this to your phone or computer screen just like an app.

Recent conversations are remembered

So you can pick up where you left off.

An icon showing the full circle of farmer, farm, animal

A better understanding of seasons and regions

This means responses and guidance will be aligned to what’s currently happening where you’re farming.

It’s easier to find local events and contacts

If you’re looking for a DairyNZ staff member or an event happening near you, DAiSY can now help more effectively.

An icon of two people with a light bulb over their heads

Multi-language support

If you’ve got team members who may not be confident in English, DAiSY can now be used in any language. This can help to improve understanding, onboarding and day-to-day decision-making across the team.

Like all generative AI, DAiSY can make mistakes. While we've taken reasonable steps to ensure DAiSY provides accurate information, you should still check the source information and the answers provided to make your own decision on its relevance and appropriateness for you.

This article was originally published in Inside Dairy August-October 2026.