Late summer strategies in dairy farming involve continuous monitoring of feed demand and body condition score (BCS). This page discusses how managing pasture effectively, considering factors like over-grazing and dry periods, is crucial.

Body Condition Score (BCS) is a critical element in managing the health and reproduction of your dairy herd. It's essential to maintain BCS targets, as too thin or too fat cows can negatively affect reproductive performance.

Heifer grazing involves estimating your farm's ability to support the growth of dairy heifers to meet their target weights. It's important to evaluate the number of heifers your land can sustain based on the amount and quality of pasture.

Dry matter is a crucial dietary requirement for dry cows. This page outlines the energy a cow needs, considering its weight gain or loss. The feed requirement considers the cow's maintenance, pregnancy, and weight gain.

Comparative Stocking Rate (CSR) is a tool to measure the balance between feed demand and supply on a farm. It is determined by calculating the amount of livestock weight per hectare versus the annual feed available.

Cocksfoot is a resilient pasture grass, ideal for dry conditions and resistant to many pests. Though its feed value is typically lower than ryegrass, it supports summer growth in dairy pasture mixes, especially in drought-prone areas.

Pre-graze mowing is a technique sometimes used to manage surplus pasture. However, research shows it doesn't increase cow intake or performance, and actually reduces pasture performance.

White clover is crucial for New Zealand dairy pastures, offering nutritional value and fixing nitrogen to boost other grasses' growth. Yet, shade hampers its growth, and overusing N fertiliser can outcompete it.

Johne’s disease is a long term, infectious disease that affects the gut of cows and reduces their ability to absorb nutrients. There is no cure, so management focuses on reducing the risk of spread.

Creating a new pasture isn't just about sowing. Good management, especially in the first year, can boost its performance and longevity. It's only successfully established once it's dense and has survived a summer.

Choosing the right supplement for your dairy farm requires careful consideration of factors such as energy content, cost, storage, wastage, and feeding logistics.

Drought management in dairy farming is about preparing for and recovering from dry conditions. This page provides you with various options to deal with drought.

Using the LEAN principle, DairyNZ developed this training programme to help enhance dairy farm management by identifying and eliminating waste, improve safety, streamline milking times, and enhance team communication and engagement.

Learn the habits of farmers with excellent pasture management, including controlling daily grazing area, treating pasture like a crop, and maintaining optimal pasture cover.

Choosing the right plant species and cultivar is essential for optimising pasture life, feed availability, and your profit. Match these to your farm's specific conditions like climate, soil, and pests.

Dairy cow fertility is essential to every dairy business being productive. It is important to consider areas to focus on, in order to maximise the herd's reproductive performance.

The regulations set rules which apply to feedlots and other stockholding areas such as feed pads, stand-off pads, winter pads and loafing pads.

Table to Calculate Value of Feeding Supplements to Dry Cows for Condition Score (BCS) Gain

This online tool takes the guesswork out of grazing management over this critical period in the early spring. Input your data into the 5 steps to assist with your grazing management during and after calving.

The supplementary feed price calculator allows you to determine how much you can pay for supplementary feed.